Last week disappeared in the usual blur. I did step outside the exhibition bubble for a few days so I could attend to a few other 'textile' commitments which was nice but put even more pressure on my time plan.
Monday was taken up partly with delivering work for our EG branch exhibition. I wasn't involved in any hanging for this so it should have been a quick in and out but as it was being held at the gallery we use for Material Girls I took the opportunity for a 'quick' catch up with the arts centre manager which turned into an hour long chat over various things.I returned to see it all hung on Saturday and partake in Tea and Scones that the VAC is now providing in its new cafe-an excellent idea.
Tuesday was Material Girls and I was collecting in and cataloging the work for Jersey which took up the whole morning. The work looks good and is being exhibited at the Textile Showcase under the title 'Primarily Colour'. This mini body of work consists of 10 hangings and 10 vessels (there are 11 of the group now but one is new so isn't exhibiting with this body) and looks good when all together so we are hoping to show it another small gallery when it returns home.
Considering there were only a few pieces it still took me 3 hours that afternoon to pack and sort out all the paperwork (I didn't realise Jersey had such strict customs legislation! I though it was part of the UK). I've led this group for 10years now and am still learning.
Wednesday was more relaxing as I took a break to meet up with my friend Marian (the other 3rd of our little group being sunning herself in Turkey this time) and visit the 'Chinese Robes' at the V&A. They really are exquisite but I really wish sometimes that you had the opportunity to actually get hands on and see how its done. It was some of the most delicate stitching I have seen in a long while and I loved it-real craftsmanship.
Other than that it continues to be stitch, stitch, stitch or rather embellish, embellish,stitch. I had to work out a way this week to knock back the areas that I didn't want focused on with the panels. Embellishing from the back took away too much detail so I have applied a fine mist of silk fibres over those areas which not only gives a hazy misty light to the pieces it helps draw all four panels together. I hoping to finish embellishing the final panel (winter) this week and then I can concentrate on all stitching. However I am nearly there on the textural stitching on the path and then can add the last layer of scattered tiny beds where necessary. So back to the bubble.
Tuesday, 15 February 2011
Monday, 31 January 2011
Life's a blur
Why is it when you make optimistic,firm decisions life has a habit of biting you in the bum? Well I've been well and truly bitten on a personal front which has caused home life to be sent into free fall over the last month but as I say its personal and not to be discussed here-I'm just explaining my absence from blogging.
Of course personal upsets couldn't have come at a more inopportune time but I am still plowing on with the work come what may.
Since Christmas I have created a piece of embellished fabric over 15ft long which has been under the machine 3 times to achieve the required effect. I have stitched all the text onto this 'pathway' by hand and then distressed and embedded it using the embellisher so it appears like the random and discarded thoughts that passed through my consciousness during the many walks I took through the woods. the next stage -which I have embarked on- is to hand stitch the whole path with texture representing the seasons that the journeys have taken from the first shoots of spring through burgeoning summer and a glorious autumn to the soft decay of winter.
Meanwhile I am starting to create the backgrounds on the 6ft panels (again this takes at least 3 passes under the machine to create the right layers and textures). I have finished the Spring panel which is ready for hand stitching and started the summer one. The main problem I have is good enough light to enable me to select the right colours of fibres and fabrics so I am limited to the hours I can work on that to mid-day as it has been so gloomy.
On top of this there is extra sketching that JC have asked me to do and all the paperwork that is required to be kept up -sketchbooks,journal and the endless forms they keep sending.Plus we, my fellow graduates, are trying to organise our exhibition from different parts of the globe so we are in e-mail overload. Plus we are still expected to keep up our contact with what is occurring in the art world in general - fortunately I have a couple of great friends in fellow students Helen and Marian who make sure I get to see at least some of the exhibitions and since Christmas I have been to Eastwing nine at the Courtauld and the Designer Craftsmen at the Mall Galleries and I'm off to see the Chinese robes exhibition at V&A next week all being well and I'm really looking forward to the break. So a normal day at the moment goes- get up and do some chores, paperwork etc... 3-4 hours on the embellisher until the light goes, more chores, cook dinner, 3-4 hours hand stitching, bed.
Finally there is real life to cope with- family issues,everyday living (the usual cooking washing cleaning etc...)
Meanwhile I've still got Material Girls to organise (the exhibition of work we were invited to do for the Jersey Textile Showcase must be packed up and sent next week) and some other work delivered to the visual arts centre for another exhibition. I am also trying to get everyone progressing on the next exhibition we are orgainsing with our Canadian colleagues.
