Looking at the rate my email inbox is filling up it seems to me that everyone is rushing to get ahead of themselves before the holiday begins.
For myself I am tied up with many many tasks.
I want to wish everyone a happy holiday.  I know that it is a very difficult time for many. And I give thanks for all the good things that I have in my life.
A very special guy, two healthy beautiful children, a working body, a sometimes bizarre mind, an appreciation for the small things around me that provide very very big emotions and friends about whom I need say nothing for my friends know how they are appreciated and loved.

Karin Millson    Threatened

 2013 (just)

Synthetic fabrics, shibori, heat-stitched reverse applique

Workshop with Judith Dios now full - accepting names on waiting list

Terrific response to Judith Dios's workshop in March.
The class is now full.
If you would like your name to go on a waiting list please email me.  A lot can happen in a couple of months and I could be looking for folks to fill freed-up slots.

Also the workshop may run in Edmonton and Lethbridge so get in touch with me if you want more information.

Meanwhile if you are interested in joining a one day workshop with me on felting -  relaxed atmosphere, mixed ability class, especially if you are new to felting. Please add a comment to this blog entry or contact me via email.

Date of workshop Monday 13th January 2014
Cost of workshop $45 plus your materials.
Location of workshop - either karin's studio or larger space to be decided later.
Time 9:30 - 4pm

Get in touch for more information.

Nodule

Karin Millson, Nodule #1

This is not a finished piece. In fact it is a set-up so that I can put it up on the blog.

It reveals the geologist in me.
My current work is most certainly fed by the visuals associated with having my roots firmly planted in the Earth's rocky past.
And yet….
I am experimenting with a technique that reveals patterns and shapes that also take me back to beauties seen in New Zealand - photographed knowing that one day they would be a wonderful design source.

I do find it quite disturbing;  the shock is in seeing one's thoughts made real. - to see what is in my quietened mind, drawn out by my creativity.
It is all working at the subconscious level as I am not calling for this to happen, it just arrives like a gift before my eyes as I work.
Memories are reawakened.
Question: What came first, the chicken or the egg?
Answer: In this case, most definitely the Nodule.

Class with Judith Dios Almost Full

The response to the call for registration for the workshop 789 March, has been swift (overwhelming being such an over-used word).

Please contact me directly if you are interested in one of the last places on the workshop  with Judith Dios in Calgary, or to have your name added to the waiting list.
See previous blog post for more details.
Thanks

Kreative Momentum brings Judith Dios to Calgary

Dear Ladies and Gentlemen,

I have pleasure in sending this invitation on to  you.

I know I really should change the layout of my blog to fit larger images… but I haven't done it yet.

So please click on this image to enlarge it in another screen.

I was fortunate enough to meet Judith during the first Canadian Felt:Feutre conference earlier this year and saw her glorious work exhibited at the show there and knew she would be a wonderful teacher for a Kreative Momentum Workshops.

I hope you will take advantage of her visiting us in Calgary.

Do get in touch if you have questions or want more information.

This is a great opportunity for beginner and advanced felters to learn more about Nuno felting, acid dyes, creating felted, sculptural clothing or other beautifully decorated surfaces.  Also her method opens up the technique of felting to those with back and upper body aches - get in touch for more information, but I don't want to give the game away to everyone!

Judith says “The workshop will work for all levels of experience though some knowledge of the materials and basic method of felting is required for more complex clothing projects."

(I can arrange for a one day felt play class to get you started if you wish.  Get in touch if you want to take advantage of this.)

Happy Xmas Everyone

If the shops are full of Seasonal Greetings then why can't I be one of the first to fill my blog entry with seasonal colours.
Looks like I have inadvertently - or is that advently - created a Xmas card for my fibre friends.

Karin Millson 2013, Mithril

Metal, silk organza, monofilament, felt








Of course there are two sides to every story

Don't think I ever uploaded these images, which were gifted to me by The Invisible Man…

Thanks Matt, but where are you?

I enjoyed making this and more in the same vein. And see that this sort of thing is being sold at a very fashionable department store in Canada these days.

 Working on another… Narcissus ran away and fell in love with his reflection… Hmmm… is there a message?

