Looking Around

2024 is my year of exploring and learning. It’s also a time for revisiting some of my early ideas. One of the lessons in a basic photography class is to look up, look down, and look all around as you’re making photographs. This is one exercise used to develop an artist’s observational skills and I always loved it. I continue to look all around as I walk in nature, in the neighborhood, or around town with an intention to observe and be inspired by what’s around me. In the last few years I’ve been looking down a lot. I’m four months into my year and I’m embracing the joy and calm these “exercises in seeing” give me.

Example of some my iPhone photos of "Looking Down."

As I drove through my neighborhood, I was inspired by the gestural tar lines used to repair the asphalt, so one morning I got out of the car and started photographing the street—framing the lines to create lyrical, gestural compositions.

 

A few of my Tar Lines

Once these tar-gestures were printed on fabric I started having fun exploring how to enhance them by adding color, stitch and collage. Here are a few process photos and you’ll be seeing more of my progress in the next few months.

 

Tar Lines collage

 

Sampler testing out stitching on the tar lines,
including french knots, free-motion machine stitching,
hand stitching, and machine couching.

Art in Cuba by Connie Tiegel

 On a January 2024 trip to Cuba I met an artist named Yudit Vidal Faife. You are in for a treat when you checkout her website: www.yuditvidal.cult.cu 

Touring her house/studio in Trinidad, Cuba was a dip of the toe into the cultural waters of the embroidery tradition in Cuba.

In addition to making her own art she also teaches community classes to pass on the embroidery tradition to younger women.

In a country as poor as Cuba she has a great need for donated supplies of fabric, thread and needles.

Please contact Yudit Vidal Fiefe at: vidal.yudit@gmail.com if you would like to contribute supplies to her community projects.

by Connie Tiegel 

2024 Meeting in the Mountains by Barbara Matthews

My Snip-its and photos from the Meeting in the Mountains

MOUNTAINS: Magnificent mountains cradle Canmore and the surrounding area.

Weather and outdoors: cold and brisk (19-40 degrees F), but not uncomfortable.

Outdoor activities: Banff and Bow River Falls, magpies, some snow-covered sidewalks.

Coast Canmore Hotel: Excellent amenities, friendly staff, walkable location.

Meal highlights: The Table at the hotel, The Blake, Crazyweed Kitchen

Member Art: Excellent and inspiring work shared…loved the hands on

Artist talk: Elise Lavallee Findlay emerging artist, unique, deconstructed canvas covered woodshop tools

Ideas: Stiffen fabric—Stiffy, Terial Magic; Dorland’s Cold Wax; sorbello stitching; potato, vinegar, salt soak of non-galvanized steel; green tea painted turns black; Yupo paper

Westies: One Long Earth Song; Edward Abbey Benedicto

Meeting planning and membership discussions: will be shared in an email to membership

Conversations: catching up during breaks and walks to venues, plus longer opportunities to chat.

Public transit: Sherri, Mary Ann and I navigated successfully to Banff!

Other art inspiration: Ilana Manolson acrylic on yupo paper, plus more at Whyte Museum

Edible past memories: ketchup potato chips (don’t ask), aero bars, and maple sugar leaves—plus friendly postal workers.

Cudos: Lorraine Ross, Lynda Williamson, Regina Marzlin, Sherri McCauley and all who planned the meeting—grand success!

The power of curiosity and "What if...?"

by Russ Little

For years I've been curious about weaving and spinning, but I've intentionally kept those things at arm's length because I regarded them as distractions. Lately I've been embracing my curiosity more fully and seeing where it might lead. What new ideas might come from new experiences? 

One place that curiosity has led me is learning to spin. I never understood what all of the fuss was about handspun yarn. Now I'm starting to get it.

I've written about this topic curiosity at length in a new post on my website.

https://russlittlefiberartist.com/blog/2024/4/16/spinning-off-in-new-directions 

Natural Dye Club by Dianne Hricko

 Please check out the link below for the amazing group show from the Dyers Club that my daughter, LauraVHricko linktr.ee/Lauravhricko is part of. These artists are from a wide variety of fields. They meet once a month to study and promote natural dyeing and working with fabric. 

The show is so beautiful and also educational. The link has lots of photos and useful information. 

It's open now if you are in Philadelphia. 

https://davinciartalliance.org/a-shared-table-eff

Dianne

Displaying Daily Practice Art by Barbara James

Like many textile artists, my daily art practice is comprised of making small 4”x 4” compositions out of my hand dyed and printed scraps of fabric. I do not try to make these perfect, but just play with my fabric and the composition. Each piece has raw edges and the elements are hand stitched in place.  By making these little art works I keep the creative juices going between making larger works. 

These little treasures stack up in my studio and I often wish that they could be displayed. While browsing my local hardware store I thought of a solution-window screening. 

 

Here is what I did to make a larger piece. Window screening comes in convenient rolls. I cut a piece of screening to measure 22”X 44” and turned the top back 1.5” to form a pocket for hanging on a plexiglass rod.

 

I mounted each small composition on a 4.5” piece of black felt to form a mini frame. It was fun to hang the screen on my design wall and move the pieces around to determine the best placement for each piece. 

Once I was satisfied  with the composition I hand stitched the small pieces in place using invisible thread. Here is a photo of the back of the piece.

 To help to provide connection between elements I cut small bits of fabric and screening and sewed these in place.

 

The finished work is whimsical and a creative way to journal my work.

For more art by Barbara James visit my website at <barbarajamesart.com>.