Still Life

Art on the Wall

This week I've been focused on getting 'art on the wall'!

The first task was to deliver artworks to Jing Jo's Cafe in Kangaroo Valley for the new show 'Still Life' which was hung this week.  If you happen to be in the vicinity I would highly recommend dropping in for a coffee and checking out the art!!

I sent across three of my framed and stitched 8" x 10" monoprints .....

as well as a larger, pieced and stitched monoprint  16" x 20"  mounted on a stretched canvas ....

StitchedLifeinBlue1.jpg

Stitched Life in Blue 1

It's always a challenge for me to photograph groups of artwork on the wall  ... we have an old house with lots of timber panels and strips of timber dividing the wall space.  

So while I was browsing the internet for some ideas, I came across a free app called WallApp which lets you upload a photo of your artwork so you can see what it looks like in a room/living space - there are half a dozen room options and you can also upload a photo of your own room.

Here are a few examples ......

It's very easy to use and quite fun!!! 

This led me to thinking about the reasons for choosing a piece of original art/textile art for your home.  The following are my thoughts about the possible reasons .....

The textile art creates a mood or feeling that can evoke memories or take you to another place.  It adds personal character,  can provides a color palette for the room and makes a room feel finished.  It's something to look at and contemplate,  especially  if it is a work that speaks to you .....  and can inspire and foster creativity.

Textile art particularly,  adds warmth and a softness,  it creates a connection with the makers hand that has created the work and to a long tradition working with fabric and stitch.  

What draws you to a particular piece of art/textile art ... something you own or would like to??  Please comment on why you have chosen to buy a  particular piece of art....

Thanks for reading .... CC

More Monoprinting ....

I've had inspiration about some monoprints I made recently ....  

After the first series of monoprints which I framed as individual prints,  I tried printing a larger piece of fabric with the idea that I would cut it up and work with the smaller pieces.

Nice idea but I still wasn't sure where I was going with these monoprints  .... till I was sorting out some of my hand dyed fabric and found some pieces that seemed just right  .... and here is the result .....

The red brown strip was initially a bit stark so I added some paintstik rubbings to soften the effect ....  I'm very pleased with the result so now for the quilting !!!

In fact I was so pleased thought I'd do a little more monoprinting .....

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So I'm looking for green fabrics  ......

Thanks for dropping by  ....   CC

Facings, Framing and Mounting on Canvas?

This week has been all about finishing work ... think I have the facings sorted but I've found some challenges when it comes to mounting work on stretched canvas and framing work!  I decided to mount LeafLines #20 on a stretched canvas for the exhibition  at the GCS gallery in Sydney.  While I've been using stretched canvas for my Stepping Stones pieces ... LL #20 is significantly larger!  so I've had to resolve some  challenges  ....  

-  getting the paint color for the canvas right -   I want it to blend in with the work ... in the end my trusty  '3 in 1 Color Tool'  provided the key to color mixing;

- how much stitching is required to hold the work on the canvas securely?  -  I used mounting tape to hold the piece in place and then I have stitched around the edges - so we will see!! 

- how to finish the back of the canvas and cover the staples and painted edges -  I found a framing tape and have used that to finish the back.

With LL#20 sorted I turned to the monoprints I made earlier this year.  I have quilted them on a base of white felt.

 I have been searching for a way to present them ....  I tried a traditional mounting and frame  but I think these pieces will look better without a mounting or a finished edge .... so I've tried 'floating' the quilted print over a background ......  here are two of my experiments ....

The blue background is too distracting but I like the simple white on white .....

 

 

 

 

Having reached a decision about these prints  ....  I felt like I was on a roll ......

 

 

 

 

 

So I pulled out a number of small landscapes  5" X 8"  that  have been hanging around  and tried a similar approach .......  for this one I think the pale blue background is a plus ........

It feels good to have sorted this framing out - but  I'm still on the trail of fresh ideas for presenting my work .....

Thanks for dropping by ...............................CC

A Little Monoprinting!

Inspired by an exercise at drawing class,  I decided to get out my Gelliplate and do some printing. As in our drawing exercise I chose 4 shapes ... a jug, a pear, some leaves and a ribbon and made up a number of simple stencils.  I also added some corrugated cardboard for use as a texture plate.  I decided to use a limited color palette of blue and yellow and a dash of black ... here are some of the results .....

I was a little bit rusty at first .... getting a bit too much ink on the plate but soon got into the swing of it ..... I'm quite pleased with the results but this is just the first step .... I'm thinking about some stitching and contemplating the options for finishing them ... single pieces or a collage of a number of pieces .... I'll let you know how I get on! 

I'm definitely planning more printing in the near future!