Hey everyone, don't forget the next SDA meeting

Wednesday 20th November, at Atlantis to listen again to a Reith Lecture (courtesy of BBC) :-

Grayson Perry on "What makes good art"

See you there at 7pm.

$5 members of SDA, $10 non-members, refreshments will be served.

The award-winning artist Grayson Perry asks whether it is really true that anything can be art. We live in an age when many contemporary artists follow the example of Marcel Duchamp, who famously declared that a urinal was a work of art. It sometimes seems that anything qualifies, from a pile of sweets on a gallery floor to an Oscar-winning actress asleep in a box. How does the ordinary art lover decide?

Tie and Felt

My first tie… Indigo…
Thanks Matt for pushing me to make something I haven't made before.
I do hope  you like it.

It does have a symmetrically pointed end!
And the pocket square is 12" x 12"

With my signature shibori or tie -die patterns, very other-worldly, like something from out of a petri-dish.

And at last I am moving forward with felting in my own way… after taking a leaf out of Marjolein's book which has taken me to using felt in a different and more exciting way than I had previously experienced -  I am now making samples and experimenting.  Photographing them along the way…. do I upload here or not?
Probably not ready to yet.  But I am having fun breaking the rules.
More on this another time.

Proud as Punch of River Valley School - Friday Special : Legal Graffiti

Here it is - 
21 students  created a stunning piece of urban art.
Not sure where it is going but it certainly goes.

 RVS Students, 2013

Legal Graffiti

or

The Dove, the Spider and the udders

(apt mis-spelling of 'others')

Thanks to Dean Stanton for getting us started with his patchwork-panel style for group pieces.
Dean, I hope you like the direction the students took it.
And thanks for not-telling me how my hands would ache after using the glue gun for 3 hours to stick the panels down ;-)

What I would like to see is this piece hung on a Wall-For-All.
My students didn't have any problems letting go of ownership of their original panels such that, as a group, they could work over the entire panel and create a much more dynamic whole.
What would happen if we gave the work over to the entire school, hmmmm?

Stickers are allowed.

Thanks Mrs Corbett for having faith and putting your students in my hands.
Next week, Matchstick men, and then the all-important debate: -
 "This house believes Graffiti is a social activity." ((…and - Yes, 'graffiti' is a verb too)).

This is going to be terrific. Save the date, Wednesday 20th November, 2013

SDA: Alberta meeting in Calgary

Full details below.
All are welcome, $5 members, $10 non-members.

Grayson Perry is an artist: renowned potter and certainly a surface designer.  His tapestries based on the Rake's Progress were shown in the Royal Academy this summer (they took my breath away and stimulated a good 2 hours worth of attention and more time on discussion - even though I wanted to go and see the Summer Exhibition too….).
Grayson has been selected to give this year's Reith Lectures on the BBC and we will be listening in to one of them at our next Surface Design Association meeting in Calgary.

You are welcome to bring or wear a piece of clothing that  is "subtle with bright colours" in the style of…. Grayson.

Beating the Bounds

Grayson Perry : Playing to the Gallery 2013 

The award-winning artist Grayson Perry asks whether it is really true that anything can be art. We live in an age when many contemporary artists follow the example of Marcel Duchamp, who famously declared that a urinal was a work of art. It sometimes seems that anything qualifies, from a pile of sweets on a gallery floor to an Oscar-winning actress asleep in a box. How does the ordinary art lover decide?
In a lecture delivered amidst the Victorian splendour of St. George's Hall in Liverpool, Perry analyses with characteristic wit the common tests - from commercial worth to public popularity to aesthetic value. He admits the inadequacies of such yardsticks, especially when applied to much conceptual and performance art. And he concludes that in his opinion, the quality most valued in the art world is seriousness.

Click on the image below to enlarge.
RSVP me to ensure a seat.

Without Giving Too Much Away #3

(Detail)

I took 2 finished pieces to members of Contextural at a Critique Night last night.
Feeling very possessive of this work, I am guilt-ridden, since Marjolein so generously shared her techniques with us… 
Who am I to want to hold on to this for myself?
The Contextural folks were very enthusiastic and reassuring to me.  
I am thrilled that people thought the work very much in keeping with my "body of work".
One remarked that this is a method that perfectly lends itself to my art.

