A quick trip into Goodwill today yielded a silk wedding dress! Nearly all wedding dresses I find are polyester. So, to find an all silk custom made dress is a real treasure. Even the lace overlay and bustle are silk. I’m not a lace girl but who knows how this will get used? And the best part is they had thrown it into the costume category so it was only $10! I have big plans for this pile of silk!
I have been absent from the Fast Friday Fabric challenges most of the year for many reasons. One of those is that I have been working on a specific path and some of the challenges were too far off that path. I hope that means I am finding my voice and personal style. I have been moving away from representational work to only abstract form.
I love loose edged pieces, letting the work define itself.I lean towards more organic work and adore Jackson Pollock.
This piece is composed of multiple layers of silk and silk roving that form the shapes. I like the loose edges at the bottom that take on different depth of color dependent on the color behind the piece. This is photographed against black but looks totally different against white. To square up any of these edges would box in the forms and the piece would no longer be free form. The layers are stitched with large embroidery stitches of hand dyed cottons and the finished piece was splashed with paint to add more color and another dimension.
I’m taking a break from marathon quilting to post this. It is a close up shot of a painted wholecloth silk quilt titled “Angel Trumpet Splendor”. I love this quilt with all the varied colors created from the silk paint. It doesn’t hurt that the Angel Trumpet is one of my favorite plants.
I sent this to jury for the “World of Beauty” but sadly it wasn’t accepted. I recently sent this to Lark to be considered for the new book being done by Martha Sielman on the Natural World. We’ll see what happens with it.
Sometimes we artists fall in love with one of our own pieces and then don’t understand why it isn’t accepted for a particular show. I try to remember that each jury is only someone’s opinion about a work and if it fits the parameters they are looking for in that exhibit. I’ll keep entering this one until it finds a home.
Now back to finishing up today’s projects.
Janice Paine Dawes, Artist 