Chantal Guillermet – Artist style #1
Portrait
My chosen artist is Marc Chagall and my first theme : Portrait
The hardest part of choosing an artist was not only to find someone I like but also someone who inspires me, without copying him…
Chagall has fascinated me for a long time, not only because of his Russian origins, but also because he painted a world of dreams, poetry and colour.
Caught between tradition and modernity, torn between Russia and France, he finally chose exile and settled in Paris.
This first quilt “Portrait” represents him reflecting on the choices he had to face.
The background fabric is a piece of embroidered tablecloth whose art deco style recalls the 1910-1920s. Although Chagall’s work is colourful, black is very important and highlights the forms. This is why I used black under the lace, but also to create the Eiffel Tower, the symbol of Paris and to print the leaves.
For the leaves I used acrylic paint and a foam stamp I made.
The centre of the leaves is worked with thread painting.
I worked the portrait in free-motion quilting from a photo of him published in the catalogue of the retrospective at the Centre Beaubourg in 1995 (?)
FIFTEEN BY FIFTEEN 
What a great choice of artist, I am fascinated to see how you will continue. great choice of colours and motifs and an interesting way to add the portrait without it dominating the piece. great work.
What a lovely use of the tablecloth and very clever idea to put black behind the embroidered corner. Great depiction of a great artist. Cheers
Great choice of artist and excellent start for your series. I love how you did the portrait theme, adding the references to Russia and France. I am curious how you will continue your work and manage the chromaticity of Chagall. Bravo!
Very interesting opening of the series, great idea to start with portrait of an artist and his infuences. Can’t wait for the next pieces!
This is of course a great choice of artist. You executed his portrait perfectly. Love the addition of the lace, adds such a lovely touch of poetry to the piece. Also admire the quilting of your background, so well chosen! Great work.
A good introduction to your artist and his background. The lace is lovely and shows up well with black behind it. I like the gentle colours.
great artist and a very nice work, the clues you used such as the tablefloth and the Eiffel Tower, and most of all I love the portrait.
I am a big admirer of Chagall’s work too. I love how you incorporated his portrait in this first piece of the serie. Beautiful stitching. The combination with the black and the lace is very effective as is the contrast of the dominant Eiffel tower with the subtile stitched Russian church domes in the back. Bravo.
I love the way you have used the fabrics and colours to highlight the design elements, and the way that you have used images from both Russia and France to depict Chagall’s struggle to decide on a country. Well done
The use of the embroidered cutwork tablecloth adds beauty to your piece. The stitching is nicely done. I look forward to learning more about this artist through your work.
You created a wonderfull piece with a lot of symbolism in it. I love it!!!
Very well thought out design and beautifully executed and stitched, depicting the struggle Chagall had to face. Love the lace and symbolism, well done Chantal!