Artist in Residence - No Sleeping Allowed!

What comes to mind when you think about an "artist in residence"? Maybe living in a remote national park with moose and marmots for company? Or working at an art school with vigorously engaged students creating along side? Or how about a space in a luxury downtown hotel?

Yup, I got picked as Miss October at the Delta Oceanpointe Resort for the Artishow programme here in Victoria. The Victoria Arts Council has set up a "Artishow" for local artists to showcase and demonstrate their artwork in four of Victoria's most prestigious hotels .....ok, but not The Empress!

Now before you get all excited - let me tell you I chose October, and I knew it would be quiet, because my summer months were taken up with family commitments. But even in October, Victoria is a tourist destination and I've met some very nice people from Calgary, San Francisco (he lost a second home in the recent California fires), Mexico and Montreal!

So three of my large pieces are on display on the Mezzanine - if you happen to stop by, that's up the large stair case. And I have a table to display and demonstrate my work. My focus for the month was to work on smaller pieces that didn't require and paints or dyes and I didn't want to bring my sewing machine (I was afraid I might get asked to hem some pants!) So I knew there would be some limitation but I've been quite excited to have large chunks of time with out the distractions of other errands that might pop up. I tend to be a "flitter" when it comes to working in my studio so I can easily distract myself from tasks at hand!

I trialed a couple of ideas, combining paper and fabric into books - not quite what I was looking for but they helped me to fine tune some ideas....

I've been working on simplifying my designs into what I'm calling my "HouseMade Cards and HouseMade Books" - cut out and illuminated houses from paper. I'm so pleased with the cards I've put them into my Etsy Shop: HouseMade Cards

I have two more weeks of my "Artist in Residence" left and I'll continue to work on my HouseMade cards, I have a Studio Tour coming up in Novemeber so I can build some inventory!

What else has this residency taught me? I've learned a little about the ebb and flow of life around the hotel: the airport shuttle comes by about every 45 minutes. The coffee shop (with Starbucks coffee) closes at 2pm. The bar starts to fill as I'm leaving at the end of the day. Conference meetings break out at 12 sharp, but they are busy with their own groups and rarely look up from their "tech" devices! People in the neighborhood stop by as they walk through the hotel, often with little dogs in tow.
Plus I have an amazing view of the Inner Harbour from my work space.

Stop by if you are in the area: Wednesday-Friday 10-5pm! Delta Oceanpointe Resort
There's some cool fellows hanging out there as well!

Oh yeah - the "residence" part of "artist in residence" is a bit of a misnomer - I go home to my own bed each night!

When Visitors Create Art....

About 10 days ago I was part of the Moss Street Paint In, you may have read about it in previous posts....I was asked to 'engage" with the public and decided some "mark making" would be a good way of inviting people to make marks onto my fabric! while adults were a little more reticent, the kids got into this in a big way! No surprise there!

I think there was a total of 6 panels produced and I've heat set the paints and photographed them. They will be used in my art at some point, I love some of the cool designs that were made!

 This one is my favourite.....

Did you miss seeing me and getting your mark on the fabric? Come to the Sooke Fine Arts Show on Monday, July 31st! I'll be doing a Squiggle, Line & Dot Demo, I hope to see you there!

No More Ships

I've just finished photographing my latest art quilt, measuring the dimensions and setting it up into my online gallery. Those are the detailed tasks that are always a pleasure to do, bringing some closure to a piece that has consumed a lot of my physical and mental efforts over the last couple of months.

Now it's time to send it out into the world....the first stop is the TD-Art Gallery Paint In, more commonly know as the Moss Street Paint In this coming Saturday. No More Ships will be the feature piece, it's the largest art quilt I've ever done 44 1/2" x 59". It's my intention to work large (for me) in the future, after visiting a couple of high end art quilt shows recently, I like those larger works....going to give it a try!

No More Ships is the latest in my ongoing series Inspired by Structure which focuses on the abandoned buildings of the Burrard Shipyards in North Vancouver. I'll be continuing to work on this for the foreseeable future.

The fabrics I used are either hand painted (the sky) or dyed and painted. I tried some of the painted fabrics and then decided they were too stark so toned down the contrast with some textile paint!

The sleeve and label will be sewn on this afternoon and then it'll be one more item checked off the list for the weekend. If you're around Victoria, please stop by at Booth #114, south of May Street.

Here's a detail shot of the building:

Why Was I "Left Behind"?

While working in my current series that uses "structure" as my theme I made a piece titled "Left Behind" that was inspired by the photos I had taken at the Burrard Shipyards in North Vancouver. Here's the picture:

 I cropped the photo and made it into grey scale:

For some reason I thought I should incorporate the modern building in the background and make that part of the design. I think it was a mistake, while we can identify it as a component in the photograph, in the quilt it didn't make any sense....

