Most of my adult art life I have been working in multiples, a natural activity for a printmaker. A great deal of time is spent creating a drawing, then transferring it to a block or plate, and then choosing and mixing the colors. The printing is the easy part, so creating more than one is optimal. I still enjoy this process and have now shifted over to printing on cloth in order to create quilts. Multiples are still part of this process, but I've only just encountered a new process, known to many artists: working in a series.
When I cut up the cotton fabric (usually muslin) and prepare it for printing I have been guesstimating; I don't have a rule for how much I need, and for now, since I'm not working with silk, the material is inexpensive. I print whatever I prepare, and this usually means I have leftovers. I get a second chance, or maybe a third, to approach the same subject. I usually create a new element as well.
It started with the 2017 Osprey quilts for the theme of "Night: from Dusk to Dawn." Although they were finished in a different order, this was the order they were conceived and begun. (Larger images on my website.)
When Birds Sleep.
Sweet Osprey Dreams.
Nightlights on the Bay.
Since I can submit up to three works to be considered for a show with the same fee, I decided this was a good idea. In the past, I've had so many ideas that once I've made one into a tangible object I've been ready to move on right away: going broad. Now I found I get to go deeper and explore the subject from different angles. I guess I started this with Housework but hadn't realized it. That's also when I first included a quilt with my bookwork. Each house looks at the idea of home from a different point of view: lichen, deep sea, a house torn down becoming a garden, homelessness, roommates, and more.
The next two quilts are for the 2018 theme, "Metamorphosis."
Becoming.
What Are We Becoming.
I had a third partially worked out, but it needs to simmer. The deadline is the end of February, but I've learned (finally!) not to rush a project.
So far, it seems that the first of each of these two series is the complicated one, sometimes the one with several ideas going at once. The second is the one I probably wanted to make from the beginning, and the third is like the last song on the album (remember those?)—the "experimental" one. I push boundaries and learn quite a bit from this last quilt. From all, really. Knowing in advance that I will make more than one will likely influence the work overall. We shall see!
When I cut up the cotton fabric (usually muslin) and prepare it for printing I have been guesstimating; I don't have a rule for how much I need, and for now, since I'm not working with silk, the material is inexpensive. I print whatever I prepare, and this usually means I have leftovers. I get a second chance, or maybe a third, to approach the same subject. I usually create a new element as well.
It started with the 2017 Osprey quilts for the theme of "Night: from Dusk to Dawn." Although they were finished in a different order, this was the order they were conceived and begun. (Larger images on my website.)
When Birds Sleep.
Sweet Osprey Dreams.
Nightlights on the Bay.
Since I can submit up to three works to be considered for a show with the same fee, I decided this was a good idea. In the past, I've had so many ideas that once I've made one into a tangible object I've been ready to move on right away: going broad. Now I found I get to go deeper and explore the subject from different angles. I guess I started this with Housework but hadn't realized it. That's also when I first included a quilt with my bookwork. Each house looks at the idea of home from a different point of view: lichen, deep sea, a house torn down becoming a garden, homelessness, roommates, and more.
The next two quilts are for the 2018 theme, "Metamorphosis."
Becoming.
What Are We Becoming.
So far, it seems that the first of each of these two series is the complicated one, sometimes the one with several ideas going at once. The second is the one I probably wanted to make from the beginning, and the third is like the last song on the album (remember those?)—the "experimental" one. I push boundaries and learn quite a bit from this last quilt. From all, really. Knowing in advance that I will make more than one will likely influence the work overall. We shall see!
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