I think I may have written earlier that although I am attracted to abstract art, my own work always has strong roots in reality. But after the assignments I’ve done so far and reading through the chapters of this one I kept thinking about shapes and moving space.
In particular with regards to this sample I did for the fabric dying exercises.
I was wondering about how the squares in the middle could be 3 dimensional cubes. Then circles came to mind and before I knew it I spent the next 2 weeks working with shapes.
Now I must tell you that my favorite answer to “what are you making?” is “oh….nothing”. And I’ll stick to that answer until I am finished.
However now……for the first time ever I can stick to that answer….after 2 weeks of trying, sampling and working I made absolutely nothing……
I know the execution could be better. If I would make this again the ball would be constructed differently. But I was very much working out how to construct whilst going along.
All the fabric has been tied and then bleached, the whole thing started out as black fabric. I made the outer frame from wood and covered this in felt and then I hand sewed the fabric around it, trying to keep the edges sharp.
The ball is suspended in mid-air by a framework of threads.
And the cubes were first sewn and then stuffed with little cardboard boxes for rigidity.
I know this “thing” doesn’t fit the brief of any of the exercises, that doesn’t matter.
I am happy with it and just wanted to show what effect this course has had on my way of “seeing things” already.
1 March 2011
For this project I didn’t have to think twice where my inspiration would come from. Throughout these assignments I have been fascinated by these two pictures, of a collar by Penny Fisher, in the course book:
I must start by saying that I love black pearls. And although the pearls in these pictures are not black, the anthracite fabric with it’s gentle sheen has the look and feel of black pearls.
I also love the way the way the fabric “embraces” the pearl, very much like the pearl inside a shell.
So for the subject of this assignment I was thinking shells, pearls and marine life in general.
As for the material…
I’ve always been fascinated by 3dimensional structures in fabric and for me the “holy grail” in 3D fabric structures would be to create a transparent structure in silk voile.
Of course this sounds like impossibility without some kind of support structure, but the support would spoil the transparency. I’ve tried various ways of stiffening the fabric over the past few years, but as most (all?) stiffeners are glue based, they will leave the fabric looking and feeling like plastic.
So at the moment the way I try to create structure and shape is by pleating folding and sewing. Which I know works for smaller shapes.
When I start thinking about how to create a certain shape, I often look at paper craft.
After all people who are working with paper are also trying to create shapes from something that started life as a flat sheet and as they benefit from the stiffness of the paper, I benefit from the pliability of fabric.
For this piece I needed to look at shells and luckily for me I discovered there is a lot of variety in oysters, mussels, scallops and even snails that can create pearls.
So this gave me some freedom in the shape of the shell I was going to create.
Here is an example of a scallop shell. Which has got quite a wavy “design”, I figured that I could sew narrow pleats to create the wavy feel, which at the same time would create structure.
I thought for a while about adding colour, but decided to pleat the bands going across the shell instead of colouring them.
The only colour in this piece was going to come from the “black pearls”.
The pearls are made from fabric that was free motion embroidered with a metallic thread.
And to finish of the “necklace” I created some seaweed from the same silk voile that was give structure and rigidity by stitching.
I was going to get a cardboard mount cut for my newspaper/crowd piece, clean easy and cheap. But I didn’t have time to go to the shop, so I spent heaps more time making a frame. I know that doesn’t make sense…. But once the idea of an old slightly battered gilded frame against the very modern looking embroidery/applique piece got hold in my mind, there was no way back.
I started by “googling” antique frames I was looking at the raised patterns, colour of the frame and tried to work out in my mind how to make this from fabric.
I cut a background for my frame from poster board and layered this with three layers thin batting. Each layer I cut a little narrower than the previous one, to create a dome shape.
For the fabric cover I used some cotton, one of my less successful dyeing experiments, and I cut fleur de lis type shapes from felt. The felt shapes where attached to the fabric border and then I stretched the whole thing over my cardboard frame.
Next up some golden medium to give me a good base for painting. I spray painted the whole piece with antique gold paint. This actually left me with a very shiny, brand new looking frame. So more aging was needed….for this I used oil pastels they were rubbed in with some turps.
I know this combination isn’t going to be everyone’s cup of tea, but I like contradictions…
Faceless crowds, suddenly got a whole different meaning…
You might remember that I did this piece for the first assignment.
