HOLDING HANDS (Weekly Art Project inspired by Egypt #6, 2020)

 Sadly, our sail down the Nile had come to an end, as all good things must...apparently! I had become a convert to this form of travel & it is one of the most memorable experiences of my  traveling life.

We said goodbye to our dahibeyah and said hello to 'The Old Cataract Hotel' in Aswan.  Not only is this Hotel mentioned in the Amelia Peabody series by Elizabeth Peters (essential reading if about to head to Egypt ), but it was also where Agatha Christie wrote 'Death On The Nile', which... of course...had been the audio book I'd been listening to whilst on board our floating Nile Home!!

No sooner had we checked in, than we were down at the river bank again boarding a water taxi to Elephantine Island.  Once famous for ivory trading, this small island now housed an impressive archeological museum, which we were eager to visit.

Alas, it was shut for renovation, so we had to make do with wandering around the ruins at the rear of the museum, which  had once been the temple of the ram headed god Khnum.

 I was tempted to use him as my muse for this week's project.  However, as it has just recently been Valentines day I thought this beautiful fragment showing a couple holding hands was more appropriate!

It is meaningful on a personal level too, as this trip around Egypt was the first holiday my husband & I had embarked upon without our children, in twenty years!  I was a little scared when we began this trip, that we'd still have a connection & wouldn't drive each other nuts.  It didn't take long to realise (with relief) that I had nothing to worry about! What I did have to be mindful of though, was that we were in a Muslim country & public displays of affection, like holding hands, was NOT acceptable!

Everywhere we looked around the temple site on Elephantine Island was a dirty dusty stone-grey-brown!
That is until we glimpsed colour through a doorway.  On the other side of the ruins someone had put their laundry out to dry.

This splash of colour after an endless dull palette was impacting enough for me to remember & to take a photo of at the time.  Somehow I wanted to incorporate it into my art project as well.

It was time to draw what I could see & I began with the coloured laundry.
One of the lessons I've learnt from this part of my process, is how unobservant I am!  Perhaps 'selectively observant' would be a kinder description!  I've been so enamoured with the colour of the clothes up until now, that until drawing I had never noted the patterned ironwork in the window. 

Now I find myself wanting to incorporate this new discovery into the project as well!

When it came to drawing the hands, I wanted to capture those beautiful long flowing fingers & with a head full of colour & pattern I started to play with how they might all work together.

Believing that the only way I was going to be able to create those hands was in a portrait orientation, I had only explored the possibilities from that perspective.

Once it came to drawing up my pattern however, I discovered that I would be able to fit the hands into a landscape orientation & with that being the case, I could also fit in the clothes and the window.  This meant I would be creating a more illustrative design. 
I chose to offset the hands so that they weren't too central, which was more interesting & allowed a better view of the window.

The fabrics were layered up & the design stitched through. It was time for the cutting back to begin.  Here's how it went.

As you might have noticed, I had a few technical issues with my camera & the light!

I am quite pleased with the outcome as it captures all the elements I wanted to include. In terms of contemporary reverse applique, it is quite simple, but sometimes simple is the appropriate approach to be effective.  It has been a fun exercise & a lovely trip down memory lane.