katharine lawrie craft

Pretty edges

2012-01-16T13:05:00.000-08:00

Trimmed edges

2012-01-08T01:14:00.000-08:00

Nearly finished with what has become my longest-running project, by far.

Apple & snake

2011-12-22T00:42:00.001-08:00

Toying with transparency.

Traveling scarf

2011-12-11T23:10:00.000-08:00

Playing with a little bit of shibori. I always like the tied up, pre-dyed cloth better than the released result.

More & Better type

2011-11-20T16:48:00.000-08:00

1st proof of More & Better print, type layer. Color & image to come.

Bandage

2011-09-12T13:15:00.001-07:00

Lightbox mockup

2011-09-04T11:37:00.000-07:00

Choices

2011-09-02T20:57:00.001-07:00

Success

2011-08-27T18:12:00.000-07:00

It seems I may have just solved a three year cloth density problem. I'm only mostly sure at this point, but I'm still pretty excited.

Testing

2011-08-17T17:49:00.000-07:00

Multi-layered

2011-08-16T21:08:00.000-07:00

Whether or not this foreshadowing image idea will pan out is yet to be seen.

Lost detail

2011-07-15T21:33:00.000-07:00

Trying to photography my recent work is like trying to photograph a white-on-white-on-white painting.

In Reverse

2011-06-26T23:13:00.000-07:00

Had this piece hung up out of the way while I worked on something else and liked how the lines changed from this perspective.

Front in progress

2011-06-20T20:06:00.000-07:00

Yellow studio lighting reveals toes.

Reinforcements pt.2

2011-06-17T12:32:00.000-07:00

Bees and Dreams

2011-06-16T13:39:00.000-07:00

Wanderlust and Writer's Block

2011-06-15T13:08:00.000-07:00

Coming together

2011-06-13T00:50:00.000-07:00

Reinforcements

2011-06-08T17:01:00.000-07:00

Making sure my embroidery stitches will be securely locked in place.

Right in progress

2011-04-29T13:06:00.000-07:00

Left in progress

2011-04-19T08:26:00.000-07:00

Spent some time last week with a white wall and all my curtains open to catch the morning light for a photography session with some of the pieces I've worked on in the last year and a half or so. Went ahead and did some progress documentation while I was at it. This is "Left."

Pages

2011-04-07T13:25:00.000-07:00

I've been working on a small tome in my school's letterpress lab, taking advantage of my access to a working press and a room full of type while I can.
These are my first completed pages- 1/7th of the total printing complete and ready for binding, as soon as the rest is done. I expect that'll happen in the next 6-8 weeks.

Rear

2011-04-04T08:54:00.000-07:00

Under the lights of my studio's flickering chandelier.

Layering

2011-03-26T13:00:00.000-07:00

Turning waste to potential

2010-10-14T22:09:00.000-07:00

It has been a while since my last posting. The reason for this can be summed up in two words:

Grad. School.

With so much reading and synthesizing of ideas to be done, things in the studio are getting a little bit dusty. A temporary cotton shortage hasn't helped any. However, though things may be slow moving, they are moving.

I've got a warp all wound, waiting for its weft to come off backorder before turning into a [hopefully] grand quartet of quilted weaving. The cotton yarn I want should be available mid-December, just in time for winter break, so I'm hoping to get a lot of work done on these pieces at that time.

In the meantime, I've been working on ways to more permanently mount my soft pieces and make use of my weaving waste. I've gotten in touch with the art department at my grad school. Although they have no fibers shop for me to peer longingly into, they do have a sculpture shop, complete with a shop tech willing to help me out with some plywood-cutting needs. It is difficult, at the moment, to figure out specs and the practicalities of plywood moving without a car while keeping up with schoolwork, but with some care, I think I can get it done, and end up with some lovely, clean results. More on that as it develops.

