Christmas

Christmas preparations and shopping are keeping the forum members occupied at this time of year, in spite of the time of year and house renovations I have my sewing machine set up in a temporary spot in the spare bedroom. Had to get priorities right and unpack the most important items first after moving home! Progress report soon. Amanda

Amanda's project update

My 'dress from composted fabric' project is moving alond step by step. Today I finished printing the 4mtr length of composted cotton that is going to make the skirt section of the dress. The design is an abstract bullrush representation, printed using cork a 4" place mat and water based fabric paints mixed with printing medium. I've kept the colours quite earthy and left some spaces for the composted cotton to speak for itself. I'll be stitching into this with free motion and backing it with stiff net so that the puffball skirt stands up well. It was last July when I posted the original design idea so I'm including it again in this post just to jog the memory.

Next week I plan to get the dress pattern cut then I can start making it up and it will begin to shape up. Will keep you posted! Amanda

Letting ideas collide

I attended a workshop recently with Vicki Pignatelli in Galway. She showed us a nice technique to create openings and curves in quilts. If I think of this idea in combination with the theme 'deconstruct/reconstruct' I'm wondering if I can adapt it to create a wall hanging about my stone-walls and concentrate on the negative spaces between the stones. The idea is just bouncing around in my brain for now as I finish off some small pieces for a local craft gallery. In the meantime here's a photo of the sample I made at the workshop using Vikki's star pattern.

Composting repair

The cotton that I composted was a bit far gone but, undaunted, I have set about repairing and strengthening it by layering some spare pieces of fabric behind the holes and stitching with free-motion round the edges. It's working fine and I'm sure will create an adequate base for printing onto. More progress reports soon. Amanda

More composted fabric pictures

Amanda's Update:

I was a bit taken aback to see the extent of the composting but now that it's been washed and studied I can see the potential in it. Once it's dried I shall think about stabilising it with a net backing and printing onto it ready to make the skirt of my deconstruct/reconstruct dress. I'm pleased with the strong patterning in the areas that haven't vanished!

Jan's direction currently

Well it seems like it's taken me awhile to get settled what to do with my hexagons and any other ways that I was going to interpret, in my work, the Deconstruct/Reconstruct theme for 2010 but I'm finally getting something together. I have continued with the hexagons I started in Ballyduggan, with a variation of two fabrics within each hexagon. From this I've decided on two pieces, one a triangle, one a rectangle. The triangle top is complete and looks like this prior to quilting and put against a black wall. As it's a triangle, I am still also turning it on a daily basis to determine which way I like it best. The other piece is still definitely in the early works stage as I'm not sure how many more I will be adding but am thinking it will be a block effect.

The second project I've undertaken is remaking a quilt with the Grandmothers Garden pattern that I had originally started in 1973 but never finished. I am redoing 35 of the original blocks putting a row of calico between. The other fun part of this project is that it's using fabric that I had in 1973 from articles of clothing my 4 sisters and I used growing up to make our own clothes.

Finally, I have decided to do a series which came out of needing a journal size (A4) and trialing with some batik fabrics I got last year. I made one but didn't like the results so added a different block type which I thought I liked better but once I quilted them found I had gone back to the original design as my favorite. I am planning on making at least one more for the series but could see it growing beyond that to 5 or 6 even.

New member: Ester Kiely

I'm delighted to join the Textile Art Forum. The theme 'Deconstruct/Reconstruct' strikes a chord. I recently made a series of silk hangings based on the stone walls that surround me in County Galway (see http://www.esterkiely.blogspot.com/). These simple walls have stood for generations, but they also have a fragility to them. So I'm going back to the drawing board! In the meantime here's one of the photos I took of the stone walls outside my house at sunrise.

Welcome

20 August --- The Forum met in Navan for an all day session to share ideas and plan for 2010. We extend a warm welcome to new members Ester Kiely from Galway and Diane Crook of Bailieborough. Lots of great ideas including some decisions about the winter's residential week in Ballyduggan. Looking forward to it all.

Unearthing the Bog

Part of the Textile Forum's 2010 projects on deconstruct/reconstruct, this wall quilt is made from my dyed fabrics mixed in with batiks. Tones for the purple heather are mixed throughout. It is now quilted and I am at a decision point for creating the elements for the bog cotton. I tried using actual bog cotton but it was too silk and did not hold its texture. I was able to find old shirt fabric which has slashes of black across it that are reminiscent of the textures on the cotton. Now I will do some hand stitching in black to enhance the fibre elements.

