Module one, Cost

After completing the first module, now I can see where I can improve this for the future.  Instead of just putting the cost, I am going to start calculating a unit cost which is a better method for finding a true cost of a piece.  For example,I might buy several spools of thread but it would be great to simate how much is being used to cover a four in square heavily versus medium coverage.

Storage
Most of the work in process was kept in my sketchbook.  I even attached most of my working samples in there too.  Some of my design sheets, composition sheets, and more developed samples were stored in an acid free, archival quality presentation book. This way, if I need to refer back to module one, I can easily reference this work as well as my notes.
While working, my papers were kept in a plastic storage pin.  My fabrics were kept in another plastic storage pin.  Paints were kept in plastic storage bins by type of medium (acrylic high flow, watercolor, brush, all kept seperate) so they could be quickly accessed but also stored when it was time to move on.
I have two sewing machines which are always kept out and available.  One is kept covered with a cloth to keep the dust away when not needed.
All of my dry dyes and chemicals are also kept in a large plastic storage bin that shuts.
Machine threads are kept in plastic cases specifically made for thread storage.  They are organized my weight of thread and metallics.

Module one, Time

This was my time  record.  In future modules, I am planning on trying a different method.  Instead of trying to work out what each chapter took, I am going to start keeping records per sample and see if I learn more about estimating how long something will take, which I think is more of the purpose of the exercise.  This doesn't tell me what each process takes, so it doesn't really add to my abilities going forward.  However, just this realization is a real improvement.

Module one, Health and Safety conerns

https://prochemicalanddye.net/downloads/dl/file/id/7/product/238/studio_safety_guidelines.pdf

I printed out the above safety instructions years ago.  When I would teach dying, I always gave students a link to the print out as well as having a hard copy with me.  With this course I reviewed the information.  One I no longer found the information quickly n dharma trading website (my source for dyes), but Pro Chem has it and it is Great!  I have also now saved it to my cloud account so it is easier to reference when I need it.

Cutting and using rotary cutter. Be mindful when walking with sharp objects- in the middle of the design process my mind is in the clouds and I am not paying attention to where I am walking!  Seems simple, but a real issue with me!

When using a rotary cutter, always lock the blade before putting it down.  Also, don't lay it down on the cutting board but have a container to hold this type of tools, off the cutting area where it can be covered up quickly.

Using dyes, follow precautions listed on link above.  Dyes are safe if you follow basic instructions.
1.  Wear a mask when mixing dyes in powder form
2.  Mix powder into liquid ti minimizes letting powder become air born.
3.  I mix my dyes into concentrate with just the dye and water, I then store these in an extra refrigerator. I wouldn't do this if I had small children.  These are also in a set of containers that are different from any I use for food.  They are then placed in a larger plastic show box which is placed in the refrigerator. Both the individual bottles and the shoe box all having warning labels  in large black letters.

Burning fabric
1.  Using a heat gun - Do it outside and still wear a mask!  The fumes will make you and family members sick if they inhales it.  Also always have some water available; it doesn't have to be a hose, but a bucket of water.  If you like to push things just to see what happens eventually something will catch fire!  Always try to hold the piece with tongs or tweezers (sometimes I have used a stick), try and work on a glass or metal surface which can't catch fire.
2.  Test small piece first.  Polyester is my favorite to use as Kunin felt melts beautifully, but I have thought a piece was synthetic but it wasn't and it caught fire!  Unless you are 100percent sure, be careful.
Remember the heat gun nozzle gets very hot, be careful where you but it down.

Using the soldering iron
1. Use the same precautions as the heat gun.

Try and use a large box as a spray booth.  Take a large box and cut out one of the la get sides and part of the top.  It is just a great thing to have ready for when you need it.  It isn't a salfety concern as much as a clean up thing.  I also cover the bottom with a piece od n newsprint.  It can be stored and used for future projects.

Working on module one in my art room

Module One, Chapter 13, Elly Sienkiewicz

I choose to write about Elly Sienkiewicz.  Through her series of books on Baltimore Album quilting, I learned most of what I know about both regular applique and cutwork applique.  I have completed 21 blocks from her books.  I also appreciate that she incorporates hand stitching on the blocks as they did in Baltimore.  She studied American quiltmaking, specifically the type made in Baltimore in the 1840’s.  In her first book, Spoken Without a Word, she not only teaches hand applique but she also talks about the symbolism of the images.

Elly learned to quilt from her relatives in West Virginia.  She attended Wellesley College and the University of Pennsylvania and then become a teacher.  While staying home with her children, she not only began to teach quilt making but started a mail-order quilt supply business.  She took a break from teaching to become a tour guide of historic Washington, D.C.  It has from this period, that she really began researching and writing about this historical type of handwork.

She is the other of twenty-three books on applique and has received the Silver Star

Award for significant influence on the contemporary quilt world.  She has lectured at the Smithsonian Institute as well as the Rockefeller Museum.  Her work has been shown at numerous shows as well as at Glen Echo-The National Art Park, The Textile Museum, The Decatur House, The Art Barn in Rock Creek National Par, and The Decorators Showcase in Chevy Chase, Maryland. 

