Latest textile work in Gallery 49 exhibition

Hello dear readers, I'm not doing very well at keeping up to date with blog posts or checking out your blogs at the moment, shame on me. My excuse is I've been swamped with 'proper' design work and that has to take priority to my arty crafty things.


I've found a few minutes to upload my latest textile work which is currently on display in the Menagerie exhibition at Gallery 49, Bridlington. There are some really super pieces of work and lots of prints by Mark Hearld but here is the link, it's on until end of June.

http://galleryforty-nine.com/

I recorded the progress of my artwork as I built up the layers so here is the timeline for anyone interested.


With invisible fabric pens I drew a face onto some thick canvas and began machine stitching the features, my intention with this piece was to keep the face as simple and uncoloured as possible, all the drama and colour was going to occur in her hair.
Did I say the piece is called Butterfly Girl.

Happy with the face I then used painted newsprint leaves stitched down for the hair.

I copied some victorian butterflies onto newsprint to add in the background. To give some texture I scrunched green bits of organza fabric and stitched it down.
To enhance the pale face I painted the background with some Derwent Inktense pencils. And then some more colour, time to stitch on 3D butterflies which are mostly from my own butterfly print fabric.
I had a lovely piece of vintage fabric to form a dress.

Almost there and nothing would be complete without a lovely doilly, so here it is for the collar!
The final icing on the cake which you might just make out are some small butterflies protruding on wires for that extra bit of 3D effect, flying round her hair.


Of course once the picture is complete I don't usually stop there. I took some photos and had a play around with the sun and the natural light in the background and it brings out some interesting effects because you can see all my stitches and strands in the background.

Back to work again, burning the midnight oil at the moment!

Sledmere project - finished

Over the weekend I finished my work for the Sledmere project. The exhibition called 'Ways of Seeing' will run at Sledmere House from April 22nd to 17th June.

When I visited Sledmere I tried to look beyond what my eye initially sees when I entered the rooms.I found myself looking closely at surface patterns, everything from ceiling motifs, marquetry furniture, textile patterns on carpets & cushions and opulent designs on cloisonne vases. Pattern it seemed was everywhere and often an eclectic mix which flowed beautifully from room to room.

My artworks were inspired by an Oriental vase, I was drawn to the image of a bird, a popular symbol in textile and ceramic decoration. My challenge was to take that ceramic design from the vase and create a stitched collage using recycled scraps of fabric & paper, to create a heady mix of Oriental Chintz meets floral bouquet.

Much of my mixed media work will use recycled materials, fabric, wallpaper, newspaper etc. and in keeping with the spirt of that I turned the leftover scraps from the collage into a trio of brooches, each one being a wearable piece of art in its own right and paying subtle homage to the patterns I saw in this English country house.