I've also been working with my yarn waste, trying to transform it from waste to valuable material again. One of the only things I don't love about weaving is the unavoidable waste of so much yarn. I can never bring myself to throw the pieces away. Recently, I began the process of sorting them out and tying them end to end. I plan to use these pieced-together former-waste yarns as both warp and weft in little patchworked-yarn weavings. The idea of finding a use for what would otherwise be waste pleases me greatly, as do the notions of rescue and conservation brought to my mind by the yet-to-be-made cloths. Behold, what once was waste and now is full of potential again:

Shears for hair

2010-07-08T18:01:00.000-07:00

My obsession with shears is ongoing.

For a while there, I was without a printer. Since the printer is a vital tool in my pattern-making process, this seemed like it might slow me down quite a bit. Instead, I turned to the images I've been working with so intently for a while now. I began stitching this one pair of little shears over and over again, packing them tightly on the cloth in alternating rows. As my collection grew, I wondered what to do with them. They weren't artfully arranged as a solid piece, but as individual pieces, and needed to come apart- but how, and afterward, for what?

I pinned them to the wall, imagining changing concentric circles and patterns as the collection grew. I stitched one to a pin and wore it as a brooch. For a friend fond of hair accessories, I attached one to a bobby pin, as seen above. What I'm finding in these potential uses is a great sense of satisfaction. Finding an actual function for these little pieces, beyond fixed, decorative, wall adornment, being able to place the bits on my body and wear them unobtrusively, seeing that they are not limited the way a much larger piece may be, is great. I plan to explore this further.

Wreath #2

2010-06-16T21:59:00.000-07:00

101 inches

2010-06-04T14:52:00.000-07:00

Here it is, 101 inches of 30" wide cotton plaid.

It's 101" instead of my intended 112" because at around 1am, my bobbin winder decided that it didn't want to move. Apparently turning is the last thing it ever wants to do again, which is highly unfortunate, as turning is its main purpose. Since winding bobbins by hand is a rather dreary task, I reevaluated the requirements of my intentions and decided that 101" was just fine.

Things I watched while working on this yardage: Dollhouse, Spongebob Squarepants, Rocko's Modern Life, Terminator 2: Judgment Day, and My Name is Earl.

Next up, a bit of patterning for the dress I will make out of it.

1, 2, 3, 4, 1, 2, 1, 2.

2010-06-02T00:52:00.000-07:00

I've been a bit distracted from the studio lately, with grad school coming up soon. (I begin in only a few weeks!) As such, I've given myself a break from ideas that require a whole lot of my brain, and focused on ones that involve mostly rhythm and counting.

This is the plaid I mentioned a few weeks back, finally on the loom. I think 1, 2, 3, 4, 1, 2, 1, 2, and repeat while watching cartoons. It's a good time.
I've been toying with different pattern ideas for a dress I would like to make with this cloth when it comes off the loom. Something with simple construction- a couple darts in a bodice with straps, a subtly gathered skirt, a couple patch pockets. I'm going to be careful with my patterning, because when the dress is done, I would like to have enough remnant for a self portrait of me in the dress made of the cloth on the cloth. That sort of echoing will make me smile.

In other news!

I am looking into various types of power saws. I have decided on a way to present my work that I think I will be most pleased by, that will be clean and portable. The one hang up is my current inability to slice through plywood as easily as I can tear cloth. So, for the first time in my life, a power tool seems to be a necessity. Looking into it!
Images of shears are still filling my walls. The more I use them, the more they seem to become a part of me. I will get back to this another day.
Any moment now, Inside 12 opens. While I do wish I could be there, I am excited for everyone who is, and hoping it all goes well.

1, 2, 3, 4, 1, 2, 1, 2. 1, 2, 3, 4, 1, 2, 1, 2. 1, 2, 3, 4, 1, 2, 1, 2.

A Lesson

2010-05-16T04:15:00.000-07:00

If ever you think there is a chance that you will want to recreate an element of something you make- heck, even if you don't think you will, just on the off chance that you will change your mind- save your notes. Save your original measurements. Write them down in your sketch book, not on disposable pattern scraps. Or if you do write them on scraps, transfer them over. Preserve these things.

