Featured Artist and Featured Photo 6/6

FEATURED ARTIST: I have decided each month, to feature someone whom I admire as an artist. For February, I’m featuring a wonderful craftswoman, my mother, Joyce Chock Man. She is very creative - beautiful embroidery, fabric and beaded flowers, sewing, knitting and crocheting - all kinds of crafts. Here is her latest work – temari.
What is temari? From the photos, you can see it is thread wrapped in patterns around a sphere. A thousand year old craft from Japan, Temari is traditionally given as a gift. From humble beginnings as simple toy balls for children's play, Temari create a magnetic effect on viewers today. As a spectacular decorating focal point, the puzzle of the design is mesmerizing. The concept is elegantly simple; the end result is simply elegant! ( from http://www.temari.com/) My mother is 84 next month, and we all hope that when we are that age, we will be as creative, active and keen to learn as she is. Congratulations Mum - your work is really beautiful and you are an amazing woman!

FEATURED PHOTO : Erika aka Incalesco (http://incalesco.blogspot.com/) has tagged me to play "6th in the 6th". This means that I am challenged to find the sixth photo in my sixth folder of photos, publish it and describe the photo, and tag six others to do the same . I am yet to find 6 but I have tagged Judith , Bobbi, Tracy and Vicki. As my photo files are a mess, I was wondering what would eventuate. It so happens that this photo came up – taken on 15 December, 2007.

It is a photo of three of my “Dolly” friends, from left, Linda, Connie and Michelle, modelling aprons which were made for the Craft show volunteers to wear in 2008. Next weekend, the same show will be here in Newcastle again, and we will be donning those aprons again for our Dollies Goes Crazy exhibition.

An aside– I am very happy to say that my Mrs Chalumeau is finished… maybe some last minute touches next week before the exhibition. Here is sneak preview - that's her right shoe! Mrs Chalumeau in all her glory will be featured on my blog next week.

Today I helped my friend, Pam put together a wall hanging/quilt she is making for her nephew and niece -in-law when they celebrate their wedding next weekend. This is a really great idea. Pam sent strips of calico to family and friends (even those not going to the wedding). They were asked to do something creative to the fabric – beading, embroidery, patchwork, and painting or merely exchange with a fabric which would have some significance to the couple. I thought it was such a good idea that I did one too - a row of colouful people dancing and the words " Life may not be the party we hoped for, but while we are here, we should dance." All the contributions were really fabulous – delicately embroidered butterflies, hand painted family members, special photos, bright beads and bling, traditional patchwork, beautiful cross stitch – a spectrum of colour and techniques. The strips were sewn together today, and now Pam is sewing the centre strip and border – what a stunning and memorable gift for the newly weds.

What a week - special thoughts and prayers to all those affected by the devastating bushfires. This week, I've been thinking a lot about everyday bravery ... Robyn Davidson was a really brave woman who lived in the Outback. She said " The two most important things I learnt [about starting over] were that you are as powerful and strong as you allow yourself to be, and the most difficult part of any endeavour is taking the first step, making the first decision."

Fish and Sticks : Art Dolls

This week I've been working on fish and sticks .... The sticks are the message stick art dolls which were very popular, attracting some attention and a few orders at the Wise Women exhibition. Each of the message stick dolls are from the Wise Women series, each with her own personality and message of wisdom, handwritten on a handmade timber tag. I gather the sticks during my walks around my neighbourhood and the tags are made from special bits of timber, some collected by me or my husband or from off cuts gifted to us from another doll making friend whose husband makes bagpipes. These dolls start off very simply with a wrap around a stick, in the general shape of a body. 'Naked" message stick dolls - strips of wadding wrapped around found sticks. Then I usually wrap other layers of fabric, wool, and/or fibres, over which I do some simple embroidery. I sculpt or mould small face masks for these dolls. I really like using "sari ribbon" as w...

"Temari Or Not Temari?" Tutorial

Background Information: Temari (literally translated “hand ball”) is a Japanese folk craft that is alleged to have originated in China and was introduced to Japan five or six hundred years ago. Traditionally, the balls were constructed from wrapped kimono fabric remnants and silk threads. They were made by mothers and grandmothers for children to play with. Nowadays, decorative embroidered temari represent a highly valued and cherished gift symbolizing friendship and loyalty. Recently I've wondered if your don't use traditional techniques whether you should call what you create "temari". That is an ongoing debate but today I share what I do to make a "non-traditional temari".... 1.I start with a polystrene ball ( traditionally the balls were wound silk scraps or other organic materials) and begin to wrap with approx 4 ply wool, turning the ball as I wrap. 2. I then wrap another layer of wool in a similar fashion , this time a 3 or 2 ...

Ethereal Threads : Textile Art

Meredith Woolnough is a beautiful talented young artist. Her current work is exquisite, stunning, engaging and awe inspiring. As you can see from the images, Meredith reproduces the beauty of nature in stitch – literally thousands of metres of embroidery thread stitched onto a background which is later dissolved. What remains is like a delicate “skeleton", but somehow with depth of colour, movement and strength. I think what is conveyed in Meredith’s work is overwhelmingly the love and reverence for her natural subject matter and her intimate knowledge of its structure. Meredith’s latest exhibition is called “Ethereal Threads”, superbly presented at Timeless Textiles. It is a collection of framed fine art which demonstrates Meredith’s attention to the details of presentation – each of the large pieces is pinned to archer paper and the play of shadow on the paper enhances the beauty of each. There are finely detailed delic...

Empress Wu Designs with Wilma

Search This Blog