Module One, Chapter 11, Composition Worksheet

For this composition worksheet, I focused on one basic shape and showed the stages of design as I played with it until I came to two designs that I developed all the way to embroidery samples that I liked.

Module One, Chapter 13, Kandinsky

Vasily Kandinsky is one of my favorite artists.  This isn’t just because of his revolutionary creativity but more because he did not focus on art until late in life and still had such a lasting influence on artists decades later.  He was born in 1866 in Moscow and studied law and economics.  It was not until he was thirty and visited Paris that he was so inspired that he quit law to become an artist.  He moved to  Munich, a center for experimental art.  Another thing that is very interesting about Kandinsky, and many artists of that time, was their involvement in more organized art movements, from Phalanx, to Neue Kunstler Vereingigung (New Artist Association), which also included Franz Marc.  It was during this period that Kandinsky began exploring nonobjective painting and become the “father of abstract painting”.  In 1911, Kandinsky, Marc, and several other artists formed Der Blaue Reiter (The Blue Riders).  

Also in 1911, Kandinsky wrote a book called Concerning the Spiritual in Art.  He was studying the “dematerialization” of the object in art and felt that art should represent the spiritual rather than the material and mirrored the music of the time.  He began naming his paintings “composition”, Improvisation” and such.

With the beginning of World War one, Kandinsky moved back to Russia and did not return to Germany until 1921 when he joined the faculty at Bauhaus.  It was during this period that his work moved to more geometric abstraction.  He also wrote a textbook, Point and Line to Plane. His work of this period lines, and curving shapes with defined edges, as in Composition VIII (below).

Kandinsky moved to Paris in 1933, where is work is influenced by other artists such as Miro and Arp and the Surrealists.  Kandinsky died in 1944.  I love learning about Kandinsky and his artist path.  Although his Blue Rider period is my favorite, I love the way he continued to grow 
and change with the times.  He didn’t try to “say” something in his art, but to make the viewer feel. 

Module one, Chapter 13, Herta Puls

Herta Puls

Born in Germany in. 19. , Herta Puls originally studied radiography and was a medical technician.  She move to England in 1939 where she was introduced to embroidery by Constance Howard.  She went on to study both embroidery and textile design as a part time student.  She moved to London with her husband and was able to continue her study by passing the Advanced Certificate in embroidery with distinction from the City and Guilds through the London College of Fashion.  She was a member of the world famous 62 Z Group.  Herta has since passed.

The above is an image from her book.

Herta is best known for her research into the cutwork appliqué of the Kuna Indians, specifically molas..  She began this research in 1969 in the British Museum and the ethnographic museums of Gothenburg and Hamburg.  She also made over eight trips to the San Blas islands off the coast of Panama to study this unique application of cutwork and embroidery.

When first examining a mola, the viewer is struck with the beautiful use of vibrant colors.  After closer study the complexity of the layers of fabric used to create these pieces can be admired. Herta was not just interested in the techniques which was unique to this area but also in discovering the source of the imagery used.  She researched the designs and documented the stages from religious symbols to environmental themes to story-telling.

This is from her book.  It is one of her drawings and then her cutwork design inspired from the drawing.

Module One, chapter 12, Resolved piece

This is my resolved sample for module one on Growth and Disintegration.  I think it speaks to the theme while still using several techniques from the module. The burnt Kunin felt is disintegrating, but at different rates.  The star is morphing from simple to complex.  Placing the foreground directly on the fabric created too stark a contrast so an additional layer of thread work was used to strengthen the them of disintegration.
The piece fits with the theme not just through the techniques used, but also with the idea of growth and disintegration. It has been a very trying time in the U.S. this week with the election.  While working on this piece, I was able to focus on the cycle of things.  Although this is a low period, soon it will shift to a period of hope and growth.

If I were to make it again, I would probably make it larger.  Also, I would not have used four elements,  in the original design, small petals were floating in the background.  As I was putting the resolved piece together, it looked too busy with them.

Module One, chapter Twelve, paper color

Here I am playing with the transparency of the papers to create more saturated color or neutralize the colors.

Module One, Chapter Twelve, paper compositions, set two

In example four above, I switched to a dark background that is broken into a light area too.

Example five above, is simplified.

Example six above switches One shape to a more disintegrated shape.

I think my favorite is example four.

Module One, Chapter Twelve, paper compositions Set one

I did most of the design work in black and whites.  I wanted to make sure the design was strong on its own before adding color.  After reviewing several basic shapes over the entire module, I focused on two basic shapes that I not only really liked, but that felt that I could illustrate growth and disintegration.

On example one, it was the simplest.

On example two, I let the design move off the page.  I didn't like it, but did like the way the form began to break up.

In example three, I thought about using the disintegration to form a compositional line as well as line density.  The space was too small to develop the line.

In example four, I started liking it better.

Module One, Chapter Eleven, part four

One idea that I had was to use yarn and water soluble to illustrate disintegration.  I think that it shows a lot of potential for the theme of disintegration.

