Lots to say but so little time.

Many things have been happening in Calgary's textile scene whilst I have been away this summer. For one, our work is up at ACAD. More images to follow and look here too  (Great work Arlee).

Above is the invitation to the Contextural Group's Summer Residency Exhibition.
Hope you can make it, and the best thing would be to come along on the 12th of September (5:30pm) when Michael Brennand-Wood will be treating us to an entertaining lecture (and it's free).  Come early as the lecture is likely to be extremely well attended.  Following that is the closing reception for Contextural's show - so free food too.  Hope to see you there.
More on Michael Brennand-Wood's visit to Calgary, in my next post.

A fantastic opportunity for stitchers in Alberta

Pretty Deadly and Random Precision

'Pretty Deadly'  Embroidered Blooms, Acrylic, wire,toy soldiers,,metal,resin,glass on wood base.

All images courtesy of Michael Brennand-Wood

I learnt that Michael Brennand-Wood would be coming to Canada to give a lecture and workshops at Maiwa in Vancouver.  Unfortunately he didn't have Calgary on his travel plans.... so with encouragement from my friend Sian I sent off an email and am now very pleased to announce that Michael Brennand-Wood will present a futher workshop and lecture to be given under the auspices of the Alberta College of Art and Design, Calgary.

So to recap:
What - Lecture and Workshop with Michael Brennand-Wood
When - Lecture - Monday September 12 : 5:30-6:30, Workshop - Tuesday September 13
Where - Lecture - Standford Perrot Lecture Theatre, Workshop ACAD Studios
Contact - To register call extended studies department ACAD 1 403 284 7640

All are welcome, all levels... for more information email ioftheneedle@me.com or call extended studies department.  Be quick spaces are filling up very quickly!!!

For more background on Michael's work see his website  and for an interview with Michael go here.  If you are interested in further workshops and Master-classes and to get on the Kreative Momentum email list contact ioftheneedle@me.com

This doesn't define me

When is work worth showing?
I watched a program on the BBC recently - if you have a link to Britain you might still be able to watch it... or a clip of it .  It was a day in the life profile of Tracey Emin.
I was quite uplifted by hearing her views and seeing more of her art as she got ready for a show.
I decided then that I ought not to navel gaze quite so much about my work and, as I put it this morning, "I will not deliberate over every stitch, bead and title but be more spontaneous in my work."


They say that if you use the word 'try' it implies failure... well it took me several weeks of deliberation to decide if I would take part in "Collaboration" Contextural's end of residency show.  For a start it wasn't collaboration as in "the action of working with someone to produce or create something" sense, as only one pair of collaborators had emerged (as far as I know) and I also questioned if my work from the residency warrants a showing.


Finally I decided that it is worth showing in the ACAD setting - with a proviso that I give it an Emin-type of, in-your-face, title to help it to be understood and say what exhibiting the work is supposed to show in an accompanying statement.  So here it is, roughly photographed on the dining room floor.

"and this doesn't define me"

I am showing these 4 pieces at ACAD merely to hint at what is possible with disperse dye and minimal stitch.   These pieces show a few experiments with  disperse dye that I worked on at ACAD during June.  I will take and already have taken the process further using 3D surfaces and a variety of fabrics. If you work with disperse dye please do post images on the Flickr Group Disperse Dye
Once one has done a City and Guilds one has to work hard at not 'having to' put layers and layers of stitch in everything one creates.  So I took pleasure in creating the piece in the middle which is surface decoration only-no stitch;  there was some thread involved though, in the method of dyeing! and that gives a clue to the collaborative process.
Drop by ACAD room 371 from Aug 21 to Sept 3 if you want to see more collaboration and probably more meaningful work.
I could navel gaze about that last phrase but, you know, I am just not going to!
PUBLISH POST-return

ioftheneedle has a face

I edited my profile!
I might even get around to editing my edited profile at some point and do a bit of cropping... Thanks, daughter who took the photo.
I will soon have a face on facebook too  and that, no doubt, will lead to tagging and so on and so forth.

Nudibranchs on iPhone... two of my loves in one place!

Congratulations to Gary and David on the launch of their new iPhone App.  This is one must have I must have....

Go to http://www.nudibranch.com.au/ to see their website.  Thanks again fellas for all your hard work and inspiration.  I lifted this from their website too...

THE BRANCHER’S PSALM

The Nudibranch is my passion; I shall always want more.

They maketh me to dive in clean and dirty waters: They leadeth me beside intertidal pools.

They restoreth my soul: They leadeth me into the realm of academics for its name sake.

Yea, though I swim through the gutters of sharks and eels I fear no nudibranch: they are found there: my twin tanks and dive reel comfort me.

They preparest a photographic feast before me in the presence of my dive buddy: they anointest my gloves with slime; my specimen bottle runneth over.

