There are a few different garden areas in the Yannat Al Arif (Generalife gardens) and one of the most breathtaking is the Courtyard Of the Sultana. It's beauty lies not only in it's planting & use of water, but in the exquisite pavillions at either end & the corridors that flank it's sides. These are rooms that provide shelter from the elements, but are also open to enjoy the gardens. Decorated with exquisite carved plasterwork, they set the scene for what we'd be admiring later in the Nasrid Palace of the Alhambra.
For this week's art project I wanted to capture both the use of pattern in the decoration of these spaces, and the sense of being both inside & out of doors.
I began by looking through my photos of the site & drawing some of the patterns I liked the most. This led me to observe that the original artisans were very skilled in effectively using scale & sizing of patternwork. Into these intricate patchworks of pattern they also allowed spaces where the eye could rest & prepare itself to change from one pattern to another.
It took several attempts to find a combination of patterns that suited what I was trying to express as well as being possible to produce in a 20cm square. I was relieved to finally begin! Here's how it progressed;
I couldn't help myself, I had to finish it off with a few pearls!
I am very pleased with this outcome. It was a good exercise to create these repeating patterns in two colourways & I think the combination works well together as well as expressing that sense of an interior & exterior space. The layering took a lot of concentration today, but I'm glad I put the effort in.
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