a long day…

Today I spent a full 8 hours in the studio working on a deadline.  Actually I finished the project in just about half that time and then decided to press on (no pun intended) to wrap up the rest of small projects looming .  I am exhausted.  I have become so unaccustomed to doing anything for 8 hrs a day!

I also have started the stitching phase of  my latest work.  As many are aware I have been applying surface design with dye, paint and wax on fabric for a decade now which allows me  lots of wonderful choices when I design new work.  Earlier this week when I was designing the current piece there was some sadness as I came closer to the end of what had turned out to be a dynamic fabric in my stash.

aftermath ©carol larson 2009

Normally I design a yard or smaller. Yet this piece which I designed  2 years ago was over 3 yards long. At that time I co-wrote an exhibit proposal for the Art Cloth Network. My partner in crime and I chose “quake” and its many manifestations as the theme for this exhibit.

For the first time I planned  and labored rather than spontaneously painting seven layers of dye and four of paint. As I sought to create such an illusion of despair and destruction I kept on day after day on two large pieces,  neither of which was selected for the exhibit! To this day I believe it was my poor photography that undermined me. As you can see this is a pretty dull shot taken with an old point and shoot camera.

The fabric itself is stunning and intriguing.  The second piece, a jacquard woven damask tablecloth is not nearly as beautiful.   The cotton sateen has been incorporated into several pieces and is now less than 1/2 yard. And I am sad. It is not like I can order another 5 yards online.

I know some nit-wit is going to tell me I can just re-design another piece of it but that is not how I work. Why go backwards when there is so much more to learn and explore?