I read about the “brushes” ipad app so I’ve been trying it out this weekend. it allows you to draw in layers. so far I’ve been roughly tracing photos from my photos collection to practice and get a feel for drawing lines and objects & people. I know we should do more freehand drawing, but i get quite disheartened that mine don’t look like the original, that I don’t feel like doing any more. with the tracings, i can see the image coming through and it’s teaching me to see the shapes better, and to select which lines and shapes and shadings to include and which to leave out. i think this is half the battle of drawing – deciding what to include and what to discard that still gets your message across. I’m using my finger to draw with and still getting the hang of the app’s brushes too, so even though I’m tracing, it’s still not looking exactly like the original. but hopefully it’s training my hand eye co-ordination a bit (more than not drawing at all). here’s the first attempts.
Category Archives: playing
summer (winter) drawing project
some students are trying the “summer drawing project” from the distant stitch group on the OCA textile group page. I’ll try some of it too to see how it goes — even though it’s winter here for me 🙂 (which usually means more fibre projects as it’s nicer to knit in the colder months)
week1 — exploring “What type of mark do you make most naturally?”
repeating geometric shapes seems to be my most natural mark making. the first page was done using conte pencils and the remainder using a fine (0,3) ink pen. we had to fill the page with marks. so I tried repeating the shapes to see the effect. I could definitely turn these pages into stitches. though I think lace would be suited for the circles—I might have to learn how to make lace next 😉
a spoonful of threads
I made a knitted spoon for the upcoming “Spoons!” exhibition at The Slow Club. It’s called “A Spoonful of Threads” (original name was “nice and slow”). I was thinking of a slow / handmade theme – slow baking, stitching, knitting. I was going to do stitching but ended up knitting. it’s using three stitches — knit, purl and knit-from-behind, in random order to give the holes some texture. the wooden spoon is made of birch wood and I used red embroidery thread. it was a short callout—so I made it over the weekend. the exhibition runs from May 12-24th.
here is the call for submissions & here is the event page.
green beanie
green beanie. greanie.
this is a Jo Sharp beanie:
red velvet stitched circuit — blinking led
red velvet stitched circuit — blinking led
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LtxsERq2JpI
testing the conductive thread. it’s conductive, hurrah
I left the hoop on to stabilise it a bit whilst I had it connected to the computer. it’s the tutorial on adafruit site, though I modified their circuit pattern into the circles & didn’t have the clips to test it. checked it with my multimetre instead after stitching. one thing to remember is once the usb cable’s connected it tends to flip the fabric. I need to play more & see if it really is now ‘programmed’ (I think so) ie will it run without the computer if I power it by battery/something else. but yeah, no soldering, only stitching. have to think of something else besides leds now – they seem to be the “hello world” of wearable tech
it’s an adafruit flora processor + neo pixel v2 led & conductive thread. I bought some other things like a light/colour detector & flexible solar panel & more leds. will think of something to try them out
International Art English – around the web
I recall earlier this year there was a large discussion about “International Art English” (IAE) on some of the mail lists – on empyre-l, nettime-l, and articles on triple canopy and hyperallergic & the guardian newspaper site.
there was a conference held this year on the topic also — “Critical Language — A forum on International Art English”. I’ve posted the blurb below for reference. I’ve asked them if there was a recording of the sessions to listen to. will add links if they reply.
some other articles about it:
users guide to international art english — on the Guardian website
When Artspeak Masks Oppression — on hyperallergic
International Art English — on triple canopy
Grayson Perry talks about it in the 2013 Reith Lectures
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Critical Language
A forum on International Art English
155 Freeman Street, Brooklyn, NY
Saturday, April 6, 2013, 4:00–6:00 p.m.
$5 suggested donation
http://canopycanopycanopy.com/programs/84
“International Art English,” published in Triple Canopy in July, has circulated widely and generated debates about the relationship between language, legibility, and power in the art world. The authors of the article, Alix Rule and David Levine, analyze a corpus of press releases circulated by e-flux in order to describe the language of contemporary art. They trace the particularities of this language to English translations of critical texts published in the 1970s in journals like October. The widespread use of the Internet has, they argue, accelerated the development of IAE, turning it into a kind of lingua franca; the proliferation of international variations—French IAE, Scandinavian IAE, Chinese IAE—ends up diluting the authority of critics, “traditionally the elite innovators of IAE.” Given these developments, Rule and Levine ask: “Can we imagine an art world without IAE? Without its special language, would art need to submit to the scrutiny of broader audiences and local ones? Would it hold up?”
With this forum, Triple Canopy hopes to provoke a critical response to the article, consider questions and perspectives eschewed by the authors, and solicit the perspectives of those who work with (or resist working with) IAE, whether they are critics, curators, educators, or publicists. Specifically, the discussion will focus on the political implications and uses of IAE, within and outside of the art world. “Thanks to International Art English, the artist can still appear vaguely subversive and the host state committed to openness, a mutual saving of face,” writes Mostafa Heddaya in a recent essay for Hyperallergic. How does such “critical” language direct attention away from the suppression of political dissent, especially when employed by institutions—and their proxies—operating in environments marred by human-rights violations, such as China and the UAE (or even the US)? How does obfuscation slip into propaganda? And do those who regularly produce IAE experience the language as burdensome or liberating, a welcome tool for the diffusion of power or another step toward a global standard of ambiguity and opacity?
The forum will be facilitated by Nathalie Anglès, Wenzel Bilger, Lauren Cornell, Mariam Ghani, Mostafa Heddaya, David Levine, Alexander Provan, Yael Reinharz, Alix Rule, Lumi Tan, and Hrag Vartanian.