Actually I'm making myself feel ill reading this and if it wasn't for the fact that I can use my blog towards my written work I don't think I would be writing it at the moment. So until the next update its back to the embellisher.
Of course personal upsets couldn't have come at a more inopportune time but I am still plowing on with the work come what may.
Since Christmas I have created a piece of embellished fabric over 15ft long which has been under the machine 3 times to achieve the required effect. I have stitched all the text onto this 'pathway' by hand and then distressed and embedded it using the embellisher so it appears like the random and discarded thoughts that passed through my consciousness during the many walks I took through the woods. the next stage -which I have embarked on- is to hand stitch the whole path with texture representing the seasons that the journeys have taken from the first shoots of spring through burgeoning summer and a glorious autumn to the soft decay of winter.
Meanwhile I am starting to create the backgrounds on the 6ft panels (again this takes at least 3 passes under the machine to create the right layers and textures). I have finished the Spring panel which is ready for hand stitching and started the summer one. The main problem I have is good enough light to enable me to select the right colours of fibres and fabrics so I am limited to the hours I can work on that to mid-day as it has been so gloomy.
On top of this there is extra sketching that JC have asked me to do and all the paperwork that is required to be kept up -sketchbooks,journal and the endless forms they keep sending.Plus we, my fellow graduates, are trying to organise our exhibition from different parts of the globe so we are in e-mail overload. Plus we are still expected to keep up our contact with what is occurring in the art world in general - fortunately I have a couple of great friends in fellow students Helen and Marian who make sure I get to see at least some of the exhibitions and since Christmas I have been to Eastwing nine at the Courtauld and the Designer Craftsmen at the Mall Galleries and I'm off to see the Chinese robes exhibition at V&A next week all being well and I'm really looking forward to the break. So a normal day at the moment goes- get up and do some chores, paperwork etc... 3-4 hours on the embellisher until the light goes, more chores, cook dinner, 3-4 hours hand stitching, bed.
Finally there is real life to cope with- family issues,everyday living (the usual cooking washing cleaning etc...)
Meanwhile I've still got Material Girls to organise (the exhibition of work we were invited to do for the Jersey Textile Showcase must be packed up and sent next week) and some other work delivered to the visual arts centre for another exhibition. I am also trying to get everyone progressing on the next exhibition we are orgainsing with our Canadian colleagues.
Actually I'm making myself feel ill reading this and if it wasn't for the fact that I can use my blog towards my written work I don't think I would be writing it at the moment. So until the next update its back to the embellisher.
Monday, 3 January 2011
Happy New Decade!
Whoopee! Christmas is over at long last.The decorations are down and tomorrow I get my house back as Martin goes back to work and Kirsty starts her first nursing placement.Although we have a tiny close family we do have quite a few peripheral ones plus friends and I worked out that over the 'holiday period' I have entertained, cooked and generally run around after over 30 people. Invitations for me to be waited on or even made a coffee -0! can anyone wonder why I am not a Christmas fan?
OK enough moaning. This year I have decided to try and moan less and also not let myself be 'put upon' any more, no more Mrs. martyr.
When I wasn't cooking, massaging egos,cleaning, washing up, etc... (probably like every other mother/wife on the planet) I did manage to get a start on my fabric for my final piece and yesterday I finished producing 5 metres of needle felt (which has to have at least 3 complete passes under the machine to combine the various layers of different fibres). The old back is a bit stiff as I think it has taken about 24 hours in total but at least I can actually start the embroidery now, which is quite exciting.I'm really proud of my 12 needle Babylock Embellisher- everyone kept saying you need access to an industrial one to produce such lengths-well you don't. Lets hope it is up to the other 4 panels it will have to produce by the end.
So now its all systems go for 2011 and I can't wait.
OK enough moaning. This year I have decided to try and moan less and also not let myself be 'put upon' any more, no more Mrs. martyr.
When I wasn't cooking, massaging egos,cleaning, washing up, etc... (probably like every other mother/wife on the planet) I did manage to get a start on my fabric for my final piece and yesterday I finished producing 5 metres of needle felt (which has to have at least 3 complete passes under the machine to combine the various layers of different fibres). The old back is a bit stiff as I think it has taken about 24 hours in total but at least I can actually start the embroidery now, which is quite exciting.I'm really proud of my 12 needle Babylock Embellisher- everyone kept saying you need access to an industrial one to produce such lengths-well you don't. Lets hope it is up to the other 4 panels it will have to produce by the end.
So now its all systems go for 2011 and I can't wait.
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