Winter on the Bog Road

This is the first in the series I am working on that has a focus on the four seasons. The technique is colourwash as initiated by Deirdre Amsden. For the quilting I plan to use a series of winter trees.

I spent some time today developing colour samples for my bullrushes theme. This photo shows a series of 10cm square prints on composted cotton using water based inks. I started with black and mixed various shades of brown. Earlier today I thought I had settled on one of the reddish browns from the centre of the sample but now indecision has crept in and it will take a few more samples to know for sure which colour to use.

What's this?

Here's an interesting photo. It's my bundle of cotton, full of veg, fruit, herbs and spices, ready for composting. I'll post another photo of it in a few weeks when it's done and ready to print onto for the skirt of my dress.

rough sketch

This is a rough sketch for the dress idea. I haven't put much detail onto the sketch because I don't want to give too much away at this stage! I'm also posting a page from my sketch book which shows the initial idea for the block print for the skirt of the dress.

ideas for 2010 exhibition

After some months of procrastination and tossing ideas around I am reaching some conclusions about my work for 2010. I am reversing my original idea of taking a garment, deconstructing it and making a textile piece out of it and am now planning to make a garment out of some silk that was lining my edwardian wardrobe. This project will take me back to my roots in clothing design and construction, at the same time making use of this beautiful, aged and worn fabric. I haven't made a piece of wearable art for some time so this is stirring my creativity. I'll include some printing too, thereby bringing together all my current themes into one project. More soon...

Jan Update

I'm continuing to work on hexagons with hand work for all the hexagons at this point creating sets of 4 and trying them in different positions on black background. As of today they are on the design wall in slanting rows but I am going to try different combinations and possibly using black space between one or all of them. I am also continuing on with the old quilt that I am taking apart and putting back together in a more stable manner. I've actually taken the blocks apart and am taking 14 with me on holiday and will see how many I get done. I've decided to use a calico surround for the blocks to set them off more and am still looking for pictures from family members of outfits that were made out of the fabric back in the 60's and 70's.

Jenni update

Just a quick update to let you know what ive been working on. I have been home from Glasgow this week and getting perspex squares cut for building block and the tile cloth pieces I want to do for the exhibition.

I have included a sketch of the cloth piece with the idea that it could be hung, wall based/floor based or draped over plinths to take their shape and become quite sculptural.

I have been thinking through and planning a few other pieces as well as the presentation of my work is relative to how I am exploring this theme of Deconstruct/Reconstruct. I am also thinking of making a few jewellery pieces for the exhibition also with the idea of gradually filling up the perspex tiles with my textile pieces.

How is everyone else getting on with their ideas? It would be great to get a little note from everyone in a post!

ARTISTS' AIMS 2009

FORUM AIMS 09 ‘DECONSTRUCT/RECONSTRUCT’

Amanda Northey-Damms
My interpretation of this theme is related to my background in clothing design and manufacture. At this point in working through the concept of deconstruct/reconstruct I plan to experiment with deconstructing a T shirt, decomposing it to some extent then using the resulting cloth to create an image using print and stitch. Through this process a printed image on a T shirt turns from a fashion statement into an art statement. Taking a garment that has come to the end of it’s useful life, and creating an art piece from it is reminiscent of the traditional approach to patchwork through which old clothing was recycled to produce a functional and beautiful quilt.


Jan Blair
My interpretation of this theme currently is to create, using patchwork pieces, a design (either tumbling blocks or solid blocks) and to then reassemble in a different fashion. This will be used in small and medium size pieces, possibly some in frames and possibly some that will be a mirror image using different backgrounds or foreground fabric. Besides this I am going to somehow use a quilt I began in 1973 made of fabrics from my childhood sewing of clothes from family pieces. Hopefully I will also be able to obtain some photographs of the owners wearing them from photos.


Lesley Frew
My work is always inspired by natural or organic shapes. So for the theme deconstruct/ reconstruct I am concentrating on cell forms, looking into the developments through-out their lifecycle, as they form and break down. I construct my material using recycled plastic bags, making something from nothing, just like cells.