In fact it was turned down from two juried shows.....it was Left Behind.

So yesterday I masked off the "good" areas and painted over the background with a sponge roller. One of the things I like about the effect is the texture created by the quilting, lots of areas of lines and shapes in there. At first I used pure white paint, which seemed a little stark, so I then reapplied a light grey over top to tone it down.

 A much better result, I'm happier with the quilt now and I will try entering it again. Maybe it won't get Left Behind!

What's That Called Again?

I love words, love reading and once in a while I love writing! One struggle I have is naming things....quilts, fabric, art and so on....I'm not a wordsmith, I can't turn a fancy phrase and my favourite editing tool is the online Thesaurus.
So if I could, I'd call them all Thing #1, Thing #2 ...you get the idea. But titles and names can give the viewer some understanding of the process, the origin or a story about the "thing". They can also engage the viewer and invite them deeper into a conversation....which is usually an intention of the artist.
I finished washing some of my Ice Dyed Fabrics and needed titles before listing them in my Etsy Shop....the titles either spring right into my head or I struggle and wrestle and beat the fabric until it gives me something....anything! I think a couple titles are pretty clever:

My, My Mai Tai

The next fabric was a little more challenging....but since there's so much reddish colour and there's waves that aren't regular I thought Lava Storm would be a good title.

When I was choosing the colours for Rainbow Sorbet I realized that I'd chosen a triad of "close to" primary colours and then by adding a purple and a bit of Wasabi, then I had close to a ROYGBIV - hence a "rainbow"!

Finally I wanted to work on a Purple, Cerulean Blue, Lilac and Hydrangea experiment. The folding gave me an interesting pattern that I'll definitely be using again! Naming this fabric was a challenge, using purple in the title was somewhat predictable but I thought playing with the word and changing it up a bit might be fun!
So Slurple is the perfect answer!

I continue to try different titles, sometimes they work well and other times they fall a bit flat. There's no perfect formula but its also a way to push myself and play with words....
The fabrics are listed in my Etsy Shop: https://www.etsy.com/ca/shop/FabricImagery?ref=seller-platform-mcnav&section_id=18094480

I've now made my Ice Dyeing Revealed Online Workshop as an "on demand" workshop, meaning you can take it anytime you like. All the same great content with lots of extra information in the webpage. You can sign up here: https://www.etsy.com/ca/shop/FabricImagery?ref=seller-platform-mcnav&section_id=17745583

Five Summertime Art Ideas

With the warm, sunny weather bringing the promise of a beautiful summer, perhaps you are considering what creative ideas you might work on during the next few months?  My summer is going to be very full but I want to make certain to squeeze some fun activities into our time as well. Here's just a few things that might appeal to you!

Kids T shirts and Dye - with four grand children around all summer - sometimes at our house and sometimes not....it's a balance between keeping them busy and giving them time to kick back and relax. One project I have planned is to let them dye their own TShirts. My plan is to presoak them in soda ash and after putting the shirts into plastic basins.... give them squirt bottles of dye concentrate. I think there will be a high child/adult ratio for this! Did I mention it's will be happening in the back yard?

A friend once mentioned that she calls this "granny camp" when the grandies get to do fun stuff with her...I'd like to make this happen for mine as well.

Here's the basic lesson: http://www.dharmatrading.com/gifts/the-spiral-tie-dye-basics.html?lnav=gifts.html 

Mark Making - I've been accepted into the TD Moss St.Paint-In next month, there's usually about 35,000 visitors that day, walking the length of one street! I'm planning to engage people in Making Marks" on fabric that I'll use later in my art. Let's see.....35,000 people painting and marking on fabric....something good will come from this!

Ice Dyeing - I've ordered a couple bolts of PFD cotton for a few mega-ice-dyeing sessions....I'm thinking that a few hours under plastic and "in the sun" is going to make some gorgeous fabrics, don't you? did you know my popular Ice Dyeing Revealed Online Workshop is now "on demand"? You can take it anytime anywhere! Check it out HERE: https://www.etsy.com/ca/listing/260989622/ice-dyeing-revealed-online-workshop?ref=shop_home_active_1

Make it portable - Summer time can mean grabbing a few minutes of creative time in between trips to the beach or lake. So why not pack a zippered bag of hand stitching for those times when you want to work with your hands but not have a big project in mind?

Learn something new - We have a lot of creative opportunities for learning and while I love being a teacher, I also need time to learn as a students. Check out some online learning opportunities or summer art courses near you. In Victoria, we are fortunate to have the Metchosin International Summer School of the Arts and I've registered for two days of Mark Making with my friend Lori Sokuluk...I'm getting excited about being the student for a change! You can see lots of inspiring workshops: https://missa.ca/

 

There's So Much Going On!

