In Dreams I Saw the Rift, part 2

I wanted some cyanotype panels to go with the needlefelted river I was making (previous post). I remembered my surprise, years ago, when finding bamboo groves in some locales along river trails; I mistakenly had thought it was only a tropical plant. Some years after that, a new neighbor planted some running bamboo along the property line. In either locale, woodsy or suburban, running bamboo is a terrible idea, displacing native plants and providing little benefit other than its exotic looks. At any rate, over the years as I trimmed back the aggressively spreading shoots, I used them to make cyanotype prints. I dug some out with the thought they would fit right into this nascent project.

The first picture is the exposure under way, the next is after exposure but before rinsing, and below are some finished prints.

Most were on cotton but there were some silk ones also.

I layered them with batting and a thin backing, and started in on the first round of echo quilting.

Stay tuned, much more to come.

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In Dreams I Saw the Rift, new work in progress

It's time for a new, major work! Like many of my larger pieces, it has been in progress for some time, and has evolved as I went along. I started last year, when I was still living in Lancaster, PA, and have worked on it intermittently as time allowed since then. Like the other works in my "Dream" series, it features a needlefelted river.

I began with a length of felt and a lot of wool roving, punched into place by machine. As it progressed I added mylar fibers to approximate the sparkle of sunlight on the currents in the water.

To the edges of the river panel I added lovely chunks of woven wool fabrics. I did some machine quilting to add texture and hold everything in place. This part of it then got packed up specially before the move, so I could find it easily later.

I then spent a considerable amount of time in the new studio, adding a lot of glass beadwork and hand embroidered details.

It was very helpful to have this project to work on as I was getting my house, my studio, and my mind in order after the move.

The wool, backed by batting, is thick and difficult to hand stitch through, so I wasn't aiming for precision, rather I wanted to add lots of texture and movement, and to suggest the woodlands and fields that border the river.

Much more to come! Stay tuned.

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