Skip to main content

52 Weeks of Printmaking on Textile: Week 7

Mixed Media Fiber Arts:

This entire series is inspired by African textiles that I received from the Smithsonian National Museum of African Art in Washington, DC back in October 2016.
 African textiles, monoprint, map, vintage cotton
After the initial surprise of receiving such prized beauties, I knew exactly what I wanted to do with them: Make mixed media fiber art books.  Each page would be composed of either an entire piece of African textile or a combination of African textiles with American.  I plan to make twelve volumes for this series and the entire series will be titled: Sun Mirrors.

Each month I have been visiting the museum and showing my most recently finished book.  I've been fortunate to have my books reviewed by an African art history scholar during these visits.  They point out aspects of my research and work in ways that enhance my knowledge and process. 
On my most recent visit, I met the artistic team from Sahara Lab of Morocco.  Their work is amazing and I love how, through film, they capture the beauty and reality of their culture and country.  (I'm returning to the museum on Saturday to see their presentation.)

Four books completed, eight more to go.  It takes me at least a month to make a book.  When I experiment with new ideas, the time increases.  



Comments

Popular posts from this blog

Born of Love, Shakespeare's Sonnet 151

Over the summer I worked on new artwork, Born of Love , inspired by Shakespeare's Sonnet 151. The book offers a translation of the sonnet to the language of textiles and embroidery.  Working on this book allowed me to explore the beauty of textiles from four continents.  Its construction is inspired by the poetic structure within the sonnet.  This book, along with two other of my art pieces, will be on exhibit at the Folger Shakespeare Library from 16 Sept 2024 - 9 Feb 2025.

Flowers For Mistress Overdone, 2024

 Coded Threads: Translating Shakespeare Through Art The following is a page from Flowers For Mistress Overdone , the first of two books that I presented at the Folger Shakespeare Library on Nov 16. The pages for the books are created with textiles from 5 continents (Africa, Asia, Australia, Europe and North America).  The textiles were collaged and sewn into various designs. The fabric on the left is a collage of American and Tanzanian fabrics that I combined with one of my linocuts.  The fabric on the right was an original mid century modern English quilt top I purchased at London's Antique Quilt Company during my summer in the UK researching Shakespeare's texts.  The owner, Christopher, sources the highest quality textiles and it was truly a joy to transform this quilt into pages of my books inspired by Shakespeare's Measure For Measure. It was wonderful to present a few of my original artworks and embroidered books during my talk at the Folger Shakespeare Library....

Flower Power, 2024

2024 was a productive year.  I created several different book series of embroidered and embellished books during my 1.5 years as a Folger Institute Fellow.   These three flower books are in response to Shakespeare's Sonnet 54.  During my artist talk at the Folger on 16 November 2024, I mentioned the power of flowers.   "The act of giving flowers is a timeless gesture of deep appreciation, love, or praise. Beyond their symbolic value, flowers serve as visually striking design elements, drawing the eye and creating inviting focal points. Even after a fresh bouquet fades, the memory of the gesture endures, lending a poignant resonance to these artistic choices." /Suzanne Coley, 'Coded Threads,' November 2024