Learn from my mistakes. Careful documentation is how you can avoid such activities as digging through your studio trash (full of identical paper scraps, tea labels, and tape bits) at 4am for those tiny notes you're sure you must have written somewhere, or looking up forgotten lessons of how to discern a diameter from a circumference to figure out what on earth your original preshrunk measurements were. For the love of 4am inspiration- write down that original diameter.

In other news- look! I have a show coming up!

Soon my work will be better traveled that I am! I wish I could go see the show myself, but since hopping over to South Korea for a few days is rather implausible right now, I'm taking satisfaction in knowing that friends will be there, with their own work, able to see the whole show for me. I'm sure it'll all be marvelous. I'm also fairly certain that my next show (when it comes about) will be much easier to get to, so I'll just be patient and keep making work.

Yarn Yardage

2010-05-08T18:41:00.001-07:00

At this precise moment, I have one thousand, eight hundred and seventy two yards of cotton yarn dying in a tea bath.
One thousand, eight hundred, and seventy two yards. 1,872.
It's a bit incredible that that is only half of what I expect to use in this project.
When I am done I shall have over 3 yards of 30" wide plaid cloth. Of course, that's quite a few steps away, but still.
When you break it into actual yards like that, I am always astounded by how much I use for just one piece of cloth. It doesn't seem like nearly that much in person, at any stage of the process.

Keeping Count

2010-04-25T22:42:00.001-07:00

In the last few weeks, I have embroidered 21 pairs of shears.

Tonight, I begin working on a tri-shear hybrid.

When that is done, I have 9 more planned.

Shears, shears, shears. There is so much I want to work on, but first I have to get these shears out of my mind for a while. So, shears, shears, shears.

Weaving woes

2010-03-28T00:32:00.000-07:00

I don't weave as often as I used to. One reason for this is simply that I am not under the same pressure to produce that I felt while in school. Another big reason is that I have developed a tendency to weave a large amount of cloth for multiple pieces at once, as opposed to weaving the cloth for each piece individually. Because of this, my familiarity with the routine has lessened.

Recently, I have noticed a change in my cloth. I am not sure when it came about- when I began working exclusively on my smaller loom, when I took a break to move my studio across the country, when I switched yarn brands- who knows. What I do know is that my cloth is not as dense as it used to be.

I used to produce a very tight, dense weave which was most pleasant to work with. At some point, my standard cloth became looser. Flimsier. The weft no longer squeezes in securely to the warp. This cloth is not so pleasant to work with.

My problem is that, not knowing why this change has occurred, I don't know how to fix it. I use the same EPI, same reed, same yarn size as I did when I was making the tighter cloth. I am hoping that the reason for this looser cloth is not the loom itself, for that's a pretty difficult element to change. My fingers are crossed that there is an easy-to-fix reason, like tension, or the way I have been tying up the treadles. I rather wish I could pop back to school, ask a couple questions, get some advice. Since I can't, I'll just have to keep trying to figure it out, and hope I don't end up with too much of this looser, less-satisfying stuff.

Shear obsession

2010-03-23T13:53:00.000-07:00

Lately I have been obsessed with shears. I cannot get them out of my mind's eye. I'm thinking about cutting, cutting ties, cutting strands, cutting off. Cutting cleanly, cutting swiftly, cutting efficiently, cutting roughly. Thinking about the sound a nice sharp pair of blades make when slicing through something. Thinking about the emotional connotations, about the metaphorical suggestions. Thinking about the shears as a representational image for life events.

As a result, I have piles of pictures of shears around my studio desk. They are stacked to the side, pinned to the wall, stuck to the shelves with bits of tape. They are printed on paper, drawn out on tracing paper, stitched into cloth. I am at a point with them where I am struggling to finish a single project (I mean really finish- not finish embroidering an image, that is no problem, but finish off edges, prepare for hanging) before beginning the next one.

At the moment, this is bad, because I really do need to get some pieces solidly complete- but every time I glance anywhere, there they are, these images, cutting through life and history, making changes, amendments, edits, improvements. Trimming, paring, cutting clean. Taking down the pictures would do no good, because the inspiration is still there in my mind. Shears, shears, shears.