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Grayson Perry – The Reith Lectures 2013
I had a listen to the first lecture of Grayson Perry – The Reith Lectures 2013 a couple of weeks ago. I loved his comments and disregard (?) of the artworld and his analysis of International Art English language.
since coming across this, I heard also that Grayson Perry and Brian Eno are working together. I can’t wait to see/hear what comes of this collaboration!
the BBC blurb:
“The award-winning artist Grayson Perry presents the 2013 BBC Reith Lectures, titled Playing to the Gallery. Across four programmes he discusses what makes him an artist, the limits of contemporary art, how to gauge the quality of new artworks and the future of the avant-garde.”
http://www.bbc.co.uk/podcasts/series/reith – podcasts of the lectures & related material
http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b03969vt – Democracy Has Bad Taste: Grayson Perry: Playing to the Gallery: 2013 Episode 1 of 4
I see that the first lecture is also available on youtube
Grayson Perry- Reith Lecture No.1: Democracy Has Bad Taste http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DtehJ3O3vMk
Subversive Stitch Revisited: The Politics of Cloth conference
this weekend in the UK the “Subversive Stitch Revisited: The Politics of Cloth” conference was (is being) held. as it’s a bit far to go from Australia, I missed out on attending the lectures. their twitter feed mentions the sessions will be uploaded as podcasts soon, so I shall try to take a listen to them. I have a copy of the original book, “The Subversive Stitch: embroidery and the making of the feminine (1984)” by Rozsika Parker, though I have only browsed through it. I hope to read more over the Christmas break (along with Colour book).
here’s an image of the flyer:
event details, from the ticket site:
Keynote Speakers include: Professor Griselda Pollock, University of Leeds
The Subversive Stitch Revisited: The Politics of Cloth will explore the legacy of Rozsika Parker’s groundbreaking book, The Subversive Stitch: embroidery and the making of the feminine (1984) and two landmark exhibitions from 1988 that developed Parker’s ideas. It will consist of a two day event held at the Victoria and Albert Museum, and an online resource that will include documentation of the event. The Subversive Stitch Revisited will be dedicated to the memory of Rozsika Parker, who died in 2010.
Presentations taking place on Friday (29/11/2013) will reflect on the art and feminist debates of the 1970s and 80s from which the exhibitions emerged. It will feature keynote presentations by Griselda Pollock and American artist Elaine Reichek in conversation with Jenni Sorkin (University of California, Santa Barbara). Saturday (30/11/2013) explores the politics of cloth now, focusing on current activity by both women and men that addresses ethical, social and global issues, and on cloth as a subversive strategy.
Speakers and presenters include:Megha Rajguru + Nicola Ashmore, Đorđe Balmazović, Michael Bath, Claire Barber + Rowan Bailey, Lise Bjørne Linnert, Leah Borromeo, Anthea Black + Nicole Burisch, Christine Checinska, Sarah Corbett, Steffi Duarte, Leora Farber, Elke Gaugele, Betsy Greer, Roisin Inglesby, Alexandra Kokoli, Kimberly Lamm, Anne Moore, Brenda Schmahmann, Rose Sinclair, Jenni Sorkin, Matt Smith, Lisa Vinebaum, Liese Van Der Watt.
circle stitching
well, I was trying a knit-a-year project but since I don’t have much yarn here (on overseas trips) and have been more interested in stitching and embroidery lately, I’ve decided to shift to a stitch-a-day project instead. I might use my other blog for another project so will relocate the articles here (or add to the previous post).
my first attempt – I’ve been totally inspired by the work of Junko Oki and since attempting to stitch circles in a modified blanket stitch, I can see more clearly just how fine and free her beautiful stitching is. mine feels large and clumsy in comparison, so I will need to practice more to create smaller stitches. also, I need to bring more fabric to use as a background as on this trip I only have some calico, and a couple of coloured threads.
there’s lots of circles & other textures in the hotel room. the carpet has concentric circles – a bit like the Maori koru shape. I like the red crushed velvet lounge chair in the room too – it has some nice lines and shapes in the shadows
06/10 update:
I stitched some more circles and other shapes this weekend
Junko Oki – stitching circles
tonight I’ve been taking a look at embroidery by Junko Oki – she has some beautiful pieces. I love her use of circles and lines.
I emailed her to order a copy of her new book, “Culte a la Carte” (I think her first book has sold out), and mentioned I was doing a textiles course and had been enjoying embroidery. I asked if hers was all stitched by hand or mixed with machine embroidery too. she responded,
“I’m glad to you interested in my work.
My work is stitched by hand all.
I do not have that you have to study about embroidery .
I have the feeling produced in like writing a picture.”
the circles are intricate rows of fine blanket stitch, with lines in running stitch and some feather stitch. lots of “sun” themes. I’m really loving it. the imperfections and textures created by the stitching mixed with the choice of textures and colours of the fabrics as the backgrounds. I’m looking forward to the book arriving so I can see more of her work.
I love some of the backside stitches, ie via February 2012:
from Dee’s Hall from October 2012 – a lovely portrait of a woman’s profile.
& a closeup of the spheres from April 2013
I love this one, with the stripey, business shirt or crisp new bed linen / sheets type pleats, darts, gathers & smocking to create movement and shape in 3D, and how the stitched parts of the fabric are chaotic and textured with layers of white and black threads, and complemented with the reddish-brown layer – they draw the eye in and let you explore the stitches as well as the joins of the different fabrics, and edges of the fabric. I love the ripped / torn edges on the lower part of the piece. there’s a range of sewing techniques shown around the edges of the stitching, and decorated & highlighted by the stitches. the top of the photo shows order and crispness with a starch ironed feel which reminds me of work / business shirts, whilst the bottom of the photo shows more flowing, free & lighter fabrics for holidays and home wear. to me it feels like it’s a mix of the fabrics of a life, and the phases of our lives.
rainy today from october 2012 also.