Fiber artists blogs

I found out that I have two friends who started a blog within the last half year. They are both fiber artists who belong to the Focus group with me (http://www.focusfabricart.org/) and both do wonderful work:
Judy Simmons, http://www.judysimmonsfiberart.blogspot.com/ "Windy Hill Happenings"
Marilyn Wall, http://www.marilynhwall.blogspot.com/ "Fabricating Nature"
Check them out!
And now, I am off packing to teach at the Campbell school again. This time, I am teaching my new class "Hand quilting: old technique, new possibilities" and I am quite excited about it.

Second necklace

When I designed the last finished"Offerings", I did it with the intention of hanging the necklace from the ceiling, so that it would be seen suspended when the doors are opened. I worked really hard on that necklace, made sure that it was not too long, but when it was all done, I realized that because of its shape, not hang well. So, I changed the plans and display it on the bottom of the piece. It works but it is not what I intended.

When I showed the piece to a group I meet with every few months, one of the members asked, it I would consider making another necklace to fit in the box as I had originally planed. The idea had not even crossed my mind! In retrospect, of course, it seems like the thing to do. But when I discovered the problem, possibly because I had worked so hard, I did not even consider that option. Strange how the mind works....or does not work!

My friend's comment made so much sense that I decided that I would indeed make a new necklace. I asked glass artist Teresa Brittain from TN to make a large blue tear-shaped bead and I am beading that. It is far from being done and it is probably as challenging as the other necklace ("weave 3 beads and take 2 out" kind of thing!) but I am enjoying it nonetheless and so far am pleased with the results. There are still a number of problems I need to solve...but hey, that's for tomorrow.

Beadwork for new Offering

In order not to get bored with one thing, I try to work on different parts of each piece in turns. I may work on the necklace during the day because it is easier in daylight and at my desk and work on the embroidery at night. Sometimes, it feels a bit stressful because I have all these parts in progress and nothing really done, but in the long run, it really keeps my interest alive.


So most of the last few days, I have been working on beading the necklace for my new "Offering" piece. I don't think I have mentioned what the concept for this one is. It is called "Keeper of Seeds" and is a reminder how precious seeds are, whether real plant seeds, or metaphorical seeds in our thinking, creativity, etc. The "rose window" design is actually based on a macro photo of a seed pod. I traced the main lines of the photographed pod and shrunk the tracing to the size I need. So, even if no one knows and if it is not obvious, the concept of seed is really an integral part of my design. The freeze below the rose window is also based on a seed pod. (See my post from February 13 to see images of the drawing).

So back to my necklace, I took the rose window design and combined several copies of it to get to the necklace shape I wanted. This part is embroidered on fabric. The rest of the necklace (cord part) will be beaded in a different way. I am pretty excited too because I figured out how to use some of the cut stones that my husband had sent a few weeks ago from Afghanistan.

Dresses out of paper

I just had to translate an article about an exhibit at the Musée des Tissus (Fabric Museum) in Lyon France. This exhibit called "Rêves de papier" (Dreams in paper) is on until May 4, 2009 and showcases the work of Isabelle De Borchgrave. She is a Belgian artist and she probably would be mostly known in the US for her designs called "Isabelle Parties", which are a series of designs on party plates and paper ware distributed by Target. However, the exhibit is about a series of dresses....all made out of paper. Although she has made paper dresses and outfits representing many different periods and countries, her influence for this exhibit is the work of Mariano Fortuny, whose work I love too. I am quite taken with the idea of using paper as a material, and she is a master! So check out her website, you won't believe it is paper!

http://www.isabelledeborchgrave.com/new_site/en/index.cfm.

If you are interested in Fortuny, go to http://www.fortuny.com/. His paintings, photographs, fabrics and dresses are fabulous.

And if you happen to be in France and near Lyon before the end of May, you can find more about the museum at http://www.musee-des-tissus.com/en/01_00_set.html

Center for Craft Creativity and Design

I took the afternoon off yesterday, which was very nice after several stressful weeks, and among other things went to the Center for Craft Creativity and Design in Hendersonville.
Here is the link to their website if you want more information: http://www.craftcreativitydesign.org

The current exhibit, Soul's Journey: Inside the Creative Process, is quite interesting. A number of media are represented (wood, glass, fiber, clay, metal...) I knew some of the artists, some others I did not. All the work was inspiring but of course I had my favorites and I came home quite energized and happy to have learnt about several artists that I did not know before.

The Center also presents a video of some of the artists working. I think the total video lasts 2 hours, so I watched only part of it about Michael Sherrill, who leaves in Hendersonville. It was a treat not only to see his work progress, but to hear his thoughts about what he does and how he works with metal, clay and class and uses all three in his pieces.

This exhibit is on until April 24, 2009 and if you live in Western North Carolina or are travelling through, it is worth the visit.

Near disaster

My planets must not be aligned right lately because I have had more bad things happen! I have been working (not as much as I would like) on my newest piece and was trying to put some Fray Check at the end of a gold braid to prevent it from fraying before I finished couching it down. I know to be very careful with Fray Check...but lo and behold, next thing I know there is a big (really big) blog of Fray Check on the panel that is almost done (saved for that little bit of braid to finish sewing). Panic? yes, I rushed to the faucet and splashed the whole thing with water so that the stuff would not sink in the fabric and be impossible to remove. It worked mostly and I was able to peal most of it off. I only have to redo a small part of the blue embroidery.

At least now, I know these panels are washable!

But does this happen only to me? It seems that with just about every single project I do something like that.

Here is the panel that needs to be fixed.

And here is another finished panel.

A different kind of art

Some days ago, my son David came down to the studio and said he had a question for me: would I help him simplify and modify a design that he wanted to have tattooed on his arm. Now you have to understand to when they were small, I always told my sons that I did not mind earrings, long hair but please no tattoo. When he became a young adult, David decided that he did want a tattoo. In the end, that is fine with me. When I think of it, body art has been used for hundreds of years all over the world, often carrying some kind of meaning. I think I am getting over the stigma that tattoos had when I grew up and can look at them, at least some of them, with an appreciation for lines and design. So, I said yes. I was really very flattered that David would ask me and I was happy to work on the design with him. It was fun. He had chosen a very stylised wolf head and we had to simplify some of the internal lines and work something out for the bottom of the design, which was flat in the original version. So here it is, on the arm of my beautiful son.

Exhibit at the Sautee Nacoochee Center

My friend Marilyn Wall, who belongs as I do to the group Focus Fabric Art, and I were both guest artists at the Fiber Soup Group exhibit, which is taking place at the Sautee Nacoochee Center in GA until the beginning of April. The opening was Saturday evening and Marilyn and I were at the center "demoing" our techniques in the afternoon. It is quite a nice exhibit and a number of people came through. I am impressed with how active this art center seems to be.

The day before was "play day" and one of my friends from GA had invited her group of friends to her studio and we had a "stitching" day. I showed them some of the techniques from my new class (hand quilting: old technique, new possibilities) and I think they enjoyed it. I did.
It was very nice to spend a few days with friends who have the same passion, particularly after a very stressful week.

Play day with friends

Part of the exhibit

Marilyn showing her fabric painting technique

Marilyn (leff) and I in front of our work