At the time I also did a little sample in fabric, that I said I would like to make as well. So for stage 3 I thought perfect, I’ll do that!
I cut my fabrics “wonder-undered" them and was just about ready to start stitching. But I wasn’t happy suddenly it didn’t speak to me anymore.
Over the past month we’ve been seeing the power of crowds in the world. Governments being overthrown and possibly a whole new war started. All by the power of people coming together to demonstrate. So I felt the need to update my crowd a little. So my little blue crowd went out of the window. I made the front page of a newspaper by digitizing all the text. I then used the embroidery module of my machine to stitch this out. I printed some pictures of demonstrators on fabric threated with digital ground. And appliqued these, together with some coloured bars, onto the newspaper. Now I must admit that I was pretty happy with this result. But then came the scary part…..
I stitched my crowd in monochrome colours this time, it had to be, it was a newspaper after all. And added another picture to the backside of my newspaper. Now for the scary bit…I cut up the newspaper to make it look like it was torn. Then the crow was positioned behind the newspaper. Now all that was needed was to open up the window a little more, by folding back the edges. And voila….another stage 3/4 conundrum was made.
For my next sample I started with a picture of a woman. With the help of my trusted little laptop I turned the picture into an applique pattern. Then I added some batting and stitched the outlines in black thread. The whole picture was quite dramatic, not just because of this lady’s striking features, but also because of the very strong colour palet I used.
So instead of doing her headscarf in applique I decided to drape the fabric for the scarf. I “bound” the whole piece with a silk border, which was decorated with some trinkets I picked up a couple of years ago in Istanbul.
Now I must admit that I am not a quilter, so I’ve got a thing or two to learn about adding borders.
I really must look into that some time.
Will you believe that this piece made me jump out of my skin, when I came downstairs in the middle of the night one evening? For a few seconds it looked like someone was staring at me from the other side of the room…..it’s the eyes they appear to follow you wherever you go!
I had some black tyvek that I hadn’t used before so I thought it was time to give it a trial run.
For added drama I decided to pair it with a piece of (impossible to work with) silver fabric. I stitched a geometric design onto the tyvek/silver sandwich and zapped it with a heat gun. I quickly found out that my stitching was a little to detailed and the stitching itself a little too fine to create a real nice effect. So I was a little disappointed with this sample.
Until I turned it over…the backside was far more interesting! The melting (contraction) of the tyvek had created a rather interesting raised texture.
Is this a sample for stage 3 of this assignment or stage 4?
This has got texture, the surface is raised. But it was worked as a flat piece. I find it very hard to distinguish between the two.
A little conundrum that would hunt me through the rest of the pieces I’ve made for this assignment. Most of the pieces I have done have a “flat” element and a textured element.
So at the risk of infuriating my assessors I have, for the moment decided to label them as “Stage 3/4”.
Posted by
Agnes Iley
10:06 PM
My next little sample is of a gothic window. The window itself is made from very simple lines in satin stitch, stitched with variegated thread onto a black kunin felt surface. Then I heat blasted the felt to expose the window and stitched the whole thing onto the red wrapper of a Christmas pudding.
This also gave me an idea I might have to work on some time…
How about a large window like this, with a stained glass scene made out of sheer fabrics?
Ah….this is better!
O.k. no more glue just sewing, that made me feel a lot better!
First a little sample made with a watersoluble stabilizer. Normally I would stitch quite heavily onto this, so after the stabilizer is dissolved the whole piece keeps its integrity.
This time I wanted to experiment a little to see if it was possible to work with single sewn lines with the squares of fabric ensuring the integrity of the piece.
It’s very delicate, but proves it can be done.
My next sample is a small piece of applique.
The contrasting fabric is a little remnant of the bleached black.
I like the striking effect that those very thin lines can have.
And am wondering about creating turning a line drawing into applique using this method.
It would be a hell of a job, asking for great precision, but I think the effect could be spectacular.
I didn’t really mean to grind to a halt, but actually got totally side tracked by a “small” project that started niggling while I was reading through the chapters of this assignment. But more about that later.
Today I decided it was time to take out the glue and my sketchbooks and see what I can stick together.