Efficiency Experiment

2010-02-26T13:26:00.000-08:00

Experiment with printing, part one: so far so good.

February Look

2010-02-13T02:43:00.000-08:00

When I am embroidering an image through paper, the thing I long most to do is tear it off. I will stitch small segments, ordering my directions so as to allow me to tear more and more, without waiting for any completion to satisfy the desire to rip that paper off the cloth. With that in mind, I would like to share with you: the largest piece I have ever completed without tearing any of it at all until completion.

Ok, it's only about 2 1/4" x 3 1/2", but still. That's self-control right there.

I've had a lot going on this past month. I moved my studio, for one thing. It's only a difference of a few yards, but the difference in how much light comes pouring in, and how much room I have to move around in, and how much safer I feel about my supplies potentially crashing down in an earthquake is huge. It's a good change. I'm preparing for a show I'll be participating in this summer, and for submitting to a few others, which is all rather exciting and productivity-inspiring. I've got new ideas running around my head and desk, mingling with techniques and themes I've had going for a while now, and that feels great. I think I'm on the verge of some highly enjoyable experiments.
Of course, the problem with experiments is that I don't always know where I will go with a piece. That one above, for example. I've been playing with transparency and layering, which is lovely fun- but now that the time has come for attaching layers, I find I can't decide how to do it. I suspect my experiment will be completed only through more experimentation. This isn't a bad thing, but I do worry about the delicacy of my layers holding up through trial. I hope I don't spoil any.
Ah well. Sometimes, that's just how it goes!

A peek for you

2010-01-15T03:03:00.001-08:00

A peek at the first of the completed trio, and a statement about the making of them:

Not only have I formed a callus on my thumb from all the quilting these pieces have involved, I have formed a crater within said callus from the repetitive prodding of the needle eye. Ah, craft, such an elegant occupation!

Trio update

2009-12-18T18:02:00.000-08:00

All three pieced tops are now embroidered, and ready for quilting. See?

But before quilting must come basting. I always sigh at basting; I'd rather get right to work. It really is necessary for this sort of thing, though. Plus, when you need to draw a line that is sure to leave no mark as soon as you're done with it, nothing beats a thin piece of thread.

While I'm showing you pictures, take a peek at these pages from my work book (sketch book? idea book?). This is the basic planning I began with, the careful plotting out of the pieced tops. Pre-planning is helpful.

Mid-December quilting

2009-12-11T19:26:00.000-08:00

I've been hoping for a nice, clear skied afternoon on which to photograph the recently completed doodle piece (otherwise yet unnamed) but alas, it is southern California's brief rainy season, and photography-friendly conditions have been elusive. So until that changes, check out something about the piece that I am enjoying:

This is the back of the piece. It is as carefully bordered and presented as the front is.
I've always been intrigued by the backs of embroideries, the unexpected imagery that develops through the path of the stitcher's hand, the contrast between the intended image and the secret, hidden one. I'm often tempted to display work backwards, but always choose not to- I don't want to sacrifice the intended imagery for the unintended.
This time I decided to give both sides their due, so that the piece can be displayed as a finished work from either direction. Front and back have differently pieced borders in the same fabrics, related but different, just as the front and back of the image is.
It's an experiment, one I'm rather enjoying right now. I think it's fitting, as well- after all, the entire thing is an experiment.

In other news, here's something fun:

These are the first 1,000 pieces of what will eventually be a 3,969 piece quilt top. I've been wanting to tackle a full-sized quilt for some time now, but was putting it off because I simply didn't have fabrics I wanted to work with in the quantity needed for a really well-matched quilt. My hands and mind have been anxious for this sort of project, though- something long term, something full of order and repetition, something soothing- so I decided to go for it anyway. I picked a double nine patch pattern (like the one below) and plan to break up the intended large-scale pattern to create my own variation.

