Packing up

In Search of Green finished at the Bowery on Friday. A few last photos taking advantage of the shadows and then it was packed away. I would like to show it again somewhere new... any suggestions of a suitable gallery near you?

Thank you to all those who were able to visit the exhibition for all the kind thoughts and comments I received in the comments book. It means more than I can say.

In search of green at the Bowery

Last night we had a lovely opening for 'In Search of Green', my installation for the Bowery and for Alice's 'Texture's of Spurn'. Thanks to everyone who came along and also those who offered their support in other ways. I received some lovely comments and it was fascinating to hear how people added their own stories to the work. For those of you unable to visit in person here are a few little pictures of the work in situ.

It takes time to get to simplicity

It's somehow good to know that a kind of clarity of purpose and execution takes others a long time to achieve too. Gwyneth Leech's hand-painted coffee cup installation 'Hypergraphia' at the Flatiron Building in NYC has just that quality; the resolution of years of investigation, distilled into a fabulously striking work with the power to engage with everyone. Read more here.

Dancing in the Rain

At first glance there did not seem to be much to look at, but as we stepped around the tree we could see the dissolving embroidered lettering, clinging to the crackling bark. I was thrilled to find that some thing exciting had evolved.

John and I had plenty of time to contemplate the words of Vivian Greene as we trudged through the rain "life isn't about waiting for the storm to pass. It's about learning to dance in the rain...". Despite the deluge we enjoyed our trip around the trail and saw a few things we hadn't spotted before. I will upload some photos of the other artworks soon. If you would like to visit, Art in the Woods continues until the end of Sunday.

Art in the Woods - as it changes

Photos kindly provided by Sarah Branson. The first photo shows the work last Saturday (the day after installation), the last photo shows the work after Sundays rainstorms.

Art in the Woods

Yesterday was installation day for Art in the Woods and despite very changeable weather we succeeded in putting up all my work (thanks John!). The art trail circles through a pine plantation which starts on the edge of Home Styles Reservoir. Walking up a steep track with ladders and all our paraphernalia we trekked to the site and then worked through sunshine and downpours to hang six long textile banners as well as the water soluble piece.

I happily managed to dodge the worst of the rain to put up this piece (below) which comprises cornely chain stitch embroidered text directly onto water soluble fabric. As you can see (further below) a few drops have started to dissolve the piece, which should change throughout the period of the art festival. I would love it if anyone can take photos of this piece if they visit the trail, it would be really lovely to have a record of how it changes. Please email me any of your pictures.

Fresh Ideas

I could smell the rain before I saw or heard it; transforming and refreshing the landscape. Rain at last after almost no rain for two months here. It seems the refreshing rains have seen some transformations and fresh ideas.

The textile pieces I am creating for Art in the Woods are going well with images being built up on the surface. The final part I had planned was a layer of stitched 'handwritten' notes from my observations of the site... but then it dawned on me that the text is perhaps the most important element; what if I just used the layer of text on it's own? Could the text be seen to float between the trees? I was immediately excited by the idea of creating something more refined, less cluttered and a completely new idea to me. I was worried about abandoning the pieces I had already started but think I will complete a few of these as well as working on my new idea.

This evening I have also been discussing ideas for a great little collaborative project. Working alongside other creative people on a project venturing into drawing, stitch and marks will get the cogs moving and I like the idea of working towards something undetermined. Exciting times!

I find my best ideas emerge on the cusp of waking and sleeping and I wondered how or where other people get their thunderbolt breakthroughs and ideas. I'd love to hear from you.

Past the last hurdle

I had my final MA assessment today and I now feel I can take a breath. There are things that could be improved in the work but over all I am happy with how it has developed. In particular I feel the embroidered piece with bundles placed on it is much more resolved in terms of combining the making process with a sense of place and time. Anyhow, enough reflective practice here are the photos!

Labelled with Love

During the last couple of days I have been experimenting with different kinds of labels for my woodland bundles. Also considering how best to combine the different elements of the artwork with consideration of place, time and making. John has come up with some really insightful (and practical) ideas that have helped me to move things along.

Hanging Around

Experimenting with hanging the large cloth I found in Mum's garden.
Transformed into something more.
Words that spring to mind: shroud, veil, vestment... (your thoughts would be useful too)
The pointed shape was a (very) happy accident, just the way the cloth fell.

I prefer it when the light shines through it from behind, although the pattern is more obvious with light shining onto it. We briefly discussed the discussed the different responses created from this;do I want to show it as a solid object or should it describe a space illuminated, an experience you can move through.

There are lots of possibilities for different methods of hanging and lighting this piece. I shall be experimenting further during Testing Time. As the cliché goes; watch this space!

Experimenting with space and scale

Trying out my massive salvaged cloth in a white space:

I played a little with directing light onto the cloth. I decided I preferred the look of the fabric as seen from above, with the lights shining onto it.

I really enjoyed hanging this fabric and it showed me that despite it's large size, it is by no means too big to express my ideas. I am not used to working with larger-scale pieces but I think this is a direction I need to start to explore more.

Christo & Jeanne-Claude

Following on from my plant survey experiment I have now realised that art, or the making of art, can be a process of changing our perceptions by slowing us down or forcing us to look at things differently. Art can have a very important role in communicating ideas by just drawing our attention to something, changing our viewpoint, etc.

By creating interuptions in our 'normal' landscape or cityscape Christo & Jeanne-Claude make people view the world differently - making the viewer aware of something that has always been there that we have ceased to notice, by covering it with cloth.

Christo & Jeanne-Claude (image from Contemporary Textiles - the fabric of fine art)

light installations

Today I went to Scarborough to visit some open studio events. I was particularly interested to see the Dome d'Ombre installation called 'Source' at St Martin on-the-hill. Set in the crypt of the church, in complete darkness the installation was comprised of three elements:

The first was a tunnel-like structure, set into a doorway, made of crinkled fabric with a light projection onto it. The film varied from softly dappled light moving gently, to something more like flashes of lightening. It gave me a very strange sensation of relaxation and excitement.

The largest installation used a tree stump or branches (not sure which) sitting in a shallow pool of water. This was then used to project onto a fabric hung in space as a screen. The projected image did not really look like the subject matter but still liquid and fluid. The sound of dribbling water echoed around the crypt. It was utterly mesmerising.

The final piece was a series of three 'streams' of fine white sand, illuminated as they trickle steadily to the floor. This piece seemed to demonstrate the passage of time.

I really enjoyed seeing the work and found it quite inspirational. It reminded me of the emotional responses I feel to various light conditions; in fact light qualities have a direct bearing on my mood and emotional state.

Talking briefly to one of the artists she suggested that I could look at altering the surface of the fabric as a way of creating 'shadows' on cloth. I thought this was a really interesting suggestion and I really like the idea of creating different surfaces and densities that could be used as screens for projection.