My first sample was after a rather graphical drawing of various squares, which I made when I was doing the “moving space” exercises.
Now I figured that just copying the drawing wouldn’t result in a very surprising effect. But when I went through my stash I found these black and white patterned fabrics. And I think the result is rather interesting. Not exactly a masterpiece on its own, but I can see how the harsh lines of the drawing are softened by the circular pattern of the fabric.
This could be a useful effect when I want a mellower feel. Or maybe to soften a design towards the edges.
Next a drawing with lines and a circle.If I was using this design for anything I would lay the contrasting fabric behind the black base and have narrower lines. Now it reminds me of a navy uniforms sleeve with an awkward button.
The second and third samples on this page are after a drawing of hooks. I live in a small village that is surrounded by the Rotterdam harbor. So every day when I drive to work I see the huge cranes with big chains dangling down. I did a few small sketches inspired by that and this is one of them.
I made this little sample both in cotton and silver lame on a black background.
Next up a variation of fabrics, sheer cheesecloth type fabric, purple net and solid cotton are bonded together with some wonder under. This is also after a sketch I made earlier.
Not very interesting as it is now, but it has given me an idea for an “open” worked piece with water-soluble fabric.
Finally my last glued pieced and I must say I started to enjoy myself a little more when I got to this stage. I particularly like the cut out lines in the bottom sample. Looking at the picture it’s got the feel of a lino cutting.But it’s actually a piece of fabric that is cut up and reassembled with a little bit of space between the pieces.
Assignment 3 – Creating shapes and 3 dimensional forms in fabric
I was looking forward to this chapter. With the painting/dyeing I looked forward to it because it was something I hadn’t done before, but always wanted to try. This chapter I was looking forward to because it’s all about fabric and that’s my “thing”.
So how come ground to a halt on the first exercise?
Glue, it’s the glue….
I hate gluing fabric, I don’t use glue unless I absolutely have to and have explored every possible way of trying to get a stitch in and that includes going down to the tiniest needle, trying bend needles and even flexible beading needles. Ridiculous??? Totally!!!
Why? It changes everything about the fabric, the way it feels, the way it drapes, it just feels wrong.
Now I can see the point in using glue in this exercise, I can see the usefulness of glue in making a quick sample. But still………..
Tutor report form
Overall Comments
You have responded very well to the assignment requirements, Agnes. You have shown a growing ability to select appropriate and suitable starting points from which to develop your ideas and there is evidence of valuable experimentation with a range of techniques and processes. You have a developed good level of technical skills associated with dyeing and printing. The presentation of your work is orderly and progress is well documented in your learning log. It is always a pleasure to look at your work. I look forward to receiving your next assignment.
Feedback on assignment
Project 3: Colour
Your analysis of colour and colour relationships is accurate and perceptive. You are able to recognize subtle tonal differences and you articulate clearly the effects that colours have on one another when they are juxtaposed. I loved the way you tackled the fabric matching exercise. I initially had difficulty recognizing where one ended and the other began. When I looked closely,I could see that there is a slight graying of the paint tone. I’m sure this wasn’t there when the paint was still wet. Some of the difficulty arises because of the pigment in the paint and the fact that fabric printing ink, unlike paint, is absorbed into the fabric fibres and remains locked there.
The Kandinsky painting was a good choice. It made you analyse the colours very carefully and demonstrates the point that sometimes, an image can appear deceptively simple. You might like to look at Auguste Macke’s paintings. They have a similar quality in terms of subtle use of colour.
Funny that you should mention Auguste Mack. Although I didn’t really grow up with art, I remember that there was an outlet bookshop that used to sell folders with art prints. I got Auguste Macke’s prints and his paintings of horses were on my wall for a long time.
I do like his work, but there is something that annoys me about it too. He’s painted many ladies and they always feel so demure, maybe even sub servant. Always with the head bowed down, always very modest, never looking at you. Now this may have been a sign of the times he lived in, but makes me feel like I need to get out on the streets and demonstrate for these woman’s rights.
In the colour moods and themes exercise, you made good use of the computer programme to quickly create a range of patterns with which to experiment. You were then able to focus on the colour dimension and allow this to dominate your thinking. It would be interesting to apply what you have learned in terms of colour and mood to commercially produced fabrics. To what extent are they really fit for the suggested use/environment?