Without Giving Too Much Away #1

(Detail)

I have had my wondrous introduction.
Now I go to the drawing board and start experimenting in my own way… 
Small samples to build up a library of possibilities.
It is very exciting.

A day out for Karin... work and play

Visited The Glenbow - in the hope of seeing some good graffiti artists' work  since the art room there has children creating graffiti text and pop art inspired by the work of Keith Haring and others.  They didn't have any Keith Haring on the walls at all... So a bit weak for a school activity for Grades 4&5 I felt.

Instead I moved on and spent time with the depressing world war 1 art of  Otto Dix and  and A Y Jackson....  and then to the Made in Calgary - 80s exhibition and then it was all alright.  I was inspired.  Yep there is only one word for it.  I now need to research the work of Eric Cameron, Mary Shanon Will, Sally Barbier and Gisele Amantea.  

(In a similar vein I enjoyed the work of Jeremy Hof in the Vancouver Art Gallery, that was on show there the previous summer. Layer after layer of acrylic on a cube.... then ?sanded, if I remember correctly, to reveal the inner layers and to me the wonderful depths of the interior via the centre of the circles....black holes, like Goldsworthy loves.  There were black holes in one of the 80s pieces in the Glenbow... so we have come full circle).

Jeremy Hof: The Cube from this blog

The curator, Jeffrey Spalding wrote of the 80s art of Will et al, "It is a Calgary specific; task-oriented art that is, in every way eccentric and idiosyncratic in appearance." Hmmmm. and " A significant component of experiencing works by Mary Shannon Will is their exquisitely manufactured surfaces.  paint applied and sanded and smoothed and overpainted a staggering number of times* creating a visual texture that cannot be otherwise replicated.
They were wonderful.
(*he doesn't say how many) 

Eric Cameron Begun August 24, 2008 - Thin Painting: Chris's Thread and Needle 100

Taken from 

(if you are not happy that I include these images in my blog please let me know via comments and I will remove.
Thread and Needle is a great piece AND a wonderful addition to this blog i-sew.blogspot.com)

Next post will have an image (perhaps part) of a felted piece I am completing after Saltspring.
 And it seems to me like I turned right on my artistic journey.

SDA Alberta Exhibition

EXHIBITION OPPORTUNITY

What’s on the Surface?

First show by established and emerging artists and members of the Surface Design Association Alberta, (SDA), showcasing the talents of its members.

To be held at Atlantis Fine Framing and Studio Calgary, Alberta.

http://atlantisframing.com  

4515 Manhattan Rd SE  Calgary, AB, T2G 4B3

April 5 - April 30, 2014

Submitting artists must be Alberta residents and SDA members at the time of submission. If you do not currently hold a valid SDA membership please visit  http://www.surfacedesign.org

Call for expression of interest

If you would like to take part in this show please email your intent by November 10, 2013 to ioftheneedle@me.com

Please include:-

Your Name

Address

Phone number

Email

The formal submission process is detailed below.

Theme and Context

Exhibition Theme: What’s on the Surface?

There is plenty of room for interpretation of the theme. An artist may choose to produce a meaningful surface that inspires, intrigues, or may simply be viewed as beautiful, ugly, or thought provoking. Perhaps you prefer to respond to the theme in a conceptual way.  For example, one might explore the idea that what a person shows on the surface is not necessarily what the person feels inside.  Or, one might express how cutting through the unappealing skin of the passion fruit reveals the beauty within. There are innumerable ways to address the theme and your approach is completely up to you.

This is a contemporary show open to the original application of traditional as well as experimental techniques. 

For the purposes of this exhibition ‘the surface’ is to be a textile, fibre or thread-based work, where 'fibre'  and ‘thread’ are used in their broadest possible sense, from the more traditional materials of cotton/silk/wool to the more innovative: strands of polymer plastics, wire, paper shreds, fibrous minerals, coils of clay etc.

Guidelines

A maximum of 3 works may be submitted for consideration.  A small series occupying a total of 30 cm or less in any direction will be considered as one piece.

Works of art can be 2D or 3D and must be completed during the past two years.

Art works as individual pieces, or as a small series occupying a total of 30 cm or less in any direction, can be accommodated easily. Larger pieces will be considered in the context of the available space.