The neat part about this design, for me, is how it doesn't require (at least for about 54% of it) carefully matched fabrics. In the tradition of truly purposeful patchwork, the double nine patch gives me the chance to go through my stores of fabric, picking out even the smallest bits and finding use for them. If I can squeeze even one 1 1/2" square out of a scrap, it is useful.
Of course, by now I've gone through all of my basic pattered cottons, and have barely a quarter of the squares I need! That's another nice thing about this project, though- it lends itself to mismatching, so if some parts are composed of the materials I have now and others from scraps of future projects, that's ok. It's nicely frugal. It makes me happy.

Takashi Iwasaki

2009-12-01T16:47:00.000-08:00

While I work on the final stitches of the doodle piece, take a look at this artist:

Nyokinyokinijiirokousen
Embroidery floss and canvas (hand embroidered)
40.5 x 40.5cm
2008

Sakuretsupipe
Embroidery floss and fabric (hand embroidered)
30.5cm x 30.5cm
2008

Fishbonbon
Embroidery floss and fabric (hand embroidered)
28.5cm x 28.5cm
2008

The artist I am referring to is Takashi Iwasaki. Iwasaki's work is not limited to embroidery; on his site you can see many interesting paintings, drawings, prints and collages. For now, though, I want to give attention to his embroideries.

In a way, Iwasaki's work and my own have some similarities. We share a medium, and a concern for shape and space. However, it is the differences that really capture my attention. My work tends to be quiet- his sings out at high volume. Iwasaki's embroideries focus on color, pattern, shape, line, and space in a bright, bold way. Rather than drawing a clear narrative with his threads, he uses his shapes and colors to suggest images, playing with your eyes in a delightful way. It's exciting to see how the the same broad medium I work in can be used to such a striking and different effect.

But! I ought to be stitching. Go check out his site- it's really worthwhile.

Press, prints and patterns

2009-11-14T13:38:00.001-08:00

Some brief updates:

The show I worked on a few weeks ago has been getting some press at FresnoBeehive.com, and the set has gotten some mention. Quotes:

"There are many aspects of this version of "All in the Timing" that are effective, from Jeff White and Chris Campbell's inspired set design (distinguished by Katharine Lawrie's artwork) to the sight of the very amusing Red blundering around stage with a mountain climber's axe buried in his skull."

"Tell us about the set. I understand it's pretty wild."
"The set, designed by Jeff White, built by the cast and crew and painted by Los Angeles artist Katharine Lawrie, has four separate playing spaces to allow quick shifts between the plays and help provide a variety of looks. The set theme is a fanciful play on the title and all the vertical surfaces are covered with 344 unique 'clocks.'"

I must say, it's kinda fun to see myself referred to in print as a "Los Angeles artist."

In other news! I selected some prints with which to piece a border for my doodle embroidery:

Reds and whites with interesting shapes and linework, to echo and compliment the doodlework.

While looking for those prints, I stumbled upon a Veterans Day pattern sale where I snagged 100$ worth of patterns for a mere 6$. I rarely buy patterns, figuring that I know how to drape and draft and can make them myself- but at only a buck a piece, I couldn't pass up the time saver. I chose all patterns that I thought could not only give me an interesting garment or two on their own, but could then be altered in many ways, limited only by my imagination. I think I might play with the skirt first.

Something I find both fun and amusing about those Project Runway patterns: in each one is a "Croquis Kit." The Kit is a piece of paper intended to help one branch out from the basic pattern. It illustrates the pattern elements (bodice, skirt, sleeves, yoke, details, etc) one by one with all their offered variables, and encourages the stitcher to mix and match them in the manner of Fashion Plates to create their own, more unique design. Paired with the illustrations are quite a few example designs and instructive paragraphs with titles such as "A Word About Inspiration," "Workroom Tips," and "Design Tips." All of this makes me laugh at first, because after having done this sort of thing on my own for so many years, it seems so obvious- but then, I suppose, it's really actually pretty cool. How often do you buy a pattern that, instead of encouraging you to buy another pattern, encourages you to get creative and experiment with just one to create as many different garments as you can? Project Runway, I approve.

A thread color debate

2009-11-10T20:02:00.000-08:00

Choice 2 won out!

Before I made a single stitch, I planned out which threads to use with which piece. The white piece would get a pale lavender, the pale lavender a darker purple (as seen above!) and the darker purple a white thread. This was my plan.

