I have been enjoying experimenting with different fabrics and threads to make texture with stitch. At first I felt a little inhibited, but once I gave myself permission to create freely without worrying about the "rules," it was a liberating and very enjoyable experience.
I used the marks I made in project one as general source of inspiration, as well as seeing which way the fabric and thread took me. I experimented with different thicknesses of thread as well as different textures of fabric; it took me a while to realise I could add layers of different fabric to a base.
When I started to free up my reservations, I realised that I was inspired by my local area. We live in a flat countryside, very close to an estuary and the Holderness coast. It was January when I was working on these pieces, and the light was very thin and silvery, with lots of freezing fog. The landscape is very dry, cold, pale and worn. Grey and white and silver.
I took a photo of some rocks, pebbles and driftwood collected from the beach and used this as inspiration. At this time of year, the area feels wild and abandoned, as there are no tourists; it's easy not to see anybody. It has a resonance of gothic horror, which was the mood I explored with the black and bleached fabric, based on my pen and ink marks. I explored the idea of braille - of needing to use texture to create meaning, but at the same time having one of your senses removed. I was exploring the idea of this feeling frightening and threatening and unknown. I wanted to explore texture as a slightly unpleasant but heightened experience.
I'm pleased with my results on the whole; I think the use of silvery threads worked well, especially against rougher textures such as hessian or linen. I liked the combination of yarn and thinner, prettier threads.
I was surprised that black linen did not turn a lighter colour when bleached, and was even more surprised that satin does not bleach at all. Having said that, I think the contrast of the shiny, smooth satin works well against the bleached, crumpled linen and gives the overall piece an eeriness, even though one might traditionally associate satin with celebrations and happier times. I enjoyed its funereal qualities in this instance.
Created with flickr slideshow.
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