This is a curated show.  All works should be of professional standard and finish.

The curators, Linda Hawke and Karin Millson, have final say on inclusion.

There is no submission fee.

Submission Deadline: February 14, 2014

Submission is via email, to ioftheneedle@me.com and should include:-

digital images of a maximum of 3 works proposed for exhibit; (max 3 images per piece, 300dpi sized to a maximum of 800 pixels per side).  Image files should be named with a number and the last name of the artist, eg: 1_smith

a correspondingly numbered list of works including title, size (cm), media, year completed, value (or price, if for sale)

brief explanation of each work (50 word maximum)

artist’s bio, detailing your history as an artist and the philosophical approach to your work (200 word maximum)

Transportation and insurance of works is entirely the responsibility of the artist.

All works must be supplied ready to hang, clearly and securely labelled with artist’s name, title of work, directional arrow, and price on the back or bottom of the work.

Any special installation instructions should be included with the work.

·      

Timeline

Expression of Interest:              November 10, 2013

Submission deadline:                February 14, 2014

Artists will be notified by:        March 14, 2014

Delivery of works:                   March 31, 2014

Finished artworks must be with the curator (Karin Millson, 4519 Coronation Drive, Calgary, Alberta, T2S1M5) by the end of the above date

Exhibition dates:                       April 5, 2014 – April 30, 2014

Opening reception:                   April 11, 2014

Pickup of unsold works:           April 30, 2014

All works must be removed from the gallery by end April 30, 2014. 

If you cannot be there yourself to remove your works, please arrange for another person to collect on that date.

It will be possible to sell works from the gallery.  Atlantis Fine Framing and Studio will take a 25% commission on any works sold during the show. Sold works will remain on display for duration of the show.

Contact Karin Millson for further details or clarification: -

ioftheneedle@me.com

403 453 1823

Post Felt:Feutre

I am fortunate to have a very supportive other half.
He encourages me to spend time on my Professional Development.
I travelled to Saltspring Island to attend Felt:Feutre and 2 workshops with Marjolein Dallinga.
The images above and below are of a piece I made in the second workshop and finished felting at home.

Marjolein gave many pieces of advice which I have taken on board. One was not to go public with work you are not happy with.  Well, this piece makes me happy, so I figure that is more or less the same thing. It might be the first piece of what I am now calling Free Felting where I really let my hair down and see the journey as the message, as Marjolein taught me.

By coincidence I had called the workshop I am facilitating this coming Thursday "Freedom in Felting" and to get my creative juices going today, I took this new (to me) philosophy to a 6" square pocket-shaped prefelt. Just look what happened.

Just back from a week's felting with Marjolein in BC, but so much to do, I miss having the wool on my hands, but a little admin. this morning for SDA

Just back from a week's felting with Marjolein in BC, but so much to do, I miss having the wool on my hands, but a little admin. this morning for SDA.
Here is a publicity shot. No fancy evite... yet... Just the raw data and lovely photo.

Surface Design Association - Alberta, October meeting

Non-Members welcome

“Spend an evening embroidering with visiting Vancouver artist Lois Klassen! Participate in her new project that celebrates the slow pace of traditional handwork and uses it as a metaphor for the progress of the equality of the sexes.”

For more information go to : http://www.surfacedesignalberta.blogspot.ca/2013/09/next-sda-alberta-meeting-collaborative.html

Lois Klassen, Margaret is a verb: A Tribute to Margaret Dragu (from a blind contour drawing by C. Mochizuki), 2013

When: Thursday October 17, 7 - 9:00pm

Where: John Snow House, Calgary

Cost: $5 members, $10 non-members

RSVP - (Karin Millson) ioftheneedle@me.com

On Thursday October 17, spend an evening with visiting Vancouver artist Lois Klassen. Participate in her new project that celebrates the slow pace of traditional handwork and uses it as a metaphor for the slow progress of feminism. 

"Slofemists" (2013) on the inception and under guidance of artists Lois Klassen and Lori Weidenhammer, is a project that enables unhurried production of feminism. Starting with found linen fragments, the project invites participants to materialize through needlework particular feminist voices and feminist moments from  their own experience. A library of supply packets that include material and relevant textual and media resources will be part of sewing events or accessed through a lending system.

