New Forum (July Challenge can be found on previous post)

For a little while now I have been using my blog to write up the challenges. I found it easier to use than the Yahoo site which hosts my challenge site. I have decided to open up a new blog as a Forum for the purpose of writing up the challenges and also to enable everyone to see the work that all our talented members create each month. I am hoping that even if you are not a member you might like to drop in from time to time and take a look at what will be a showcase. I hope that if you do drop by, you will leave a comment or two, it's always good to get feedback.
This will mean that I can have my own blog back, even if I do mention what is happening from time to time on the Challenge blog.
It's early days yet and I am in the process of waiting to hear from challenge members what they think of the idea. It will all depend on members as to whether this idea will work. I see it as a way of showing what the challenge ideas each month can achieve from each individual member. It is much easier to post to blogger than it is to Yahoo. I will still use Yahoo but I hope it will be more of an administrative/archival use than the Forum will be.
The Forum will be more friendly and easier to see. The facility of being able to write something next to photos in itself is much nicer than having to look up someones work and then try to find the write up about it in the messages.
This is what I hope the Forum will look like, a typical page entry might look something like this, not my best work but just an example:
June Challenge: Art Deco

Shown above is a page in my sketchbook of drawings that I made of Art Deco Textile patterns.
The picture below is of a small felt postcard (unfinished) based upon the drawings above.




Yes, I hope this will be the way forward for a much more interesting Textile group experience for everyone involved. If you are interested here is the link, just pop back when we are hopefully up and running. Go Create now.... Tricia x

July Challenge: Impressionism/Post Impressionism.

Thanks to Ruth for suggesting Van Gogh and Sue for her suggestion of Impressionism I have decided to cover both this month as Van Gogh is representative amongst others of the period just after Impressionism.
There is plenty of scope with this months challenge. Please feel free to choose either of the movements as inspiration. I am including two links one for each. From these two pages on Wikipedia you can choose to research further because there are plenty of links to other sites. The good thing about Wikipedia is that it will define what that movement is all about and which artists were involved.
So for Impressionism click here and for Post impressionism click here.
When you are thinking about the work that you might produce try to consider the essence of that movement. For instance you could focus on how Seurat mixed paint by combining different colours separately on the canvas, in other words he would for instance place red and yellow dots next to each other to give the impression of orange when viewed from a distance. This is just one of the elements but Seurat was the master at this so he is a good example to illustrate what I mean. If you were to use this idea you could mix your colours in a similar way, for example with seed stitching.
When I talk about inspiration this should not just be limited to making a copy of a painting, you could use the style to produce your own image. At the very least, if you do feel you would like to depict water Lillie's (Monet style) then do try to find your own image of one, it will not only stretch you but be much more interesting to create.
Please try to make some quick sketches before you start if you have the time, this will ensure that you choose the best angle/composition/image to work on in textile.
Most of all enjoy! OK get creating...... Tricia.

June Challenge - Art Deco

Hi everyone,

Are you all ready for a great challenge, well I hope it will be. I chose Art Deco because I feel it is one of the most beautiful art styles ever. I feel the classical is epitomized in this era.

I thought that I would have to do lots of research for this before giving you a long line of Links. That was not the case, I managed to find just the right site to help you to look at this style and research it completely. The site I am speaking of is the V&A just click here. I hope that this link will provide you with everything you will need to introduce you to the wonderful world of Art Deco.

The great thing about this site is that you can clearly see all sorts of objects including Textiles from which to derive some wonderful inspiration. When I say objects, this in itself is a real advantage, because if any of you are thinking of making anything in 3 dimensions like a box then looking at these objects could well give you a stepping off point. There is a very clear statement in the objects of this era. Similar lines can be seen in all sort of things ranging from radios to buildings. There is even an interactive map on this site that shows buildings in London that were built at that period.

I know I may sound as though I am raving about this style but I often think I was born too late. I would have loved to have dressed up in the clothes of this time. Yes, you've guessed, I love this Art Style.

So here is your challenge, take a long look at all the Art Deco on the V&A site, make some drawings, try to get to understand the very essence of the Style/Period. Choose an object to make using this as inspiration and off you go. Good Luck Tricia x

A Little Distraction

Or perhaps this should be titled a Big distraction. Gosh I forgot how much time a new puppy takes. I suppose after not being well it has been a good way to focus on something else.

Meet Spyro, (Cavalier King Charles Spaniel) he is meant to be my Son's new puppy but.... well, you know what that means if you are a Mum. It means that Mum does all the poop a scooping, and Son gets to play.

Spyro did not want to pose, he was in a playful mood.

Being playful is his favourite thing at present!!

Ok, this is the closest I am going to get to a portrait.

He can't be said to be modest either. Our old flat coat retriever pictured here is just so tolerant to having his ears chewed, I am so surprised that he doesn't bite back.

Be back soon with creative blog I promise.

May Challenge - Pattern - Swap

Inspiration from some very talented young students.

I noticed in my archived photos that I still had some lovely examples of some of my students work from the Secondary School (Year 7)where I used to work. We did amongst other things a project on pattern. Students were asked to research and source some examples of patterns. I must say, I was very pleased and impressed by their efforts and I do believe they very much enjoyed this project.

