I got all excited about catalpa trees in 2008, and made some wonderful cyanotype and heliographic prints. Then I got sidetracked by something more urgent, or some kind of deadline, and set them aside.
I was walking a woodsy trail recently and a catalpa leaf literally fell from a tree and onto me, so I took it as a sign and gathered a few more. They are satisfyingly big leaves.
I used my large Gelli plate and made both direct and “ghost” prints. I got a bit exuberant with the colors. They are up on the design wall, taunting me to ignore all the other projects in the queue, so we shall see. 
While I was at it, I made some sycamore leaf prints. They are also a substantial leaf. I have the beginnings of an idea on how I will use them—I have some new animal skulls that I want to work with, to add to my Flora and Fauna series.
In other news:
My DVD, Surface Design Essentials for the Printed Quilt, is available for a limited time as a printmaking kit. You receive the DVD, a copy of Quilting Arts Magazine with my how-to article on cyanotype printing, and a pack of treated cotton cyanotype fabric, so you can jump right in and start creating. Get it while you can at the Interweave Store! The DVD also has complete and concise instructions on heliographic printing, themofax printing, and collagraphy, so it is a very good deal. The kit would make a lovely birthday or holiday gift.
For my friends attending The International Quilt Festival in Houston this week, be sure to look for my “Silk Mill #1” in the Tactile Architecture Exhibit.
And last but not least, I’ve received word that my work will be included in Sandra Sider’s compilation book, 1000 Quilt Inspirations, to be released in February 2015. I’ve seen lots of other acceptance notices from artists I admire, so I know it’s going to be an excellent volume. It’s available on preorder from the publisher and from Amazon.As always, thanks for reading and commenting.
6 comments:
Lots of great news, Sue. I love the large leaf prints and the colors you have used. It will be fun watching what you do with them. Can't wait to see more skulls, too! I'm an avid bone collector, but skulls are a RARE find in my experience. Guess I don't go deep enough into the woods or I don't look closely enough at the woods floor.
Great work, as always!
Thanks Pat! Some of the skulls were found, others were borrowed from a friend with a very keen eye, and others were purchased. My only rule is "no road kill"!
Why "no road kill"? I saw a red-tailed hawk get hit by a car. I turned around and rescued the carcass.
Squashed road kill wouldn't be good, though!
Pat, mostly to appease my family that I haven't gone completely off the deep end! But seriously, it's generally squished. And then there's the matter of separating the flesh from the bones, I don't have a good spot to let it happen naturally, and I don't want to keep dermestid beetles.
We hung one critter outside in an onion bag from a tree. Some sort of strange looking beetle proceeded to eat a great deal of the fleshy parts. My family already thought I was nuts, still thinks so. This is mild, compared to some other things I've been known to save/do/etc.!
That sounds fascinating to watch, Pat--more power to you!
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