This project has just started. By October 17 it will include a small collection of embroidery patterns derived from feminist inspirations, by the hosting artists.  Those patterns will be available on paper and printed onto a few 16 x 16" linen squares. The artists have amassed some "found linen" swatches from a high quality drapery supplier. Many of them already feature machine embroidery and elaborate surface prints. The hand embroidery is like/will be another layer of intervention, making them mixed media collage. Participants can make their own patterns, recommend topics and resources for the kits, or work on the squares that have already started. The materials in the kits can be looked at and discussed during the sewing event or they can be borrowed and taken home by the participants. Lois will have mailing packets for participants to send them back by project end. (Date to be announced.) Over 100 squares will eventually become an ornate patchwork cloth that will serve as a couch cover to form a mobile artwork: "Slofa". "Slofa" is expected to be a prop to enable and engage with the public in discussions and performances about the slow pace of feminism, and the tireless work required to materialize it in one's everyday life.

  

Lois Klassen is an artist and writer based in Vancouver. She is particularly interested in participatory art in the city, and the social life of crafts. Her on-going social sewing project is documented at comforterartaction.org.

Lori Weidenhammer is a performance-based eco-feminist artist and educator. She prefers to make art in “galleries without walls”, i.e. gardens. She is part of the Second Site Collective and a founding member of the Slofemists. She blogs at www.beespeakersaijiki.blogspot.ca.

Klassen and Weidenhammer are past collaborators on Means of Production Artists Raw Resource Collective (with Sharon Kallis, 2009) and CornerFarm: Repurposed Planters for Avant Gardeners (2008). Lori and Lois have collaborated on a number of projects concerning ecology and sustainable lifestyles.

Embroiderers are invited to bring a hoop, needles and any extra floss they are happy to share. Lois will have more supplies, including drawing paper for patterns, the linen and some patterns. The meeting/gathering will also be a time to talk together and share ideas about crafts and feminism.

Finished Panels - Very well done Pupils at River Valley School

I would happily bid at auction for these pieces... 

A fine piece from Grade 6 Standard Stream

Love the snail and the clever use of mirror imagery where the sun is reflected on the water.

wonderful use of colour and texture.

 We have works inspired by flags and gaming, moustaches and pattern

Is that a blue-bird I see before me?

These are by the Upper Elementary Montessori pupils Grades 4-6

And more Grade 5's stunning

Love you too.

Thanks for the allowing me the pleasure of teaching you!

River Valley School Fund Raiser... Excellent school should be supported.

River Valley School Pupil's work - I do not name him for privacy reasons

Those of you who are my personal friends will know I haven't been keeping up with my emails -
sorry-O.  It is because I have been devoting so much time to felting.

Thanks to so many of you who responded by sending me felting and other materials for River Valley School - I hope you can spot some of your materials in the photos.  I loaded up the car last Friday and off I went to work with the students.  After 13 hours in the classroom I now have about 80 felted squares (or more or less square, squares) that I am needle-felting onto a background to make them up into 5 banners that can be auctioned on 28th September. Many of the students enjoyed themselves so much they carried on making felt till the bell went!

The students had none of the over-20s inhibitions concerning art and design and just got on with the fun job of painting with wool on their layered roving canvas.  Moustaches seem to be 'in' at the moment.  We also had dinosaurs, flags, cosmic scenes, animae and abstract textural pieces.  In fact many were made wonderfully textural by the addition of the lovely fabric and thread remnants (the latter I found are more frequently referred to as 'yarns' in Canada - it is a whole other language).

River Valley School Pupil's work - I do not name her for privacy reasons

I think the school could make gift cards with many of the images, they are so  good, or a calendar... I must ask the principal about that.... it is  a definite possibility.

Currently they are laying gravel for the playground (the whole surface having been swept away by the Bow).  And the contractors are in working round the clock, I was told, to get the classrooms back to functioning so that the students can all come back under one roof as soon as possible.

Thanks again to all those who donated.  There were so many of you, you are the salt of the earth.
I will upload images of the finished panels when I have finished and photographed them.

Sorry for the hiatus... or perhaps unconformity would be a better description given the circumstances.

