Four Elements: Air, Fire, Earth and Water

 I chose the landscape to help interpret the four elements.

High above the tree tops the birds glide through the air.

Through man-made error or Mother Nature, fire destroys habitats and what was once a wonderful forest.

Then one day, in what was once a desolate landscape, we see that the earth hides new life.

Many years later comes a day when the trees are again plentiful and where the landscape beside the water is peaceful.

I had had an idea in mind for a long time this challenge. With the forest fires in British Columbia this year coming close to my daughter's home, I was again remembering a CBC short film about a devastating forest fire in northern Ontario where a few people survived by staying in the water (either a lake or river) until the fires burned out.
The following is taken from the Natural Resources web site:
"July 30th [1916] was a frightening day, almost a repeat of the events that had happened only five years previously. This time, the fire consumed nearly 800 square miles of forest, and the toll reached an unheard of 282 official deaths."

Originally, I was going to make just one quilt but I changed my mind and chose to depict the four elements in four separate small pieces. I let my fabrics do the work along with some stenciling and drawing on the fabric.