Now that I have begun, though, as it always goes, I am questioning my plan. Should I do as I planned, and use white thread to embroider the darkest piece? Or should I use the darker purple thread of the mid tone piece on all 3 pieces?

Or do I wait until Thursday afternoon, when I planned on going out for some quilting supplies anyway, and pick up a drastically darker purple thread, dark enough to stand out from the dark purple background? Each option comes with different implications.

The same color thread on all 3 pieces will ensure that the character is affected differently by the pattern in each piece. As the fabric grows darker and the patterns more apparent, the character will grow more overwhelmed- which is a good thing, congruent with the concept. However! Will the character be so overwhelmed on the darkest piece as to be hardly noticeable? Would I be ok with that, if it is the case? Conceptually, this is my strongest option- but is it the strongest visual one? *EDIT- This option isn't an option. While it is my favorite one, the thread I have already used on the mid tone piece just isn't visible on the dark piece. As much as it supports the concept, well, it supports it a little too strongly. I want the character to be overwhelmed by the patterns, not made invisible by them. Oh well.*

Using white on the darkest piece echoes the connective cycle I have planned for the final quilting- each piece receiving a treatment reminiscent of the piece prior. It connects 1 (the lightest) to 2 (the mid tone), 2 to 3 (the dark tone), and 3 to 1. This was my original plan, and remains my quilting plan. Conceptually, not as strong, but stronger than the next choice. Visually more apparent than the former choice, but will it be more apparent than the next?

Using a very dark purple on the darkest piece connects the 3 pieces in a different way, by applying a tonally darker thread to each piece. I feel that this is the weakest connection- but it could be the most visually pleasing.

I'm currently stuck. Opinions welcome!

Mocked up images

2009-11-06T16:37:00.000-08:00

This past year I've begun to really enjoy quilting. To be more precise, I enjoy piecing. The actual quilting together of layers I'm not yet so keen on, but I do really love the piecing. One type of quilt that has especially caught my attention is the Crazy Quilt, in which there is no discernible repeating, organized pattern, but rather improvised whimsy. I've been bringing this idea of the crazy quilt into some of my recent pieces. I have found, however, that the improvisational quality doesn't work with my tendency for pre-planning my pieces. As such, when approaching this look, I am making not quite what you could call Crazy Quilts, but more Controlled Chaos Quilts. I plan out the entire piece first on paper, which I then cut into pieces that can be puzzled back together when recut in fabric. That's a process explanation for another day, though. Today is about imagery.

A couple months ago I pieced a few small quilt tops, only about 18" square. I began with 6 white-on-white prints, divided the prints in thirds, then dyed 1/3 a mid tone and 1/3 a dark tone to create, with the white, a transitionary trio. I enjoyed the way that the printed pattern came out or hid more depending on the dyed background cloth, and the way the patterns persisted in their small pieces no matter how I changed the Controlled Chaos pattern. I decided to use an identical self portrait image on all 3, to echo the repeating quality of the patterns. Today I narrowed down my images to 2 choices, slightly different in size, proportion, and shape. I pinned some mocked up paper patterns to the darkest of the quilt tops to get an idea for how the shapes might fit on the cloth.

Choice 1!

Choice 2!

The thread with which I will embroider these images will allow them to fade into the quilt top far more than suggested by the white paper, but for now it's still a useful aid.

I feel as though Choice 1 is perhaps a cleaner image, easier to understand, when subtle, without closely paid attention. I'm not crazy about how it fits on the quilt top, though. I much prefer the way Choice 2 fits, the larger difference between height and width in the character, the way it relates to the shape of the background. I like the way the shorter character allows the quilted patterns to dominate the overall image.

Hopefully I won't stare at these pictures too long before making a decision. Feedback welcome.