My one month's residency at ACAD was terminated abruptly by the severe, indeed devastating, June flooding of Calgary.
After this I have had a tremendous summer with my family and consider myself extremely fortunate.

Now, I am back to work - just finishing off a proposal for a teaching session in 2015!

But also - the following oughtn't be missed:-

Please comment or email me if you will be attending.  (Click on the image to enlarge - it is legible, honest).

And this Thursday - 5th September for the reception of:-

Bad news for my husband - How do I tell him?

Me: "Darling, I feel I need to tell you, I can't go on like this.  Whilst you have been working such long hours, I got lonely... I needed to get out of the house and do something and ....I have fallen in love with... Indigo."
John: "What?  No!  It can't be true....How long has this been going on?  Who is he?  ... and did I miss you going to Mexico?

As my time at the ACAD, Contextural, Self Directed Summer Residency 2013 draws to a close I feel I ought to review what I did and didn't achieve from ttheh nerve centre of my studio space:-

• Met and worked alongside very interesting and inspiring established and aspiring artists.
• Nice to meet you, Anna. Nice to rekindle a friendship, Carmela.  I hope to be able to stay in touch with many... Barbara, Susan, Eleanor, Madison, Anna Maria....
• From the size of the list, above, it is clear that this year's June day-time participants were more numerous than in previous years. And several, like me, were in regularly during the day for a few or many hours.  We were an active bunch.
• As I said in my previous post, I worked in the dye rooms, the print room and the home studio.
• I learnt that I can establish and manage an indigo vat (synthetic indigo, soda and thiox).  Dying cotton, silk, wool, stone, chalk...
• I learnt that when a vat looks dead it isn't!
• I now have many projects on the go and hope I don't lose the momentum but actually manage to take some to fruition - particularly as I want to take part in the end of residency exhibition at ACAD.
• I think I have my work cut out for me for the next year  and that is before I consider the collaborative project I have on the go (puppets), the commissions (shibori - more on that in a future post), teaching - serious demands of students for more felting..., machine embroidery in Calgary, High River and maybe A.N. Other place, and possible mark making workshop in a Calgary school.

Now I have to shut up shop at ACAD as our friends are currently packing up to visit Alberta next week and I turn into a hostess.  Just how I am going to transport the indigo vat home is a mystery yet to be solved, just as this blue maggot is a mystery - what will it turn into?

Thanks to ACAD for allowing this collaboration and thanks to Contextural for arranging.

I particularly enjoyed today - getting Anna Torma together with Arlee Barr was such educational fun.

 Not exactly a stunning piece, but is an example of me!  Experimental - coffee filter paper, stitched shibori and indigo.

What's to say.
Busy with something going on in each studio.
Indigo vat smouldering away in dye room.
Feltmaking - lace in printing studio
How much wool does it take to make a prayer flag in dye mix area (it's where the scales are).
Stitching ready for dipping in home studio.
Shibori and recycling of coffee filters in studio.
... and having chats with interesting people all over the show.

But a month is too short.

Yupo Paper - Thanks to Nikki

My dear friend Nikki gifted me a sheet of Yupo paper. I hadn't used this material before.
I think it encourages me to do abstract art on paper and could be a great way to work a piece quickly before breakfast a la Pollen.
Below are some trial areas using water soluble crayons and wax.

Other images are of pieces that used soluble graphite, crayons, wax and aquarelle pencils.  Not sure I like the pale effects and the way some of crayons are softer than others, but I guess you would get used to them if used frequently.

Interesting though, especially when texture is added using wax crayons of various colours.

I also like the way it is possible to pull the colours into each other or scratch away parts using pencil crayons, aquarelle or simply water.

Like others who speak online, I didn't like Copic markers on this surface.

The surface needs a fixative to make it stable.

Composition #151T

 Too much energy-Snow's Thaw

Congratulations to Jan, Meredith and Donna - works are up at Atlantis. Mine is shown below:-

Jazz Poetry Art in Fibre #8

There are several things stacked up for me to deal with this month:-

• Course review... a kind of debriefing so that I improve the service I offer to both visiting artist and participants.
• I have been contacted by M. who wishes me to work with him on a very exciting project,  obviously I am not telling you what it is all about just yet.
• Then there are necessary preparations for the upcoming (in less than 3 weeks) Contextural summer residency at ACAD which I am joining for the month of June.
• And appointments with L.H. to talk about a possible exhibition for SDA.
• Continued collaboration with Wendy on animating creatures.
• And I have a deadline for a project proposal to be done and dusted by next Wednesday... >ouch<

Ouch is my favourite word right now.

