Delicate Stitches: sketchbook

Showing posts with label sketchbook. Show all posts

Saturday, 28 October 2017

More Sketchbook Making shenanigans...

Stacked Folded Sketchbooks

Earlier in the year I had a lovely evening running my 'Embellishing Printed Fabric' workshop for Brampton Arts and Crafts Club. It was such a relaxed and pleasant evening with a really lovely group of people. They obviously enjoyed it too as they invited me back so in September I ran my 'Simple Sketchbooks' workshop for the group.

Folding, cutting and sticking

I had a bigger group to work with this time as none of the gentlemen of the group came to the previous workshops but they clearly felt happier with sketchbooks rather than stitch so had come along this time. Once again it was a lovely evening, very relaxed and lots of chatting! I demonstrated my techniques for making envelope sketchbooks and my favourite folded sketchbooks. I then let the group loose on my stash of papers. One of my favourite parts of this workshop is choosing the papers and I love seeing people having a good ratch through and selecting the bits they want to use.

Folding, cutting and sticking

It was really interesting seeing how differently people approached the workshop and the amazing range of sketchbooks created, each a reflection of the individual. I'm always intrigued by how even in a large group and working with the same materials everyone will produce something different. I'm sometimes asked why I'm so willing to share my techniques and 'secrets' and this is why; no one will do it quite how I do as each person has their own unique quirks and characteristics and this will come through in any creative work.

Folding, cutting and sticking

Playing with folding sketchbooks

In a similar vein I don't worry about sharing my techniques and tips as I believe that to create 'good' art you need to believe in what you're doing, it has to be authentic. The word authentic is bandied around a lot at the moment but I really believe that a piece of work that is truly authentic has a bit of the makers head, heart and hand in it and will always stand out over a copy or something. One of my tutors once asked me "if you don't believe in your work how can you expect other people to?" This really struck a chord with me and since then I've tried to always make work I believe in, that I am proud to claim as my own. So, the moral of this post is go and be creative and do it your own way proudly!

Finished sketchbooks

Sunday, 4 June 2017

Feather Sketchbook

Sample detail from Feather sketchbook

I recently posted about the folding sketchbooks I like to make and following on from this I thought I'd share one of my finished sketchbooks with you. I worked on this book early this year and it's an exploration of feathers.

Work in progress

Words associated with feathers

Paper cutting experiment

Like most of my sketchbooks there is a combination of drawing, sampling and writing, both about ideas and about feathers directly. The sketches are mixes of observational drawings and ideas of pieces of work I'd like to make or am thinking about making.

Partially opened up sketchbook

Front cover (cyanotype and stitch)

Front cover (detail)

Working in a sketchbook allows me to collect all my thoughts and ideas together and to try things out. A lot of the textile processes I use are very labour intensive and time consuming. Testing out ideas on a small scale in my sketchbook can often mean that I can work out whether an idea will work and whether it's likely to be worth investing the time and energy or not!

Page details

I'm not generally precious about my sketchbooks, this means that I tend to be willing to try things out and not worry too much. Working in this low pressure way can often mean that new ideas pop up which I then have the option to explore or record and come back to.

Sketchbook Pages

Sunday, 14 May 2017

Making Sketchbooks

Handmade Folded Sketchbooks

I'm off to The Orkney Isles at the end of May with Mr. Stitches and a couple of friends. We're running our own, very informal, artists residency and I can't wait. I'm looking forward to lots of bird watching, exploring, drawing and maybe a bit of natural dyeing experimentation. I've wanted to go to Orkney for a long time and I'm curious to see how it compares to the beautiful Hebrides which I love so much.

My origami sketchbooks

In preparation, I've been making lots of little sketchbooks. I love making sketchbooks, it's so satisfying creating something to use in your work and it gives you endless opportunities for experimenting with different papers, sizes and formats. I have two 'standard' sketchbook types that I like to make; my origami sketchbooks and simple stitched sketchbooks. I also like making other types but these are my main 'go to' creations.

Different types of sketchbooks

Simple folded and stitched sketchbooks

Different types of sketchbooks

I like working in sketchbooks, I like the compact, portable nature and the fact that the work is hidden when the book is closed. A sketchbook is a very personal thing and I use mine in different ways; including sketching, planning and sampling. Often, they end up with a lot of writing in and it's interesting to go back sometimes and see what I was thinking and in doing this I frequently find ideas I want to re-visit.

Paper selection

Lovely ripped edges

Different papers in a folding sketchbook

Recently I ran a sketchbook making session with my Prism Arts Studio Arts group (a visual arts programme for adults with learning disabilities.) I've been encouraging the group to use their sketchbooks as much as possible and to make them personal; making your own sketchbook is the logical next step! We had a lot of fun making the books and it was interesting how different formats engaged different people. I'm looking forward to seeing what they do with their books.

Sketchbook making with my Prism Arts group

One of the most popular workshops I offer is Handmade Sketchbooks. In this workshop I show people a number of ways of making simple sketchbooks and encourage them to make them personal by choosing different papers and materials. I'm running this session for Brampton Art Club in September which I'm looking forward to. If you'd like to book me for a workshop you can have a look at my 'Workshops' page on my website and get in touch. I love running workshops, it's one of the best parts of my job!

Friday, 8 January 2016

More Feathery Experiments...

Feathers stitched onto cotton, January 2016

My last couple of posts have been about the importance of 'playing' and enjoying work and life. This post sort of continues with this theme and is more a chance to share some pictures and show you some of the ideas I've been playing around with in my studio rather than a deep and meaningful examination of my practice.

Sketchbook pages exploring feather ideas...

Playing with ink

Drawing on a prepared page

Birds and feathers have been recurring themes in my work for some time now and I've had lots of different thoughts and ideas about where the work could go. Thoughts and ideas are great but there's no substitute for actually just getting on with it! So, I have been in the studio everyday (even if it's just for half an hour) doing a bit of drawing or sampling.

Large Feathers (A2) Ink on paper

Jackdaw, Ink and Acrylic

Feather, Ink on paper

I've been trying to keep up with daily drawing for quite a while now, with varying degrees of success. I do find it a good habit to get into and my drawing definitely improves but I did find I was in danger of getting stuck in a bit of a rut in terms of always relying on my pen and continuous line drawings. To help break out of this I started experimenting with drawing ink and I've been enjoying how different it is. I have a lot less control so the drawings don't always go quite as I intended but I love the random patterns that the ink can create.

Feathers stitched onto cotton

As well as the drawing I've particularly been enjoying playing with feathers, using them to make mono prints and stitching them onto cloth. I now have some much clearer ideas for pieces of work and am looking forward to getting stuck into these in the coming weeks. I've also found that by just getting on and experimenting the conceptual side of my work has become clearer and more focused, but that is a subject for another post.

Feather mono print

In Circles, accepted for Upfront Open Exhibition

I've also had a piece of work accepted for the Upfront Gallery Open Exhibition and this has helped boost my confidence and motivation, especially as it is one of my feather drawings. All in all it's been an exciting and positive start to the new year and I'm looking forward to seeing where it goes...