Journal & Other Quilts 2017
My theme for this year's Journal Quilts is ROCKS! As in geology, ‘the science which deals with the physical structure of the earth’.
I’m exploring the features of a geographical area, a place I have visited and been inspired by. It touches on environmental issues, climate change past present and future. It also holds memories of ‘the ground beneath my feet’, walking, climbing, beach combing.
This year's Journal Quilts are 11" x 11"
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January
Puddingstone
There are many examples of this around Hertfordshire where I live. Pebbles and sand, a kind of silica cement bind together during periods of intense global warming. In past times Puddingstone was used for practical tools, but also attributed spiritual powers of protection and fertility. The cut stone brings together dynamic pebble shapes in sharp focus.
I used carded Shetland, Merino and Tussah fibres, laid finely and wet felted to make the background and cut pre felts of pebble shapes. Machine and hand quilted. |
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February
Elephant Rocks
So well named, Elephant Rocks in the far South of Western Australia. There is a comic element here, as well as the beautiful rounded shapes, contrasting textures and play of light against the clear water colours.
Waxed and painted silk, chiffon laminated with merino wool fibres, tussah silk, metallic threads and oil stick paint for a lustrous touch; there is something very satisfying about creating something from fibre to stitched textile.
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March
Bleached Coral
To dip below the water and swim amongst colourful fish and diverse forms of coral is a truly memorable experience; to find that the coral is bleaching is an indication of the coral under stress from changes in the environment, water temperature, solar irradiance, salinity and a decline in zooplankton. On the northern edges of the Great Barrier Reef this can be observed as an increasing problem.
Soft colour applied to fine silk with inktense pencils and brushed with water. Machine and hand quilting on fine silk wadding. |
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April
Rockham Beach
North Devon Coast, my theme is rocks. Dramatic slate rock formations veined with bands of quartz. In late Spring, bluebells, gorse and primroses compete for attention to colour. I have tried to depict this in a semi abstract way, using wax resist and wool lamination to convey the complex rock surface. More hand quilting planned! and will be added. |
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May
Rottnest Island
Off the coast of Perth in Western Australia, Rottnest is well known for the cute and friendly quokkas, small marsupials who thrive here. The rocks here (my theme) are limestone, light and creamy with elegant curves and textured edges. They complement the pale sands and contrast dramatically with the blue-greens in the water. Painted silks: mark making on pleated silk for the rocks; wool lamination
on painted silk gauze to achieve intense colour for the water. Hand and machine quilting. |
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June
Opal
Research took me to the Natural History Museum, the Pitt Rivers and Google Images. Opal is a hydrated form of silica with an internal structure that diffracts light, so can take on many colours. My example is set in ironstone from Queensland, Australia. For the opal, I collaged pre-felts of wool and silk fibre, wet felted and then appliqued on silk and then commercial cotton. |
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July
Rockfall: Landslip
Chalk erosion on the Sussex Coast. Cotton gauze, pleated and manipulated with felted wool fibres. Further colour added with oil paint stick. |
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August
Limestone Pavement
Smooth worn surfaces beneath my boots, rocks dramatically cut with grooves, remembered from shores all around our coast. Waxed silk, dyed black with colour added with Inktense pencils. |
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September
Coral Bleaching.
Another Coral study. Coral bleaching is an indication of the coral under stress from changes in the environment, water temperature, solar irradiance, salinity and a decline in zooplankton. On the northern edges of the Great Barrier Reef this can be observed as an increasing problem.
Contrasting textures created with cobweb felted wool over quilted silk and wool laminated pleated silk.
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October
Yorkshire Dales.
Dry stone walls; wonderful craft skills embellished with nature’s touch of lichen. Wax resist and silk painting. Enjoyed the rhythm of hand stitching, but added definition with machine quilting was felt needed to add structure to the design. |
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November
Punakaiki Rocks.
Pancake layers of rock on the West coast of South Island, New Zealand. Dramatic roar of the blow holes if you time your visit right. Layers of pre-felt cloth, assembled, wet felted, layered and stitched. |
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December
Loch Lomond.
The Highland Boundary Fault cuts across Loch Lomond diagonally and separates the Scottish Highlands from the Lowlands. I was attracted by the gleam of colour on the rock as we cycled by. Painted silk, bonded with ‘mistyfuse’ and fragmented, with a mosaic-like flash. |
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