Some of the students were quite creative in their ideas, in the picture below, this student understood completely how to use pattern, she decided to draw a series of repeated objects in her first example. Then she almost discovered Cubism in her third example by shading in the repeated shapes in blue and thus creating different planes.

So, what is a Pattern? It really is simply the repeat of an object or shape. Pattern can be found everywhere.

It can be seen in Mathematics: geometry. It can be seen in nature.

If you would like to learn more about this there is an excellent resource here.

The work in the picture above shows a variety of patterns the last one in red and black is stunning, it is a copy of a Peruvian textile.

The last two pictures shows how the students worked with pattern from their initial research. They were designing tyes. What do you think?

Pretty good eh for 12 year olds.

Ok, what are we going to do this month? I would like to propose that we make some studies from where ever we can find pattern. Then lets do something a little different with our research. I thought that we could make a needle case/cover using our pattern on the front, this could be in any material, I will most probably use felt because it is an ideal fabric to store needles. When this is done we could do a swap. So if you would like to join in this swap I will ask you to sign up in advance. Please leave me a comment below if you would like to take part in the swap. Good Luck Tricia x

April Challenge: Collecting Textures

Textiles - Textures, the two seem inseparable. There are many ways to create textures, you can draw textures by mark making but a very easy way to do this is to transfer marks from one surface to another.

For this challenge we will be using a technique named frottage, a french word which artist's use to describe rubbing: as in brass rubbings. I am sure that many of us as children placed a coin under a piece of paper and rubbed it with a crayon or pencil to reveal the decoration on the coin. Well, this is an extension of this.

It seems strange that these experiments we make when we are young get lost and forgotten, especially so because with a little practice these can produce some fantastic effects.

In the picture below you will see some scraps of textured wallpaper. I have collected many of these over the years. If you go into a decorating store and ask from time to time you can often come away with old wallpaper books that would just be destined for the local landfill. This is what I have used as examples for this challenge but I am sure that there are so many other surfaces around us all that could be used, even the simplest woven fabric has a texture that you can borrow for this challenge.

I apologise for the quality of the photos but seen below are some very quick simple rubbings that I made, just to work out which textures I could use. I find soft oil pastels work the best for rubbings. You can use crayons but it takes a bit more practice and a firmer texture. The technique of actually rubbing should be noted, that is, always work the pastel or crayon in one direction, do not rub both ways or the paper is likely to move. The thinner the paper the better, for this I have used newsprint.

In the next picture I have used a yellow oil pastel and after making a series of rubbings I have used a blue watercolour paint to make a resist, this highlights the textures even more.

The next picture shows my first experiment with landscape, I realise that the photos are not as good as the real thing but I'm sure that you get the idea.

Now there are many different ways that you could step off from this starting point. I can give you a couple of simple suggestions but it is up to you where you decide to take your experiments.

Here are a few ideas:

• You could use these frottage resists to inspire some embroidery, looking at the textures to help you decide the stitches to use.


• You could repeat the experiments using fine cotton instead of paper. Making the frottage onto cotton and then making a wash over the top.
  

I'm sure that you talented ladies can find lots of ways to take these initial experiments further, don't forget to try lots of different textures. Look for them wherever you go; fabrics, stone, brick, plastics, leaves all sorts of places. Make lots of rubbings before deciding how you will use these. Think how you will put the different textures together, you may wish to use a wash to make a resist or you may like to look at different stitches.

There is one other way you might like to use textures, you could use it to print with. Depending where your texture is found. For instance, you could glue some samples of textured wallpaper onto board and use it to print with.

I hope that this challenge will inspire you to create work as marvellous as the work that you have made in all the previous challenges. You have all done so well in the last 3 months, keep up the good work. Good Luck Tricia x

Happy Mother's Day - and work in progress

A Very Happy Mother's Day to one and all.



We have been looking at colour on the Textile Challenge site this month so to look at these flowers it seems an obvious statement to acknowledge and praise the wonder of natures colours. These flowers are a little more vibrant in real life; a deeper pink. In the real flower the yellow seems to sing in the centre of such a pink. I would probably be quite hesitant if putting these two colours together, but nature does it wonderfully albeit with mans intervention, I accept that these Chrysanthemums have probably been hybridised by selection.

There have been some wonderful examples of experiments in colour from members of the textile group, I do feel that we can all learn by each of these. I feel it has been a very useful challenge indeed.

My own efforts have been based around my fascination with changing light and sky colours and the effect that these have on the landscape. I have not entirely mastered what I wanted to acheive but I have made a start. Seen below are the first attempts in looking at group of Silver birch trees with a darkened stormy sky in the background. This scene also fascinates me because the field in the background appears almost gold in colour, even though it is actually just a field of grass, it is the sky and light which seems to effect it. A few minutes before this stormy sky appeared, this field appeared as green as the one in the foreground. It is amazing what you can see when you take the time to watch the changing light.


This felted piece is only work in progress and still needs a lot of stitching. As can be seen in the detail below. I will try to remember to show the finished piece when it is done.