Textures

Enjoying 

unexpected textures 

in the studio today.

My week

With the fall term of school beginning last week, it's been possible to reacquaint myself with the studio. After giving my work table a good clearing (happily, there really was a table beneath all the stuff that had accumulated and grown exponentially over the summer), I settled in and applied to two exhibitions. Many thanks to Christine for the photo resizing info!

Next was the completion of a set of direct rust print and mono print squares that have been in the works for far longer than they should have been.

There's a collaboration brewing with Bridgette that will involve my rusted cottons. Very early stages yet, but we've taking it beyond the wistful emails stage to actually having a few concrete-ish ideas.

Circles were calling me again, both small

and large. The larger spurred what if #758

so after unearthing my bolt of white cotton, I set to work filling the cloth using an object found nearly everywhere. 

Can you guess what it is?

In the studio

Since returning from Pam's and my 6th annual artist retreat, time in the studio has been hit and miss. It will become even more so over the next few weeks as the school year ends and my little urchins are home until summer camps begin.

My plan for the summer is to rise early and get in the studio for whatever period of time the day brings before the girls wake. This means quiet, focused work. Don't want to wake the urchins too early! 

Over the weekend, I cropped the craft paper that had been printed at Pam's

and began sewing the sections together. What's happening in your studio?

Buried Treasure - 5 days

Welcome! Seth Apter of The Altered Page is hosting a hunt for buried treasure - favorite older posts from our blogs that strike a cord. It was fun culling through my entries from several years ago. Instances or processes or pieces long forgotten were revisited and remembered.

logo from The Altered Page

In the end, I chose a post from May 2012, entitled 5 Days. I was getting ready to head out to Pam's for our 3rd annual artist retreat. Seems fitting as we've just finished the 5th retreat and are planning a mid-year get together. Enjoy!

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5 Days, originally posted May 22, 2012

The countdown is on. The clock is ticking. 5 more days until I board the first of two airplanes that will take me to Kansas. Can I tell you just how much I'm looking forward to this? To our 3rd annual artist retreat...to a week with a very dear friend...to a week of being able to think and speak coherently [little urchins are staying home with Dad]...to a week of art...to a week of breathing.

Yes. The countdown is on. I'm sitting here in the studio listening to rain falling, to birds chattering, to cars driving by and for the sound of little urchins' stumbling footsteps as they come down the hall to the studio where they know mommy will be.

I should be writing the proposal for Silvermine. It's due on Friday, after all. Yikes! Then again, there's velcro to be pinned to the 5 large rust beauties. There's green tea #3 to be peaked at to see if the time is right for unbundling. There's....well, there's a lot.

Yet here I sit, remembering last year's artist retreat. How we'd planned to do one thing, tried it and failed miserably. Regrouped the next day and ended up giving ourselves over to the studio muses, Esmerelda and Cecil are their names, but that's a story for another day.

I ended up taking over Pam's printing tables [that's her in the doorway]

 and printing yards

 and yards [there are 6 of these 4 ft x 12 ft pieces behind me in the closet...patiently wait]

 of cotton 

and organza.

I even got the most delicious lines of from monoprinting all of the paint off of the holey fabric that produced the multitude of circles.

That was last year's artist retreat. While most of those pieces are resting comfortably, biding their time, knowing that one day their bin will be opened and I'll reach in, a few have been rusted.

 So now there are layers

 

 and layers

 of circles.

Hmmm...wonder what would happen if I printed over the already rusted prints to add a 3rd layer of circles? Just a thought...

The mysterious whites

I've been teasing you a bit lately,

 posting black and white abstracts

 along side stitching and strings

and rusty circles.

Several of you guessed at what was making the abstracts.

Lisa of Arzigogolare was the closest...

only the exact brand of paper was elusive.

Still...has anyone truly guessed what was afoot in the studio?

 Tis this season, afterall.

Ah...you've got it now!

Finally found a use for those papers I eco dyed and rusted earlier in the year.