Module One, Chapter 11 part three,More Fiber

Example 11.18 started with simply fusing the cut out shape onto a cotton *batik”

Different stages of machine stitching were photographed as reference to compare.

Alone, it doesn’t look like disintegration.

This does work well.  I was using a new machine and the bobbin tension is not great.  I started using a straight stitch, but then changed to a zigzag stitch with the feed dogs lowered.  I really liked this.

For example 11.19 below, I tried hand stitching.  I started with just a straight stitch trying to go over the edge of the shape.  I really didn’t like it and decided I didn’t need to finish a whole shape but just one petal.  I then moved to a seed stitch.  I didn’t think the dimension of a french knot would not work.  The seed stitch was not bad, but it still was not what I was looking for.

I also tried fusing snippets of fabric to the ground in the shape of the star, but it really didn’t have the feel that I was looking for.

I then tried just machine stitching on to water soluable.  I took pictures at different stages to be able to create multiple samples from one.

Image 11.20

I really think this one had potential but decides to try machining into kunin felt and then using a heat tool to melt the background.  I do like it but I think I will machine the background and leave the kunin felt as the middle to distress.

I decided to do one more sample for this “pre” work.  I wanted to see if placing yarn on to sticky water soluable, machine stitching through it and cutting into the start shape would both hold some shape but still give the viewer a sense of disintegration.  It was okay but not great.  It gives me ideas of maybe placing this on top of a cotton of the same shape but slightly askew or doing the background in this technique and then fusing the cotton shape on top and then continue to stitch through it.

Module One, Chapter 11 Fabric and Thread

In Image 11.12, I used a pin board to weave a star shape. Image 11.13, I used mulberry fiber which I distressed and painted and 11.14 is with lutrador which I cut with a heat tool  Of these three, I like the mulberry fiber, probably because I like creating texture.

In image 11.15, painted tyvek was used and heated with an iron, then cut apart.  I added the drawn lines to create more cohesion in the piece.  11.16 is silk fiber and angelina with water soluble.  I should have used one of my paper designs as a source, but instead I just wanted to see what it would be.  Now I can’t decide if I don’t like it because of the weak design!

I really didn’t like this exercise, but I am not a huge fan of drawn work either.  Really am not using this technique!!!!

Module One, Chapter 11, Paper

These are my exercises to develop my resolved piece.  First, I brainstormed ideas of the growth and distintegration of stars in my sketchbook (image one).  I also searched new sources of star images.  I went through my garden which was full of spring flowers as well as the internet for images to use for inspiration.  I decided to focus on not only traditional stars, but also starfish and star shaped flowers.

Image ONE

I then started working on paper designs.

In image 11.1, I used construction paper and a commercial punch and then tried to distress the form.  I really didn’t like this as I didn’t feel that it was my design.  In image 11.2, I used various ways to distress the paper.  My favorites were “wrinkled and sanded” as it had the most texture and cut apart because of the rhythm that can be achieved.  In image 11.3, machine stitching was used and then the paper was wet and rubbed and scratched to make holes.  To translate this to fabric, I thought of using water soluble, burn away with kunin felt or synthetic organza, or maybe plastic trash bags.

In images 11.6 and 11.7, additional ideas were tried.  It was too haphazard for me.

Next I went back to some of my earlier paper designs that I liked and started working with them.

In image 11.8, I started seeing real potential.  I like seeing the design change.  In the paper exercises, I had really focused on disintegration, but now I began to see growth in the design as well.  In image 11.9, I continued with the idea of the design breaking into pieces.  I think this one has the strongest use of negative space.

In image 11.10, it helped me focus more on negative space.

Chapter Ten, optional exercise

These were optional exercises for chapter 10.  I almost didn't do them because they were about burning synthetic fabric.  In the past, I loved using this technique, but never really paid strict attention to the warning and safety precautions which has caused some health issues.  I decided this was a bad excuse and it was time to work with a quality respirator! It was hard to get down to the cotton bottom layer.  It was useful to remove the top layer of synthetic fabric to leave the next layer, but hard to control and stop it from going too many layers.

Chapter Ten, Ripples

 

- it was an interesting technique, but it would need to be used with care to insure it is not gimmicky.  I once again did a basic shape as the technique would be overwhelmed.  It was really hard to get into all the points.  I left a nice size margin uncut to give the eye a rest.

Chapter nine, module one

This was the multi colored ripple le effect reverse applique.. i used some fabrics that i dyed myself using deconstruction printmaking technique that I learned in a workshop with Carol Soderlund.  i can't quite work out what i don't like about it.  my best guess is there is not a great value change in this sample.

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Chapter nine. Module One, machine reverse applique

I am still getting back into the right frame of mind to do these samples. For this one, I used multiple layers of fabric to do reverse applique. With the multiple layers, I machine stitched a layer and cut it out and then the next until I got to the yellow center. The wacky cross stitch in yellow stranded cotton almost forms another star layer. Although it is fuller closer to the shape, I stitched an uneven stitching to break it up. I then stitched a dark blue thread over both the blue and the burgundy layers.

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