April and May are going to be busy months - fibre wise - around Vancouver Island and I thought I'd update you with a few events that I'm sure you won't want to miss! Just scroll down and see what is happening!

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Vancouver Island School of Art

This course focuses on creating collage compositions using fabric and stitching. Students will learn some basic skills and how to supplement, subvert or alter these techniques to create expressive and personal projects. Students will have the option of using fabrics of personal significance. Examples of contemporary artists who use fabric in their art practice, the historic use of collage, and its relevance today as a tool to express ideas about place, politics and identity will also be covered. Course format includes slide presentations, hands-on studio time and group critiques. By the end of this course students will develop a strong understanding of composition and design using fabric as the main medium.

Register Here: http://www.vancouverislandschoolart.com/ss_sculpture.html#MMEDs213-18

It's a Good, Good Feeling!

.....when you're done and it's turned out pretty fine! Over the past couple years I've been galumping through a series that I've called Burrard, named after an abandoned shipyard in North Vancouver. There are some terrific old warehouses, big cranes and old decaying stuff there and I took lots of photos that I'm interpreting into art.

Perhaps you remember my blog post about the background/sky that I had pieced and painted? Then some dye on my print table came through? Yikes, it was a scary time....but the subtle colouring (after a good washing and over painting) lends a bit of character to the piece. Least, that's what I'm telling myself. Oh, and then I realized I'd styled the rafters at the wrong angles, luckily it wasn't too late! If you'd like to read back to that blog post, it's here: http://susanpm.blogspot.ca/2017/02/getting-there-getting-there.html

Now The Warehouse is done, except for the paper work (the measuring, the description, the inventory and putting into my archive listings) and I'm happy.

The Warehouse 37" x 47"

The Warehouse - detail

The Warehouse - detail

I'm heading back to my photo files to see what else inspires me for the next piece. I tend to finish (or close to) one piece before starting another - too many years of UFO's! How about you?

By Any Other Name....

A few days ago I was asked to write up the description for a new course that I'll be teaching this spring. It began with an email and then a Facebook conversation about some word choices and how we react to using different words. Although there was no final "right" answer, it showed me how each of us define what we do as artists and what we call the materials we use!

The title of the course will be: "Cloth, Collage and Composition" and although the alliteration works well, the word "cloth" seemed not to be a good description of the materials we use.... in the write-up I use the word "fabric" to help clarify how and what we'll be creating.

Then I went to my Facebook friends with the question:  

I'm wondering about the use of "cloth" or "fabric" when describing what we do as artists. Do you use one and not the other, or interchangeably? Does one conjure up different meanings than the other...

....and I was happily chatting with friends over the following few days about the choices we use. 

Here are some of the replies:

• I use "fabric" consistently.

•  I just say I'm a quilter. It's almost like a badge of honor, sometimes I'm almost daring them to say "how quaint" lol.

•  It's a conundrum. My textile instructor used the term Cloth Constructions to describe her work. I tend to use Textile. To me, fabric sounds like something unrelated to art, as in sewing clothing. Each of us has a history of the word I think.

• I think there is a place for each of these words. There are subtle differences in meaning. The best word choice likely depends on your message and your audience. For example, I'll call myself an art quilter when I'm speaking to a guild, but use the term fiber artist or textile artist when I speak to gallerists or museum directors. It's a guessing game to decide which term has the right meaning for the listener.

•  I use cloth when it is exceptional. Fabric when it is merely fabulous.

•  Fiber is so much more chic, you get more people enthused about fiber or textile art than cloth art. Hmmmmmm, something to think about.

•  I think it depends on where you come from also, and your background! Growing up, we called it "material" in the 60's, i didn't hear the word "fabric" until i was in my 20's, and started using "cloth" in the last eight years. All are applicable in my vocabulary, but for whatever reason, "Cloth" sounds more intimate.

•  I don't think I've ever used the word cloth to describe anything I do. When I was growing up, my mother always said material. But now, I use the word fabric mostly.

• Fibre to me is the material from which we construct the threads, yarns, fabrics, whether they be natural or man made etc. textiles always sounds so industrial to me textile mills, schools of textiles etc.

•  I like your use of 'cloth' and don't see it used often enough! I have moved to describing my work as mixed media, a term that seems more widely accepted by the art world and the general public.

•  Here you go: Cloth is a fabric used to make a garment or anything that has a specific purpose. Thus cloth is just a type of woven fabric. All cloths are fabrics, while all fabrics are not cloths.