Surely the need for the next species and controversy of identification shall follow me all the dives of my life and I will branch in the seas forever.

David Mullins 2008
(My apologies to King David)

My apologies to Kind David and anyone who might take this, not in the way it was meant, and be offended.

Live Wire between UK and Canadian Textile artist

Just checked into an email from Jan in England and found a couple of links that might be interesting to record here. This season is a busy time in England for textile artists as shows abound around the country.Thanks Jan for sharing - looks like you had a great time at the shows.
www.tags.org.uk
www.easttextile.co.uk/blog/index.html
www.easttextile.co.uk/index.html
Whilst surfing around these sites I found the work of Yvonne Pedretti.

Immediately I hoped to be in touch with this talented artist.  However it appears from the web that Yvonne passed away recently.  She left  a wonderful legacy that we can enjoy - her creative spirit, though sadly we will never meet.
The one below is mine from city and guilds days:-

I have worked with fibre optics before and perhaps seeing Yvonne's work now and my current project plans will encourage me to take my glass and plastic line work further.  Thank you Yvonne.

I'm back! and what a summer journey so far.

I do find my blogging is rather stop : start.  But this time I do have a valid excuse.  Last blog entry was June 22 2011.  Since that time I have:-
Hosted a workshop at ACAD for the residency participants on Sewing Machine Abuse.  We worked from 9 - 4 and stopped only for a quick pannini.  It was intense.  A few photos....

I challenged participants to make detailed and accurate note taking as screws were adjusted to throw the machines out of balanced tension... Siri followed through beautifully - was that her scientific training showing through?

Living dangerously... no needle guard as we made cords.

Then it was pack-up time for me as I left ACAD for another year... and swapped my work bags for travel bags and our summer holidays in BC.

Spent time in Victoria for Canada Day and got ourselves on the Living flag and on the same front page as Wills and Kate!  We also visited the Royal BC Museum... and at last I found some wonderful quill-work...  Many galleries do display excellent First Nation bead-work but quill-work is harder to find...  John got this lovely shot for me.

Then on to Sooke and Port Renfrew for a week of painting, reading botany and photography.

These curious Mollusca on the beach

We were lucky enough to spot a Giant Octopus locked in a rock pool poor thing.... they are magnificent creatures and we were assured later at the Sidney Marine Science Centre that it would have got back to the sea on the next tide... here it is if you want to see it...

After that a week (nearly) on Salt Spring Island (heavenly) where I was fortunate enough to work with 10 wonderful textile artists as Stitches hosted me as I presented a workshop on Disperse Dye and Beyond.  Spacious workspace too... and a spectacular pot luck lunch - those ladies know how to host!

I was kept so busy that I didn't manage to take any photos but Karen of Stitches has allowed me to use hers.

Spent lazy days exploring the island with the 3 of us holding digital cameras we were never going to be mistaken for locals.

One of the oldest buildings on the Island - and the jointing all cut with an axe.

On our return to Vancouver Island we later visited the Shaw Ocean Discovery Centre (thanks for the recommendation ladies) and although lighting was difficult I got some lovely inspirational material.  They even have two nudibranchs there, one was elusive, the other preferred shade (so no photographs of my own, though I did pick up a twitcher devoted entirely to Nudibranchs of the Pacific North-West, Amazing).  I now know I must call them sea slugs to differentiate them from shallow marine worms (who are of course from a different family entirely).

After that back to Calgary and the rain... Friends arrived from England via their coach tour of BC and AB for a week of Millson hospitality.   A highlight being the day spent at Sunshine Meandows and more botany.
All too soon friends departed and I got stuck in to my loose ends:-
Still chasing a mystery guest for ACAD, and it is now 26th July and it still isn't firmed up... dealing with institutions... nightmare....  But all seems to be going ahead-awaiting confirmation from the artist himself... then you will hear all about it.
Looking into getting my work critiqued by ACC (but will I be able to take the comments?) and hopefully the go ahead to improve things and/or supply scarfs to their gallery shop???***????
Making sure I have everything I need for an application that needs to be IN by end of August.
Creating a display method for "Five Creatures" ready for critique by Arlee this Thursday (yikes).  These are for the upcoming Epcor/Contextural show.  I hope they are ready to go to the exhibition (my deadline is Thursday 4th July when I hand them over to Anne as I will be away for the actual deadline) and the write up is written.
Something like this perhaps... I know it isn't exactly a studio shot but you get the idea..

As well as all of that I have been working on a way to display a bit of work from the residency... so that I can take part in their end of residency show.  Just learnt that it isn't going to be in the Marion Nicoll gallery... that is a shame.
Here are 4 pieces, very water-colour-ish with minimalist stiching:-

There are 4 more that form a quadryptic if there is such a word...  but all I have done for them is cover the boards that they will be mounted on.  I still  need to stitch stitch stitch and be happy.

Up to date now?  I guess so....