The Tablecloth Saga

The tablecloth and the peg painting is going well. I should really call it a construction not a painting. Not much painting going on but lots and lots of tedious cutting and gluing. Very tedious cutting and gluing. Did I mention it was tedious ugh! The results however are quite pleasing to my artist's heart so it keeps me going.

I prepared some altered and stained newspapers before I started as these were to form the checks of the tablecloth. So I needed two types of red and a white.

I started with a bit of text stamping but I lost most of it as I continued to paint in the background. This still needs to be resolved with more text I think but I will worry about it later.

I started cutting and gluing the checks of the tablecloth. Each 'square' is such a different shape and I have to pay careful attention to this to get the movement of the tablecloth right. The wind was moving it ever so slightly as I took the photo and I want to capture that. The colours are a little richer in real life as I took these photos inside with a flash. I looks a little like a patchwork quilt rather than a tablecloth but I don't mind that. Like I've said before, the canvas is on the large side 101.6x76.2cm (40"x30") with the peg measuring 35cm (14"). Still a bit to go and I still need to resolve that background so I'd better get to it.

The Tablecloth and the Giant Peg

Bob is home and is doing well. We are hoping this is the end of it. He's sick of going to hospital and he wants his life back. Thanks to everyone for their thoughts and well wishes.

I'm working on a new piece. The canvas is on the large side as usual. I can't get my paintings to work on a smaller scale. The canvas is 101.6x76.2cm (40"x30") and I started with the theme of washing on the line. I always start with a photo. I can see what composition works and change the subject matter etc. Anyway after quite a few photos and strange looks from my son as I was standing on a stool in order to get the right angle of the washing line, I settled on a photo of a red and white checked tablecloth being held down by a peg (see image below). Now you think this would be an easy thing to draw but as I found out today the red and white checks take on all sorts of odd shapes depending on the fall of the fabric.


What I decided to do is to depict the checks in various altered and stained newspaper so after taking photos I went to work on some papers to make sure I had enough to choose from. It will probably look more like a patchwork quilt than a tablecloth but that's ok. At this stage the background will consist of text being stamped on with medium. This forms a bit of a resist when you paint over it and the result should be some subtle text showing through in the 'sky'. I won't have any of the buildings or other things in the painting. Just the tablecloth and the peg. As the canvas is on the large side the peg will be huge. It will be about 35cm in length which is roughly 14". My love of inanimate objects continues and this time I'm showcasing the humble peg hehehe. A giant humble peg, wooden of course, all grey and weathered. I wouldn't use any other. Anyway the papers are prepared, the image is drawn onto the canvas so I'm ready to get stuck into it but not till tomorrow, I'm done for today.

Some Good Finds

Had a few fabulous finds in the op shops. Bought some old saucepans to use for dyeing. Found an old rusty iron one I had lying around and cleaned that up. Also bought an old linen shirt very cheap. It was coming apart in the side seams which gave me the idea to unpick it and use the pieces to dye. I spent the late afternoon sitting quietly, mindlessly unpicking. Those mundane chores are very good for me. They still my mind and I somehow find peace. I thoroughly enjoyed myself. I adore the holes the machine stitching leaves and the different shapes of the pieces with button holes here and frayed edges there. It shows the fabric has had a history and that's somehow comforting to me. Mmm all too delicious without the calories. Will no doubt come home on Monday with some newly made felt which I will endeavour to dye. My excitement is building and building.

I finished the commission piece for Naracoorte Primary School that I will deliver to them on Thursday. Not sure on the title. Usually the title comes to me while I work on it but not this time. "Letters and Numbers", "School Days", "Learning", "ABC and 123", "Days at School" are some titles I have come up with but none seem quite right. Any suggestions???

altered, stained and found papers on canvas

100cmX75cm

Happy in my Art Space

I've been spending a lot of time staining and altering paper so I have some in stock. There's nothing worse than being in the middle of an artwork and running out of paper or not having enough to choose from. Planning to start a new piece today YAY! I still get excited about it. Also starting the next book on the Artist's Way journey today, Finding Water.

Having my first solo exhibition at Naracoorte Art Gallery as part of the SALA Festival (South Australian Living Artist Festival). Opening August 1st. It was meant to be an exhibition showcasing 3 generations of women artists, exhibiting work from my daughter, granddaughter and myself but the gallery board decided that they wanted a solo exhibition instead. So its a bit sad on one hand and exciting and scary on the other. We are still planning to have our combined exhibiton. Just looking into another venue for some time this year I hope.

Off to do some mundane chores and then off to my art space to play.