BROKEN SAUCER SERIES LEADS TO CREATIVE DISCOVERIES

My last post was about fibre art I had made highlighting a piece of broken saucer from my Downton Abbey teapot set, and with 3 pieces remaining from the saucer, my plan was to create a series around this one theme.

I have now done just that, and was further inspired - and even surprised - by some discoveries I made while in the process of creating: 

-  As I progressed making this series, it began to feel less about the saucer fragments and more about studying the colour white. The fragments became part of the medium for this exploration, with the white of the saucer and textiles being dominant, a touch of black in the words and in the background for contrast and balanced with light browns or copper.

- A realization came to me as I reflected on all the art I have made in the last few years that my best works are the ones where I use only one colour (or colours within the same family) which becomes the dominant element, contrasting with just a bit of neutral or the complementary colour, and not those with multiple colours or with another element of design being dominant. 

- For the past couple of years I have consciously used line as the dominant element and I'm now noticing a shift to balance that with more quiet areas - smooth rather than full of line or texture. I like to use sew & slash as my technique choice, and think I now prefer to include just a bit of line. A little can go a long way, as they say. This is now allowing my one colour choice to sing.

- My planning for this series included the selection of old tablecloths as the textile choice to fit the era of Downton Abbey. A comment came my way observing "the tension between the delicacy of the textiles with the sharpness of the shards". That was a perspective I had not thought of and yet fits. (Thanks!) Good to be reminded that the viewer may see things in our art we had not thought of.

- It's easy to make just one of something then move on to something different, thinking we'll get bored quickly by doing a series. Not so! In this case one idea led to another until I had ideas I wanted to try with all 4 fragments of the saucer. While the 4th idea did not work out, it led to more experimentation until I happened upon the answer, in this case including a small branch. I quite like the contrast of nature against the saucer and fabric..

After finishing this small series and preparing to start another using leftover floor tile fragments, I got stuck fairly quickly, not being happy with the compositions. Deciding to move on to a piece about an old door (I love that weathered look) seemed like a good idea, yet I again got stuck.

I realized then I needed to listen to my intuition which was guiding me to continue working in white. And so I have started a winter scene based on a photo taken while snowshoeing and I'm pleased to say I'm making good progress. I have many great winter photos and I think these are now leading to a whole series of "studies in white". Sometimes it's the struggle that matters, other times we just have to have trust in our intuition.

Stay tuned!