The cards are finally on their way to family and friends, as they should have been a week or so ago.

I must admit that it was difficult to send them out...those shadows from the afternoon sun were just so much fun to watch and photograph. And I took tons of photos! There's an idea for a series floating around my mind...it whispers...it teases...it flits out of view. Perhaps it's waiting for the new year...

Still going in circles

Adding

stitching and

and a bit of text.

Going in circles

Rusty ones, that is.

3rd Annual Artist Retreat - Tuesday part 2

While pondering what to do with the triple circle piece yesterday, before the tearing began, I walked around the studio a bit to clear my mind.

Intrigued by the swirls on the copper, those reflected in the mirror and the rusted ones on the paper hanging next to the mirror, I took this shot. As I turned to go back to my rusty bohemoth, circles began catching my eye. They were everywhere I looked!

Pam got a good chuckle when showed the photos and even pointed out a few that I'd missed.

In case you're wondering what Pam was doing while I was engrossed in circles and going on a tear, well...she was creating the most amazing water.  Part of her photos are edited and I want to get them all ready before posting. Believe me, it will be worth the wait.

3rd Annual Artist Retreat - Tuesday part 1

One could say that I was on a tear Tuesday. And one would be right. However...yes, there is a twist...my definition of the idiom varies a bit.

With 3 pieces collaged and set aside, I decided to go really big and work on the triple circles.

So...it was hung this way. No whispering from the muses.

Then it was hung this way. Still no whispering from the muses, yet a giggle or two did escape and I could swear the phrase looks like boobs in the middle was uttered. After sitting, staring, sighing and only being able to see boobs in the middle, I decided to go on a tear and

voila! 1 became 2. The muses were happy. Esmerelda and Cecil were starting to dance. I pondered, viewed the pieces from varying angles, pondered some more and decided to go on another tear.

1 had become 2 had become 9. By now Esmerelda was fairly twirling in place and demanding more.

So, I gave her more. The triple circle piece went from being one huge, boob filled, overwhelming yet not very exciting piece to 16 squares full of energy, interest, focus and movement. And this is much closer to my vision of how the rusty fabrics should be displayed.

Imagine a set of 9 or 16 or 25...or even a simple row...of fragments of circles. That's my vision. Focus on the marks rather than the rust. Cotton is my palette, rust is my medium.

Phew! How's that for a Tuesday's worth of work?

The shape of things

Been playing with a new piece and can't decide whether it should be

a square or

a rectangle.

What do you think?

The beauty of it all

Have you ever had one of those weeks that flies by one minute only to drag on forever the next? A week that's full of ups and downs, good news and bad? That's been my week.

Creative type decisions have been made...as well as a few marks.

rust circles #28 detail

rust circles #27 detail

Long forgotten treasures were unearthed and given a chance to shine

 rust circles #27 just unbundled...with a bit of my shadow

only to leave me with more what ifs.

What if I tried to rust a triple circle next? Hmm... That's when creative type decision #2 was made - more cotton is definitely needed. Time to order 20 yard bolt #3.

About this time, still reeling from the realization that bolt #3 was needed, I learned that Susan Makara, stone whisperer, painter extraordinaire and my friend, has been named the Torpedo Factory Artist of the Year for 2012. This is quite an honor and I couldn't be more thrilled. I'm also the proud owner of 3 Makaras, the cairn above being my favorite.

The weather seemed to be in a funk this week with snow, rain and fog nearly every day. I took advantage of this and set overtired gears outside to rest and develop more rust while I enjoyed the view from my desk.

 rust circles #31

Then yesterday afternoon, following a very chilly, misty and extremely foggy morning, the temperatures raised, the clouds left, the sun shone and beauty arrived.

Fragile Beauty II by Fiona Dempster

What a glorious way to end the week! Now...where to hang my fragile beauties.

Thank you Fiona!!!

On the drying board

 A sneak peak

at what's happening in the studio this morning.