That’s a very interesting train of thought, the application of colours and patterns in commercially produced fabrics. Interior design and fashion first spring to mind, but I am also thinking about commercial institutions that try to create an atmosphere with colour and patterns (and even smells), to get their customer in the mood to spend. I will need to dig a bit deeper into this, maybe incorporate in my next “Understanding the textile world”.
The coloured stitch sample was very interesting indeed. The use of complementary red/green maximized the contrast and remarkable differences were apparent in the blocked colour as opposed to line. You commented on the ochre colour which seemed to magically appear. Like you, I tried creeping up on it to catch it unawares, but every time it was there! It is a great example of optical colour mixing. If you mix the three primary colours, you get a brownish shade, not unlike ochre. By mixing primary red and secondary green (primary blue and primary yellow) you optically created ochre. Alchemy!
I never thought of that! You’ve solved the mystery!!!
Now this ofcourse asks for more experimentation yellow/ purple and blue/ orange.
Your pointillist sample was a labour of love and I appreciate how much time this would have taken. Did you subsequently discover who the painter was? The optical colour mixing is most obvious in the harmonious ranges i.e. blue/purple, orange/red. In other areas, the breaking down of colours into contrasting areas reminded me rather of Pop Art painters such as Andy Warhol. A great image with very expressive use of colour.
The ‘accidental shoe raises questions of different people’s perceptions of the same image. I looked at it and thought that it was landscape/rock strata. I never saw the shoe, only the build up of texture through line and shape! The combination of stitch and weave works well with this sample and you controlled the soft colours perfectly.
Understanding the textile world
The textile piece you chose clearly has a very personal meaning for you. It’s interesting to speculate on the associations between textiles and memories. What would people select if they were asked to identify textiles which defined certain events in their lives? Could be a great starting point for a series of related images. It would be good to research your textile a little more in terms of cultural significance. For example, are there certain traditional patterns used for some textiles? Are there common motifs or symbols reflected in other cultures e.g. the paisley or tear drop motif seen so much in Indian textiles and also Scottish textiles? You might try to have a look at the book suggested below.
I did try to find out more about the symbolism in Thai textiles, but didn’t get very far using just the internet. I must admit that although I’ve got a nice collection of textile art books, there are not (m)any about the history of textiles. So I really appreciate the book suggestion. It’s on order right now. And to get a little more “in touch” with the textile world I’ve also signed up for “Fiberarts”, I buy that magazine whenever I am in the US, and only just found out that it’s quite cheap to get a subscription in Europe and for “Textiel plus” a magazine that is published 4 times a year by the Dutch textile foundation. Hopefully that will help me find out about textile exhibitions before they’ve been and gone.
Project 4: Developing design ideas
The first exercise gave you a chance to explore compositional elements and this stood you in good stead when selecting images for pattern manipulation. Your 88 butterfly was a modest image and I’m pleased that you didn’t go down the route of trying to represent it realistically. Your preparation work for this also demonstrated the power of different media to depict very different qualities e.g. the soft oil pastel and the more graphic torn paper collage. You chose well and the latter gave you a good starting point for the kaleidoscope programme. Having looked at the power of colour and mood to stimulate a feeling or connection, you demonstrated this admirably with the reference to your grand mother’s 1970s wall paper! I recognized the association immediately. It’s the brown and orange combination. However, when changed to the bright green it became a different image altogether.
I liked the distorted image very much. It really did appear 3D. It also reminded me of Florentine or bargello canvas work although this is a much more formal and controlled textile technique. It also bore a resemblance to marbled paper. I wonder if you could use a similar technique on fabric? With the net overlay, it had a snakeskin quality. If you have time, I think you should try this on fabric and then work into the surface.
The final pattern moved further away from the original drawing and for me had other, very different associations. It reminded me of Gustav Klimt’s work. You also consider stitching into this piece. I think you should. Whilst you are at it, have a look at the work of Hundertwasser and Nikki de Saint Phalle. You may have to give up the day job!
If only….
I like Klimt’s work, but sometimes I find it a little too sweet.