Heather Irwin
At this early stage in this year’s forum I feel that I will probably take a literal interpretation of the theme deconstruction/reconstruction. I will probably incorporate natural and non woven fabric in addition to paper and paint.


Jennifer Lemon
Using the linear visuals of maps, satellite urban images and road markings, where areas have been deconstructed, layered and reconstructed again as inspiration for my textile pieces. I am also planning to approach the theme of Deconstruct/Reconstruct not only through the design visual of the textiles themselves but also in how the pieces are presented. Creating quite sculptural works with the idea of building up and taking down blocks creating almost an urban landscape. This work I hope could possibly be both floor installations and wall based.

Frances Sawaya
Fabric is much more interesting when it is cut up and rearranged." This is probably a perfect notion for the theme of deconstruct/reconstruct and is very much in keeping with patchwork and quilting. Several ideas have been floating through my mind: deconstructing/reconstructing the seasons of the year in a series of colourwash quilts with an emphasis on how colour can translate into mood; "SLIVERS" which might be an effort to extend the lines within slivers of aboriginal fabrics into textured surfaces and lines; and "Between Pacific Tides" which will be translations from my photos of the sand tracings from Oceanside, California into dyed or painted fabrics. As always---too many ideas and too little time.

Jenni's update

Jenni signing in here, and like Amanda I’ve been doing some drawings and sketches for my textiles. MY plan is to explore the theme deconstruct/reconstruct not only in the way I’m building up my pieces almost like an urban model of building blocks but also through the inspiration of the textiles I’m making.



Looking at road/urban maps and satellite images and from directly taking drawing of joins in the road, tarmac and paint marks, all areas where construction, deconstruction and reconstruction have taken place. I’m thinking of areas which have the paint marks that I might include some mono printing or directly draw onto the fabric then stitch on top in order to give the freeness rather than using straight ruled lines, all at the development stage at this point.





In the drawing I like the areas of free hand markings which I plan to be the areas of detailed hand stitching, and the shaded areas machine stitched, but like the drawings I think I will plan as I am working on it. I like to work on a few pieces at the same time, I think it helps me in not over thinking the piece and looking at it too much I feel my work loses its appeal if it is too planned or thought our to a point. I have also just had over 10 metres of calico arrive so I think I have plenty of fabric to keep me working!!! Look forward to hear how everyone else is doing soon and if there are any advancements or changes in ideas???
Jennifer Lemon.

Inspiration

Amanda signing in here, with a report back after the Forum week. I was inspired by some bullrushes on the edge of Ballydugan Lake near the cottages where we stayed. They are dying back this time of year and the forms and lines of the rushes, the subtle colours, the optimism as they seed for the next season all caught my attention. I took plenty of photos, stood out in the cold and sketched them and made colour studies. I had an idea that I might take some pieces of my composted fabric then print and stitch using the bullrush theme. Here is an initial photo and a couple of sketchbook samples just to keep record of the direction of my thinking. I'll let you know how it progresses.

Forum

Seven of us are off to Downpatrick for a week for The Textile Art Forum. We'll have a creative week of idea and technique sharing while Brian (Amanda's husband) will be feeding us all with three hearty meals a day. This year's theme is Reconstruction so after the forum, we should have some thoughts on that theme to share on the blog.
We're going to stay at Ballydugan cottages in the blissful peace and quiet of the Co Down countryside.

Downpatrick exhibition and Forum week

Two events are coming up: We are exhibiting "We Share the Same Sky' from 9th - 27th March 09 at Downpatrick Library Gallery in Downpatrick, Co Down. Come and see our work! Here are a couple of photos from the exhibition: Bellingham Poppies by Jan Blair and Skyline Collages by Amanda Northey-Damms.

Also 7 Forum members are meeting together for a week at Ballydugan Downpatrick from 8th - 15th March to work together on our new theme, share ideas and enjoy good food. More about this event soon when pics of the event and reports will be posted here.

Exhibition

This blog will be getting underway soon. With the start of our new forum season we will be getting to work. Meanwhile our exhibition will be traveling to various venues over the coming months...
'We Share the Same Sky' will be opening on Thursday 8th January at Ards Arts Centre, Conway Square, Newtonards, Co. Down and will be on view there until 28th January.