Paper surprise at the Grove

2009-11-05T16:10:00.001-08:00

Last night a friend and I went out to the farmers market for dinner to celebrate my one year anniversary of being back in LA. After we ate, we moseyed around the Grove, a big ol' outdoor shopping center attached to the old market. She suggested we do some window shopping in Anthropologie. As soon as I walked in, it was not twee cardigans, sweet dresses or faux-vintage heels that caught my eye- it was the art installation high up on the wall. See:

Immediately I walked closer, wondering what that soft bulbous material was. As soon as I was close enough, I laughed.

Look at that. Paper plates and coffee filters. I swear, these materials are fiber art staples. I love when they surprise me with their presence. It's so nice to see a constructed surface installation like this quietly dominating a major commercial space.

I haven't been able to find out online who did this piece; it didn't occur to me to ask at the time. If you've any leads, let me know. If you're in LA, stop by and check it out!

Doodletastic

2009-11-04T17:26:00.000-08:00

As I've mentioned before, most of my work is based on photographic imagery. Primarily, this has been an issue of practicality- I've sought a level of realistic accuracy in my imagery that is well obtained through photographs. I've also used photography as a way to balance the labor intensiveness of the stitchery with a less labor intensive means of obtaining images. A small part of it, however, has been a lack of confidence in anything drawn by my own hand, a question of the worth of such images.

Then, a few weeks ago, I was on a long plane ride. I was bored, and groggy from Dramamine. My thoughts were rambling. There was an airsick bag in the backseat pocket and a pen in my bag. Under these circumstances, this happened:

I was intrigued by the image I had doodled, and after looking at it from my little window seat for several hours, I tucked the paper bag in my luggage and took it with me. It sat on the side table by my bed during my trip, and I caught myself considering it daily. When I went home, it traveled to my studio table. There it sat, catching my attention, until I found some print cloth, red thread and the desired embroidery hoop. This is what has come from that:

Here is that doodle as an embroidery in progress. On the right is the unstitched pattern; in the middle is the pattern covered with stitches; on the left is the finished area with the pattern paper torn away.

This piece is exciting to me, as it's the first one in which I've really relied only on my hand and imagination for the subject matter. I don't plan to abandon my use of photography as a main method of making images (especially as I have a few pieces like that in progress!) but it is rather neat to peek into this realm of possibility. That excites me.

Unfinished Clockwork

2009-11-03T16:55:00.001-08:00

Thanks to the glories of the internet, I have stumbled upon some progress shots of the clock set! The photographer's focus was the actors and not what stood behind them, but there is still some set documentation to be found. When this photo was taken, the clocks were at a midpoint - faces painted, but without the details of borders, hands, numbers and other symbols that were to come.

The actual clock-face painting process was an unexpected breeze. As I mixed the four yellow tones, a helper showed up with friends in tow! Friends! In tow! There was a person to go with each can of paint, and I was thrilled by how quickly we managed to get every single circle covered in a new tone. After only 6-7 hours, we had completed this step for the entire set, a pace that blew my dreams away.

Now then. In this particular scene, the lighting was designed to be a more cheerful yellow than at any other point, so the colors are a bit warmer than they really were, but look- behind the actors- you can see the variety of clock sizes, the 4 yellow tones, the greenish background. Now imagine about 13 times as many clocks as you can see here (a conservative estimate) and you'll perhaps begin to imagine what was happening on my drop cloth.

Unfortunately, I had to leave town before getting any shots of the finished set, but I'm hopeful that some will surface before the show's 5-week run is through. I may have to send a friend on a photo-expedition.

Thanks to A.R.T. in Fresno for the image.

Circles upon circles

2009-11-02T18:32:00.000-08:00

The first step of painting the set I recently worked on was finding and buying the pieces to paint. We dragged flats (thin faux-walls) out of storage and purchased sheets of luaun (a thin, pressed wood material) from the hardware store. Then came the actual painting part. We (myself and a friendly young man) painted everything black, to make sure that the final paints would have the same effect on both the new and used materials. Next came a very thin layer of watery gold ("Gold Shag," to be accurate) paint to soften the eventual contrast between the yellows that would come and their background.

See these? Except for ohh, one of the visible pieces seen here, all of these would end up covered in clocks. The pieces leaning on the railing at front, the pieces laying on the lawn, the pieces stacked against the stairs in the back of the photo. Not pictured: the pieces leaning against the wall to the right.