But I love the naïve edginess of Hundertwasser (I am probably describing this in words that make you cringe, I just never had to describe how I feel about artwork before). As for Nikki de Saint Phalle, her work represents one of live little disappointments. In Rotterdam, years ago, there were plans to build a museum about the workings of the human body. The museum was going to be inside a giant statue of a woman by Niki de Saint Phalle. I was so excited about this, couldn’t wait to see it! Until the people came up in arms, too expensive, ridiculous, horrible looking building, etc., I couldn’t believe it. The plans where trashed and I was highly disappointed.
Project 5: Painting and printing.
The fabric book was an inspired idea for presenting all the work in this section. Your green print demonstrated the power of a single motif used in a simple repeat. Further experimentation would be interesting to see how the feel of the pattern changed with say, a half drop repeat. You could also experiment with overprinting the image in a slightly different shade. However, this worked very well. The gold highlights and red stripes lifted the print further, emphasizing the rounded shapes.
The smaller experimental samples worked less well. The monoprint needed a greater contrast of line and the rice print could perhaps have been extended by the use of a second colour.
I agree with you, I’ve added them to show that I tried a wide variety of techniques and not all of them successfully. I will go back to these and try again. Especially the mono printing, I know there must be a good picture in there somewhere.
By contrast, the shibori was beautifully executed. Although you used black dye, you obtained muted greeny greys. The composition was tight and the dropped motif at the bottom right hand corner created a really exciting dynamic feel. I think this is a technique that you should go further with if you have the time. I kept thinking of rich mosaics, metallic threads. I could go on…
The window is a haunting piece and demonstrates the power of colour to affect the mood of a piece. You effectively combined a number of different techniques in the same sample and there is a strong feeling of directional light coming fro the left hand side. I was reminded of Edward Hopper’s paintings.
I also liked the lino cut. I wonder what this might look like if it was simplified slightly and then printed in the negative as well as positive?
I’ve been thinking about that too. This was a complicated picture. A negative and positive are very interesting. I was also thinking of maybe echoing two the same prints, slightly off set, almost like a shadow.
The blood red sky is a scary piece! It is atmospheric and menacing. Did you ever see Hitchcock’s film ‘The Birds’? The use of a touch of yellow was well judged. It provided a focus to the print motif.
I wanted this piece to be haunting, that’s why I found it important to get the right colour red for the sky. And yes I did think of Hitchcock’s birds while I was making this piece. At first I wasn’t sure about adding the beaks, so I cut a few out of paper and laid them down first. Then the decision was easily made.
The bleach discharge formed a good end piece to the fabric book. The regular repeat has a pleasing rhythm. You might take this further by offsetting or changing one motif in the same way you did with the shibori. I think it would benefit from a clearer focus in this context.
I would like to experiment further with the bleach, I did find it hard to control.
Even the thick household bleach is quite runny. But I was worried about thickening it, not sure about what chemical reactions this might have caused.
Also the speed of the discharge took me by surprise, I wasn’t finished yet with painting the last shapes or the first ones needed rinsing. With a bit more practice I can see some interesting gradients developing.
Learning logs/critical essays
Your learning log gives a very clear indication of your thinking and choices associated with the development of your work. You express some concern over limited or safe choice of fabrics. You chose appropriately for the particular sample. I would urge you not to throw away samples. They are an important part of your work.
In terms of your doubts and uncertainties, we all have them! You are naturally an instinctive and intuitive worker. What you are gaining from this course is the ability to analyse what you are doing and why. Although you feel your ideas are already formed in your head, the process of working out how you are going to achieve this and the changes you will make along the way inevitably alter the final outcome. A good example of this is the way you tackled the pattern manipulation. I have already seen a change in the way you express your ideas in your log book since the last assignment. Your thinking about your work is beginning to change.
You are very honest about the time issue. It is very real for everyone and is one of the burdens as well as the joy of working with textiles. If you can spare the time and are happy, that’s great. I never have enough time to do everything I want to do.
Sketchbook
Your sketchbook is well integrated within your coursework. If you are intending submitting for assessment, I would try to extend this element if you can, to include additional work not directly associated with project development.
I am still very happy to support the submission of your work for assessment even at this early stage.
Whilst working my way towards the end of this second assignment I started to wonder….
Even though I really enjoyed the drawing and design exercises for this assignment. This really made me focus on one small detail and exploring the design possibilities of it. I found myself back to my old ways when it came to most of the fabric painting exercises.
