Commission Episode 1

I’ve started a new painting…a commission for a mathematician in the states who knew my brother and saw my work in a show in Miami,florida. I am excited about this work because it is a collaboration. Mr. Math has written a story recalling a moment, an exchange he had with my brother when they both taught at the University of Miami. It was a memorable moment for him and he has asked me to paint his story using my bird characters from my “talefeathers” series. I had spent alot of time in Miami during the years that my big brother lived there. As usual I prefer the natural world to the urban cultures of most american cities. America has a fascinating and dynamic natural world.

In exploring Florida I was lucky to have been brought on a canoe trip through the everglades with my brother and 2 of his other math student friends. One of whom grew up in florida, and knew the canoe trails well. We ran into gators on this trip much to his surprise. Turns out these particular trails had not been well travelled in recent years so gators had moved in. My brother proudly packed his big knife, but when we turned a corner and discovered an 8 foot gator sunning on a little patch of land, myself in the front of the first canoe, Our guide communicated concern. Myself, I was about 20 years old at the time, most things felt surreal to me then, and likely I couldn’t see much difference between reality and fiction. I found it all to be very exciting. The gator, startled and feeling vulnerable on land, immediately dropped himself into the water and was moving closer in our direction. He must not have been hungry  so we paddled quickly and he let us go. I must say though getting out of the boat to use the “facilities” on very small patches of land became rather daunting. In my shyness I wanted to get far enough away from the visibility of the fellows in the canoes, but did not want to venture too far away from my brother and his knife!

Throughout the journey, we met a white ibis who led us through the trails. The ibis would soar under the canopy of trees, perching long enough for us to catch up, and then take flight again. This ibis became the inspiration for my tale feathers series. The birds are characters who direct our navigation. They quietly observe, and question our motives while leading us through a soggy marsh of  overgrown pathways.

These photos illustrate the beginning of the commission I am working on involving a few of my Florida ibis characters. I have started with a hand dyed linen for the ground of the painting, using a transparent gesso, I am able to leave much of the dye work in the composition as I build the narrative on top.

New venture into natural dyes

After some months wrangling with concepts, and a search within myself to figure out what  direction I want to move towards in my art practise I have decided to dig deeper into my love of textile dyes and fiber arts. I am currently researching natural dyes and traditional surface design techniques. I’ve started a weaving class! I’ve also registered to participate in the International Symposium and Exhibition on Natural Dyes  coming up this April, in La Rochelle France.

Crafting is in ways a very spiritual practise. It requires dedication and commitment to the medium. I also very much appreciate the community surrounding craft in it’s very grounded non hierarchical teaching and learning practises. I appreciate the traditions and slowness of production. In the case of weaving the technology is fascinating. The loom is a gorgeous piece of slow,simple technology.

In the case of natural dyes, what an absolute mystery!