•  Very interesting question that made me think...I use both fabric and cloth depending on what I'm doing with them...I dye fabric and probably use the word fabric most of the time...I use the word cloth if I'm making what I call complex cloth...to say I dye cloth or that something I layered is complex fabric just feels all wrong to me...

•  Fabric is just more open-ended in terms of meaning. Cloth also carries a religious connotation as in "man of the cloth". I agree that textile is a good word as well.

•  To me, cloth is related to clothing. I refer to what I purchase off the bolt, fat quarters, whatever, as fabric.

•   I don't use the word, textiles, very often. I think of it as referring to museum collections, garments conserved for educational studies and occasionally in reference to the group of items I'm going to need for a mixed media project. I think the word textiles is used more in educational settings.

• I like to use fibre as it is a broader term including paper.

•  I use the word textiles. It incorporates different thicknesses, fibres, vintages. But I like cloth too - a very smooooth word.

So, from this I see a wide range of interpretations - no one word is the "correct" one and each of them have subtle differences. Part of the usage may be personal experience and history, part may be education - and it's a conversation I'll be sure to use in my course.....which BTW is here in Victoria in May-June on Tuesday afternoons, 2-5pm! The registration isn't up yet, but let me know if you're interested and I'll keep you updated.

What do you think? Let me know!

Why the Dinosaur needs a House...or Desert Island Designs Great Kick Off!

I did have the shoe box ready to pack, but it seems as though a group of dinosaurs needed a house and so....my grandson and the homeless T. Rex won out!

Another similar box was found and I've assembled the different items that I'll be using for March to make art. Where did this idea come from? There were a couple of different issues that have bothered me for a time and I thought it would be worthwhile to work through them and see where I was led.

First, an issue that attacks all of us from time to time is a surplus of stuff...we don't just have fabric, we have yards and metres and piles of it, we don't have just a couple kinds of paints, we have textile, transparent, opaque, watercolour, silk, airbrush, a multitude of colours and varieties. We have an overabundance of threads, needles, books, mark making tools and much much more! And in our culture we often tend to run after the latest and greatest...we see something new at a workshop and instantly it becomes the "must have" item that we order online that very night!
Does all this help us to make more and better art?

Years ago I lived in England and would listen to BBC radio and a programme titled "Desert Island Disks", the premise was (and its still running, by the way: http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b006qnmr ) that the guest would choose a number of discs (records) to take with them to a desert island. So this idea of "Desert Island Designs" has come about with ONLY a shoebox of supplies to take to our "virtual" desert island for a month.

Secondly, this ties in with my idea that that we often make excuses to not make art because we don't have a certain "essential" item, a particularly thread, a "perfect" fabric....and so on! So smack me on the head....just get on and make the art! No excuses, no what ifs, just get down and DO IT! With what I have NOW, not what I wish I had!

For the month of March, I'll be working out of what I manage to cram into my shoe box (ok similar to a shoe box....) to make ART. Not just samples, but art that I finish, ready to mount and hang!

Why not join in? If you can't manage a month, try it for a week, or work on it every Thursday, or whatever! We have a Facebook Group to join in as well!
https://www.facebook.com/groups/392488947773739/

PS. You don't have to be a textile person...why not an acrylic artist or a watercolourist?

So here's my box that's packed and ready to go.....

 2 metres of PFD fabric and a few pieces of linen thats been hanging around in my bins for years...it was expensive linen when I bought it years ago....it's time to use it!

A small sketchook and some Khadi paper, I'm thinking I'll do mark making on the paper, ear it up and combine it with some of the other fabrics and add stitching.

I've put in a small bottle of India Ink and brushes, both for fabric and paper.

A Thermofax screen is essential - one designs used in many ways!

A Gelli plate, brayer and black Neopaque paint - a million options with these tools....

Lino cutting tools and my last, precious block of Mastercarve. I think it's the best product ever made, hands down, too bad it's discontinued! It's time to use the good stuff! 

 A selection of threads for hand stitching, instead of feeling that I have to bring every last thread to my Desert Island, the key is to limit the palette, look for variety in value and texture.

 A Colour wheel, always an essential item! Some Inka Gold for highlights, a washout marker, needles and pins and a shaper tool for more marking.

A selection of little bits of fabrics, some fusible web and Misty Fuse.

Some fabrics I've marked and painted, mostly 10" or smaller, for cutting and stitching.

There's also some scissors in the pile somewhere! 

Other artists have chosen to add wool felt, cotton fabric, indigo dyed fabrics, pencil crayons, grid paper,  inktense blocks, procion dyes, soda ash, stamps, thread, needles, paint palette, fibres,beads, dippity do, cup, ruler, Angelina, water baste resist, pencils, basting glue,sponge, paint palette and a dusk mask....what would you bring?