With my old ways I mean, that the whole picture is already developed in my mind. The design work I then do either on paper or digitally consists mostly of working out measurements and placement (for instance on the Shibori, crows on barbed wire, window and lino print samples). Does this mean I failed the objectives of this assignment? Of course I see the almost endless possibilities in the design techniques demonstrated in the exercises and I will certainly use them, especially when I can’t come up with any spontaneous ideas. But my brain is almost always overflowing with (nearly completed) images of things that need to be created and often creating them is a question of working out how to do this technically.
I also wondered about the amount of work I do. I do have a very hectic day job, so am trying to fit my course work in around it. I do see times that are given as a guideline for each exercise and I find that I spent much more time on most exercises. For instance the final fabric painting exercises calls for ten hours of work, I spent (very happily) at least 40 to 50 hours on the exercise (and I refuse to count the time spent on my little French knot sample). The time spent is not an issue, I love working on my samples. I mostly concentrated on techniques to transfer colour or images to fabric. Yet there is still so much more to explore different textures, patterned fabrics and as I really concentrated on creating finished images I would also like to do more work on creating background or “carrier” fabrics for stitching. Now I can imagine that a lot of these “things” that I still would like to try can be worked into samples for later assignments. But on a whole is the work I am showing for this assignment (varied) enough for assessment?
Do you feel you made a good selection from your drawings to use as source material for your designs ideas? Which interpretations worked best; can you say why?
I think that the drawing of the butterfly wing that I selected as a source for my design ideas was a good one. It had such a strong graphical, almost tribal look with strong colours, that I knew I could have almost endless fun with it. I could focus on the pattern, the colours or both.
Personally I like my third interpretation (the lacy, wavy design), because I can see a textured, maybe even 3 dimensional piece in that design.
Which fabrics did you choose; what particular qualities appealed to you?
For dyeing, painting and printing I haven’t been as adventurous with my fabric choices as I maybe should have. I choose a (sheet-like) white cotton, a white cotton jean type fabric and a black cotton. I mainly choose these, because I thought they would work well with the dyes and paints I used. I still want to do some more experimenting in the future with more textured fabrics and I was thinking about the possibilities of altering patterned fabrics.
Is the scale of marks and shapes on your samples appropriate to the fabric?
Yes, I think they are.
Would any of your ideas work better on a different type of fabric, for example, sheer, textured, heavyweight? Why?
No, I don’t think so. I had some images in mind that worked as pictures, so I don’t think they would come out on textured fabrics, I would have liked to add stitching to some of them, but thought that might distract from the original assignment.
I am very interested in trying some of these pictures on a sheer fabric. And I would love to experiment with textured fabrics, but am thinking more of using these to create a background to a stitch design.
Do the marks and shapes seem well placed, too crowded or too far apart?
The assignment said not to worry about placement, but (at least for me) that is impossible.
So I used guidelines for my stamped and shibori designs. Overall I think it could be neater, but seeing that I have not had any experience to speak of with these techniques, a little more practice should solve this.
Were you aware of negative shapes that where forming between the positive shapes?
This was most apparent in the crows on barbed wire design. I had to reposition the barbed wire a couple of times. This had nothing to do with the barbed wire or the crows itself, but everything with the negative (red) space around them.
What elements are contrasting and what elements are harmonizing in each sample? Is there an interesting tension?
Inkjet print - There is a lot of contrast in this piece, the colours are in strong contrast to each other, but also the pattern, sharp corners vs. rounded lines. To me it still is a harmonious piece though, partly because of the repetition in the pattern, but also because of the colours that although very contrasting appear to have the same dusky value to them.
The tension in this piece comes for me from the pattern the gentle rounded lines vs. the sharp corners.
Green stamped sample – the harmony here is the combination of the stamp and the background.
The stamp is kind of diffused, which for me matches the dusky green. The contrast comes from the painted and foiled wonder under. The tension comes from the cross hatched lines.
Reclining nude – this sample is all about contrast and the tension that causes.
Shibori – The shibori technique is about the contrast between the dyed and undyed areas of the fabric. Although I think there is a harmony in the monochrome colour pallet. For me the tension comes from the “dropped “ little square in the bottom corner.
