Shinkansen (International Quilt Challenge)

 Ever since  my first digital camera , I've been taking photos from trains at speed - I love the blurring. I've made a few journal quilts and one experimental piece  but have always wanted to scale up . The current theme 'Through the Window' of the International Quilt Challenge  gave me an opportunity to start  down that road (or should that be rail?!!!!)

 In 2006 I travelled with Susan Briscoe to Yuza-machi  in Japan   and took lots of photos from the Shinkansen train from Tokyo to Yamagata. The  green of rice paddies, the purplish grey roofs , the mountains and the coast were so different from the train photos I'd taken in the UK

 Techniques and materials used? Photos  were printed on colour catchers treated with 'Ink Aid' . I used Photoshop to increase saturation slightly but that's all -the blurring is as captured by camera. These were applied to a section of lightweight fabric from a secondhand kimono bought for Pojagi in Tokyo.

A silk organza scarf with woven lines was laid over the top and attached with twin needle stitching. Interesting difference  between the raised ridges produced  when stitched through 1 layer of kimono and the flatter ones where stitching through both kimono and colour catcher. I really should have stabilised the kimono fabric first but I actually like the effect!
I'd like to produce an even bigger piece next perhaps  inspired by the paintings of Atsuhide Ito although quite how I'd photograph it and display it....

Light and Shadow- Indigo Hill Arches

Indigo Hill Arches

48 x 36 cm

Two black and white images  of  'Hill Arches' sculpture by Henry Moore combined in  Photoshop, printed on hand dyed indigo cotton and silk treated with 'BubbleJet Set'.  Machine quilted with variagated threads, hand stitched with 'House of Embroidery' Cotton perle thread .  

There's nothing like a deadline to concentrate the mind! When the theme of 'Light and Shadow was set in the 'International Quilt Challenge' I had lots of grandious ideas of continuing  the idea of the 'Taplow Vase' in looking at some pewter vases from multiple viewpoints and on  large scale. Then with reveal date looming and nothing started I remembered a  top I'd put together for a demonstration on inkjet printing using 'poster printing' function to split an image over 4 A4 sheets ( I subsequently used that technique to print 16 sheets of organza for my  'Rich as Honesty' quilt)  

After I'd machine quilted it, it was looking rather drab and uninteresting so I decided to stitch more into by hand. I haven't done much hand stitching in a while and I'd forgotten how addictive it is , sewing away watching BBC4.  My wrist is a bit sore despite using a 'Creative Comfort' Crafters Glove for support (although that could be the use of secateurs on Sunday on a serious hack of the garden)

The Henry Moore sculpture that so inspired me was part of an exhibition at Kew Gardens in 2007. I loved having access to these sculptures for so many months, able to view them in different lights and viewpoints and  I made several journal quilts exploring ways of  intepreting  a 3D piece in 2D textiles.
Next year there will be a major exhibition at Kew of work by David Nash.  Can't wait!!

It's been a while but I've had a session updating my website with  a gallery of new work - do stop by and say hello!

Inspired, Influenced, Informed Indigo Seas

 Perhaps because I've been stitching on indigo all weekend as part of International Quilt Challenge ( sore fingers but I'm fallen in love all over again with hand stitching with 'mystique' cotton perle thread) but I felt the need to raid my indigo stash and start to build a seascape. Hope to get it assembled before going to Weymouth so I can stitch it in situ!! Still a lot of work to do on the bottom half beneath what's above but for my eyes only at the moment.

 Partly inspired by the fabrics themselves ( especially the ones I  dyed at Summer School last year) , mainly by the patterns created when cutting curves into striped/shibori  as in these journal quilts.

 Influenced also by previous indigo seascapes such as 'Serifos Storm'and informed by recent paintings of the sea at Slapton in acrylics.

Pewter Pots and Paints

Every time we eat in the dining-room, I admire the pewter vases that my mum collected ( we used to have a vast ugly pewter tea urn but that was sold) . I've been thinking of sketching them for the 'Grey side of life' theme of Sketchbook Project 2012. I love the subtlety of form and light and shadow so it fits well too with the International Quilt Challenge I've  signed up to, the current theme being light and shade .  I've already used them in 'Lunaria' quilt ( see below before the honesty seed cases smothered it! ) but they deserve to star in their own piece!

 Then there's the Taplow Vase for 'Whatever Floats Your Boat' at Slough Museum

 I don't know quite how I ended up with this when something on the lines of this Picasso painting was what I had in mind. Time to revisit it I think.

But my immediate concern (apart from trying to keep cool) is sorting out my packing for Dramatic Sea and Landscapes in Acrylic at Slapton, Devon. Why does painting require so much stuff??!! My bag of clothes is small but I've an A2 art folder and  huge rucksack containing paints , brushes and easel -they're going to love me on the train!! I'm not taking my netbook so I'm having a blog and computer holiday too ( apart from looking at my emails on my phone) . Ian is in charge of supervising the Freesat installation in my absence - as well as a new roof we treated ourselves to a 40" television having put up with 'Retrovision' for 4 years (thanks to a dodgy aerial we've only been able to watch BBC1, BBC2 and CH4)

Service will be resumed in a few days!