Oh and I forgot, I am trying to get a piece finished for the pop up show at Atlantis.  The pressure is on.
I finished (though not framed) it today.
I made a couple of vows today -  refusing to fight my sewing machine any longer I aim to use the best thread and suitable needles for the job, instead of trying to work with souk-bought Omani/Indian shiny and disobedient thread.  Also I will clean out around the needle frequently... or Throw me in the Elbow. Now doesn't that sound funny.

I have been playing around with a few themes here.
Jazz Poetry, abstraction from letters, the written word as art - cf Arabic Calligraphy; with rhythm, line, shape dominating over hidden meaning.  Taking lettering at face value, to the place where we keep the Rossetta Stone in our memories -  I can't read that, can you?

The opening for this show is this Friday 17th at about 6 - 9pm at Atlantis.  Pop by if you can.

OK OK It's been a while...

D's home: this means gallery tour after visit to the dreaded dentist.

Impressed by The Art Gallery of Calgary - Free Admission.... Made in Alberta Part IV
Not sure if Free Admission is part of the exhibition title... cf. "Exit through the gift shop"

Anyway I took away from there -
Tears at Mona Kamal's honest portrayal of her attempt to revisit a past that doesn't exist. Video installation.
Astoundment (my own new word) at Kris Lindstock's painted views through portals... which I didn't record the true title of, and wasn't allowed to take photos of, and can't find a reference on the web!!!
and Inspiration:- yeh, Wil Murray - you've inspired me.
“When I need one paint stroke, I make twenty of them on a piece of glass, to be peeled up and applied later. When I need photos, I shoot and print a whole roll of 36 exposures. When I want figures and textures from old magazines I spend a day processing them, cutting out hundreds of possible images. Even labour-intensive weaving is done longer than needed.” Wil Murray.
And... here is an image I have stolen via google... I'll take it down if you want me to... Wil.

Will Murray (Title unknown - Ed.)

And just so you know my daughter and I had previously been collaborating and creating works in a somewhat similar style, but 3D... here is one.  It is rather bland in colour content, but then we were sitting on a plane and access to materials  was rather limited.

This inspiration has happened in a rather timely manner as I intend  listening in on Lisa Grey's workshop, though I am not registered to attend, I will be there as admin assistant!  And my little grey cells will be flexed, for sure.

Next SDA Meeting Thursday 25th April with Lisa Grey

This is the first information out about the next SDA talk in April.

Mark your calendar.

Lisa Grey will talk to us about her life and work.

Please come willing to be part of an inspiring journey.

Please feel free to share this information.

Date: Thursday 25th April

Time : 7pm - 9pm

Place: Atlantis Fine Framing & Studio (click here for map)

Cost: Free to SDA members.  Non-members $10.

(((Why not join SDA - and get their magnificent journal 4 parts a year, only $60 plus international postage.)))

RSVP - required for Lisa's talk to allow us to assess seating needs and refreshments.
Also numbers are limited.

You can RSVP by pressing HERE.

Lisa is a member of the Surface Design Association and the representative for New Hampshire, USA.  


She is a very highly respected teacher and practising artist who produces sumptuous works that are exhibited and sold internationally.  She is famous for her application of disperse dye to produce spectacular marbled surfaces.  Combinations of her printed and dyed fabrics with her photographic imagery provide a refreshing take on surface design.
Her philosophies, galleries and methods can be viewed on her delicious website.

If you think you know what your are going to see and hear about you, are probably wrong....
There is a full spectrum of the rather comfortable .......

A Fine Balance (Detail)

Disperse dyed using painting, marbling and xerox transfer techniques.

Artist: Lisa Grey

.......to the somewhat uncomfortable which will make for a very interesting evening.

Adored/Abandoned II 

Pigment inkjet print on collaged paper and fabric with freehand machine stitching on marbled background. 

15" x 15"

Artist: Lisa Grey