The window – Although this whole picture is done in blues, there is quite a strong colour contrast. At the same time the blue pallet pulls the picture together. The tension is caused by the addition of the silhouette of a lady.
Lino print – This was meant to have a very strong contrast, so not much harmony here.
The tension for me is caused by the rather haunting picture.
Crows on barbed wire – This is (again) a sample that is very strong in contrast. The harmonizing comes from the little yellow beaks. It made such a difference when I added them, like the whole picture came alive. The tension comes for me from the positioning of the crows and wire against the background.
Bleach discharge – Bleach and black fabric will always cause a strong contrast in colour. The harmony here comes from the repetitive pattern. The tension from the different shades of discharged colour.
How successful do you think your larger sample is? Do you like the design? Have you recreated or extended your ideas from smaller samples so that there is a visual development between the two?
All of the larger samples in my “book” started out very differently.
The green stamped sample was just a quick freehand trial in lino cutting. I tried the stamp on paper first and then stamped the fabric, then I figured it needed something “more” and added the cross hatching. So this was very much a “make-it-up-as-you-go-along” sample.
The shibori sample was much more of a mathematical exercise. I knew what kind of design I wanted, then it was a question of working out the measurements which I did on the computer.
The window was also a “picture in my head” for which I did a sketch. This was not a design sketch, but more so I would not forget about the idea. Working out the actual design was also more about measurement and proportions, which I did on the computer.
The design for “crows on barbed wire” was a rough sketch at first I worked out the final placement digitally as well.
Of course all of my samples started out with little trials, experiments with masking tape, a wax resist and stencils for instance. I just need to learn to keep these for reference.
I’ve got an annoying habit of being very stingy with my materials. So I cut up some small pieces of fabric and try a stamp, a colour or anything else until there is no space to try anything anymore. Then they will turn into a rag to wipe my brushes.
Does your repeating design flow across the surface, without obvious internal edges or do the shapes and marks in your single unit sample relate well to the size and shape to the fabric?
Do they make an interesting composition on this large scale?
I am not sure how to answer this, my only truly repetitive design is the crows and I think that absolutely requires the larger scale. Any smaller and it simply wouldn’t have the same impact.
Within the design there are no obvious edges, except that I bordered the design for display purposes. But my daughter loved it so much that she could see a jacket made in that pattern, so I guess that means it would work as a fabric.
The shibori and green stamped samples are of course repetitive accept for the dropped block and turned stamp, but thinking about it I would still do that even if I would create yardage using these designs. And I don’t think there is anything within these two designs that would stop the flow if yardage with these patterns was required.
For my single unit samples I think “the window” would work on almost any scale. And I would love to make a larger (A3- size) lino print, but didn’t have the tools to pull this off. I do think most of my samples will work on most scales.
I think I may have written earlier that although I am attracted to abstract art, my own work always has strong roots in reality. 
![clip_image004[1]](http://lh4.ggpht.com/_JSCL9R77DvQ/TT0dj5GPz7I/AAAAAAAAA3s/ot9ZI5WtydI/s1600-h/clip_image004%5B1%5D%5B2%5D.jpg "clip_image004[1]")
![clip_image006[1]](http://lh5.ggpht.com/_JSCL9R77DvQ/TT0dkrD1ziI/AAAAAAAAA30/t9aJgT-Nt-0/s1600-h/clip_image006%5B1%5D%5B2%5D.jpg "clip_image006[1]")
![clip_image008[1]](http://lh4.ggpht.com/_JSCL9R77DvQ/TT0dl01XpmI/AAAAAAAAA38/0ILblrpTGls/s1600-h/clip_image008%5B1%5D%5B2%5D.jpg "clip_image008[1]")
![clip_image010[1]](http://lh4.ggpht.com/_JSCL9R77DvQ/TT0dmnQ09BI/AAAAAAAAA4E/KYx7EMSzX78/s1600-h/clip_image010%5B1%5D%5B2%5D.jpg "clip_image010[1]")
![clip_image012[1]](http://lh3.ggpht.com/_JSCL9R77DvQ/TT0doL456XI/AAAAAAAAA4M/u26lmUdDnTg/s1600-h/clip_image012%5B1%5D%5B2%5D.jpg "clip_image012[1]")