ANOTHER LOTUS PILLAR (WAP #20; Inspired by travels in Egypt)

After a short but refreshing break away, I returned to my workroom this week & got straight into my weekly art practise.  Once again I was drawn to the Temple of Khun in Esna & the lotus pillars, which were different in style from those I'd seen elsewhere.   What impressed me about this one, was that colour was still evident. I also liked the way the lotuses were placed in rows to create a border, as well as some height & interest alongside the feather-like leaves. I was also intrigued by the barely visible painted patterns between the lowest row of lotuses.

Over the past few WAP's I've been experimenting with using the top level of my 'sandwich' of fabric layers as background or outline for my contemporary reverse applique designs.  For this week's project I want to complete this sub-theme by using that first layer as both, within the one design.

For a change, I used felt tip markers to make my visual notes today.  It is quite interesting using colour immediately & seeing the way different colours, even in this quick & sketchy stage, interact with each other.  It was also a good exercise to practice using a colour other than black as an outline from the start.

The design had been developed, drawn up to A5 size, the fabrics were chosen, cut & ironed before layering up & stitching. It was time to now begin cutting back!

Over the past few weeks the colour in my WAP designs have been very flat, with little textural interest.  This has resulted in a more graphic style, which has been the intent.  This time however, I wanted to keep the colour flat, but introduce a bit more texture into my fabric choices.  Therefore, the 'white' layer was a heavy hessian weave curtain sample.

 Alas...the fabric swatch was not big enough to fit a complete piece under the other layers as I would have liked, so I had to cut pieces to the approximate size & carefully place under the top layer in the appropriate spot before securing them with the outline stitching.

The difficulty with placing small pieces of that thicker fabric so high up in the stack of layers, is that it showed & created a white line when I cut back to other layers.  Whilst this is ok for an experimental piece like this, for a more finished presentation it would have looked better as the lowest layer....which is where it would have been if it had been a bigger piece of fabric!!

It is hard to see in this photo, but the red fabric is covered in gold glitter, which attracts the light & sparkles!!

It is hard to see in this photo, but the mustard yellow fabric has a pattern of looser woven squares throughout it.

The finished piece, embellished with a little stitching & a few beads.  I'm quite pleased with it & think that using the topmost layer as outline, filler & background components within the same design has proven to be quite effective. Next week I'll move on from Esna & I think it's time to move on from such flat designs as well!Before I go though, here's what this design looked like when treated in my layout app!

Creating is such fun!

LOTUS PILLAR OF KHUN (WAP #19; Inspired by travels in Egypt)

It was time to move on from Luxor, although we would be back in a few weeks time when to spend a few days on the other side of the Nile exploring tombs in the Valley Of The Kings.  Now though, it was time to head off to Esna where we would board a Dahibeyeh for a 5 night float down the Nile!

There was just enough time for a quick look at the Temple of Khun though!

This Temple is dedicated to the creator god Khun & has an interesting history.  The original was built by Tuthmosis 3 (the Pharaoh who liked collecting plants whom I mentioned a few WAP's back) & was then rebuilt by Cleopatra's family. Obviously it was eventually drowned in sand, because it took two archeologists 13 years to dig it out!!

Perhaps it was the time buried that left the tops of some of the pillars quite dark...or were they painted that way??  Whatever the reason, the black made them different & therefore interesting.  I had seen quite a few lotus inspired pillar tops already during our adventures, but this one was different, so I chose it as my muse for this week's art project.

Pen & paper & concentration.....three very important tools!

Once I had worked out a design that was feasible within my A4 size restrictions & for using contemporary reverse applique, I got my fabrics together & gave them a good iron!
Each of my art pieces has a layer of calico on the base & one of the first things I do is rule up those A4 borders, purposefully extending each line.  This is so that when I build my layers up, I can line them up more accurately. 

Over the past few weeks of art projects, I have been specifically focussed on positive & negative space, especially in regards to creating outlines.  Most of my work involves the top layer being cut away from the stitching to become the outline.  Over the past few weeks I've worked on keeping the top layer as background & mass & cutting away to reveal the layers below which then make the outline.
This week, I wanted to do more of that, but I wanted to have two layers of 'background' colour.  This meant that one layer's lines were stitched in first before I put the top layer over it, pinned it securely & stitched in those lines.
I had to really concentrate whilst doing this....no distracting coffee, chocolate or Fb feed interruptions!!

This was how it looked as I reached for my scissors & began to cut back!!

You will notice that I only cut back one section of the pale grey angles in the background.  This is because I immediately recognised that having them in pale grey  was not a good choice.  For my sense of taste & balance, I would have been wiser to slip another piece of black fabric under there .
However, because I hadn't, I chose to get the same effect by....ahem...cheating a little bit! 

This is how it looked once I'd painted those angled chevrons black! 
So much better, it gives a sense of depth, by optically pushing the lighter grey stems forward.  I am very pleased with this outcome & have had reinforced yet again, how valueable samples are when exploring new techniques & design ideas.
I'm LOVING this series of weekly art projects, partly for the memories it brings back, but also for the opportunity to use some of these designs & patterns in my own way.  I do hope you are encouraged to venture forth on your own art adventures as well.

BORDER DESIGN (#18 Weekly Art Project; inspired by Egypt)

 After a few weeks break from my weekly art project, I was looking forward to returning to this discipline at the start of each week. 

When I walk into my workroom on a Monday morning, I'm never quite sure how the project will unfold & what the end result will be.  As this week's Monday approached though, my anticipation was tempered by the recognition that I was going to have restricted time due to other things in my life needing to be done! Therefore, I did a little pre-planning.

I chose this fragment of decoration on display in the Temple of Karnak, as my muse.  The engraved design has become quite worn over time, but it is visible enough to see that it is an interesting design to play with.

 Naturally I started with a simple drawing to get my head around what I was seeing.

Then, I jumped a few steps.  Instead of more drawing & playing, I immediately went to how can I do something fresh with this using contemporary reverse applique.  Into my head came the notion of Notan,  a Japanese design concept that uses a mirror image in light & dark within the same design motif. I have seen this effectively achieved in the felt work by local artist Maude Bath, but have never tried it myself.  I drew what I envisaged my motif would look like & saw the potential.

 I then took out my mobile phone, photographed the motif & put it through my layout app to get this repeat image.
This appealed to me very much & I couldn't wait to try it the very next day in my limited studio session.

 Monday arrived & so did another 'really-have-to-do-today' item for my list! Sometimes life just happens like that!  Knowing that the rest of my week was going to be just as full, I decided that when I DID get into my workroom, I would simplify the design even more & just make do with that.

Sadly, this meant that I wasn't true to the Notan concept, but was inspired by it!! Perhaps another time I will have an opportunity to give it a proper go.

 My weekly art project ended up being a mirror image of the motif in chocolate & blue.  I used a variegated blue thread to sew  the outlines in the chocolate fabric & a variegated chocolate thread to sew the outlines in the blue fabric. Although not very noticeable, it still added to the interest!!

 Having had an exciting outcome using the layout app with my initial drawing, I photographed my project piece to see what this would look like as a repeat pattern as well.  This is the result.

 Before pinning my WAP to the pin board, I thought I'd add a little embellishment...buttons, to make it less flat looking & give it a little personality!

To finish off, I tried the app treatment again & this is the result.
Much as I am disappointed not to have realised my initial plan for this week's project, I am pleased with what I got done in a limited time. I also love the potential of using a limited palette of light & dark within a repeat pattern design.  A good way to get back into the routine of experimenting with contemporary reverse applique!