Once everything was not-black, I could begin the actual drawing process. I cut lengths of cord to mark the radius of circles 8", 12", 16", 20", 25", 30", and 35" in diameter and twirled those around pins as makeshift compasses to draw the hundreds of circles that took over my next three days.

This is the center-most piece, which sat above a projection screen at the center of the stage. It's a little difficult to see, but there they are- thin pencil marks outlining the many many circles that would eventually become clocks. This center piece featured the lone 35" clock, the "clock tower" focal point in an overwhelming sea of clock.

It was a bit frustrating as the pieces went under stage lights on the last drawing day. The tech crew and actors needed to work with the set up, so before rehearsal the pieces were screwed into place for a few hours before coming down again. The moment the lights hit them all the pencil marks seemed to disappear, taking every hour of my work with them, along with the justification for my sore fingertips, achey back and bruised knees, until the set was dismantled again. After that, the next day's painting was a relief- but that's when my camera batteries died! Further pictures thus far elude me, but I'll keep looking.

Clockeriffic

2009-10-28T20:24:00.000-07:00

This past week, despite my having a project I am rather excited about, I have stepped away from my work. I'm instead working on a theatrical set for some friends with a local theater company. Their set was conceptually designed, but due to some complications in scheduling, they suddenly found themselves without anyone confidently artistic to oversee and execute the physical, actual design of it, so I traveled up to help.

The show is a set of short one acts brought together by a common theme of time. Thus, the set shares the theme, and is dominated by endless clocks. About 324 square feet of clocks, actually. Perhaps a little more. These clocks are to decorate the back walls across the stage and the front of the two platforms much action takes place on. They are meant to be metallic-ish, gear-like suggestions of clocks more than actual clocks- no one in the audience should be able to look past the actors and go "hm, it's 3:25 and 7:42 and 12:16!"

What all this means is that my head is chock full of circles these days. When I close my eyes I see this:
OOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO

It took one day to paint all of the set materials black as a beginning. The next day and a half or so was spent coating them with a very thin layer of watered down gold paint to soften the black background into one that eventually appeared greenish. It took about three days to draw all of the circles, which range in size from 8" in diameter to 35", with about 6 variations in between. Today I mixed four shades of golden yellows and, with a crew of 3, painted the faces of hundreds of will-be clocks. Tomorrow I'll begin free hand detail work in darkened versions of the paints used today. Here's a handful of the images I'm currently looking at, to gear my mind up for the work tomorrow:

I'll try to get some pictures before the show opens and I leave!

A frequently used process

2009-10-24T23:53:00.000-07:00

Much of my work involves embroidered imagery drawn from photography. I thought I'd begin here with a little tour through a process I often use to turn a photograph into an embroidery pattern, using an older piece as a model.

To begin, I select an image in which the subject is clearly visible, such as this one:

I scan the image, resize as needed, adjust brightness and contrast, and print it out in black and white, like so:

Next I draw over the image, picking out lines and shapes I want to end up in the eventual embroidery pattern:

Once the line drawing is complete, I retrace the image on to the tracing paper I use as my pattern:

And so goes the process:

With the pattern ready, I can adhere it to my chosen cloth and stitch away, perforating the paper with my stitches so that it is easily removed when I am done. This is the finished embroidery of that piece:

It's a bit of a time consuming and labor intensive way to go about turning the image into the pattern, but then, most of my work is time consuming and labor intensive, and I rather enjoy it. I'm a time consuming/labor intensive appreciative kind of girl.

(The entire piece can be seen here!)

Introduction

2009-10-22T20:18:00.000-07:00

Back in art school, I was surrounded by people willing and eager to see my progress and offer feedback.
Now, graduated and 3,000 miles away from my former studios, a responsive audience is much harder to capture. This blog will serve as a tool in that search.
Here you will find contemplations of ideas, progress shots and explanations, glimpses of finished products and links to inspirations. It's a door into my studio, accessible from any distance.
Come on in.