Tag Archives: inspiration

London

Progress

You may have guessed that I have been traveling. One of the things I did before leaving was to make a list of what I wanted to do when I got home. When I travel, even if it’s just for a long weekend, I have a hard time getting back into a routine. Frankly, I’ve been a little restless about staying home and working, so this list was extra helpful.

On my list is getting some dyeing done. So far that hasn’t worked out so well. I’ve had appointments, and well, a social life. Lunch out two times in one week? Unheard of. There’s also a coffee date already set up. What’s with this social life thing? Oh well, it’ll be over with next week.

My body clock is not back to normal, though, so I am getting some weaving done. Progress is slow. The goal for the above piece is to reach 30 inches (only 20 inches to go!). I’m hoping to get it finished soon, because another list I made is of the pieces I want to weave in the next few months.

Traveling always brings inspiration in one form or another. Mine seems to be spirals and pattern, as usual. Below are examples from the British Museum in London. I already posted a picture of spirals at the Underground station.

Pattern

Egyptian spirals in British Museum

Handweavers Studio

One should always find the local weaving shop, right? I was told by a friend that this is one of the best she’s visited anywhere, so a visit was definitely in order. My friend was right–it’s a great shop! Handweavers Studio and Gallery

A bit about the trip

My daughter, son, grandsons, and I traveled to London. One reason we did this is because my daughter said that when we took them back when they were in high school, it was a life-changing event for her.

We decided to rent an apartment in the Bloomsbury area, which turned out to be an excellent decision. We were only a couple of blocks from the Russell Square tube station, so getting around was easy. When I first started looking for a place, I was looking at how many beds there were. Then I realized that I should also look at bathrooms. Five people, one bathroom? Not an ideal situation. 

We really loved being to stay in one place and visit when we made our way back after a long day of sightseeing and walking miles. 

Back to the schedule

After over 17 hours of trains, planes, airports, and auto, I got home after 9 pm, had a bit of dinner, and headed to bed. When I woke up in the middle of the night to make my way to the bathroom, I was disoriented in my own bedroom. Weird. But all is well now, and I’m back to work. It was a great trip, and we all had a good time. The list I made ahead of time has served me well.

 

Inspiration with children at the Japanese Garden

Bark-original

Bark before Photoshop

As I mentioned last time I wrote, family is here, so time has been spent going to the zoo, Japanese Garden, and restaurants. Besides the family pictures, I find myself taking inspiration photos also. Keep in mind these pictures are taken with my phone, and after the original was taken, there was manipulation, with a Photoshop app on the phone and with Photoshop on my computer. In the case of the photo above, I played around with it before posting on Instagram.  I have no idea why or what I could do with this photo, but I really like this bark. Also, it’s not from a tree that I am familiar with.

From Instagram

From Instagram With a lot of Photoshop thrown in.

Plain brick path

Plain brick path

Bricks using vibrance adjustment

Bricks using vibrance adjustment

Bricks-hue adjustment

Bricks-hue adjustment

Using contrast and exposure adjustment

Using contrast and exposure adjustment

Inspiration

The Fort Worth Weavers Guild biennial show is hanging now at the Fort Worth Community Center. For Fall Gallery Night, the crowds fill the halls and galleries, looking at the art and participating in the various food (and drink) offerings for opening receptions. There were many beautiful and interesting works to see, and I got a nice surprise. First, I should explain that in all the guild shows until the last one, there was no judge and/or critique. We started having a judge with the last show, with an emphasis on the critique part. No prizes. I had actually forgotten about the judging, and was very pleased to find that both of my pieces had wonderful handwoven ribbons hanging next to them. The theme for the show is In the Eye of the Beholder. Everyone was expected to turn in an inspiration photo when their work was delivered. Many times the pieces were made, and then there was a desperate search for “inspiration.” This time I was able to follow the directions exactly. Both of my pieces had inspiration.

The-zebra-in-my-head2 For “The Zebra in My Head,” I used a really bad picture I took at the zoo. “Zebra” received the HGA award. The other piece, “Headin’ Home” was Headin'-Home inspired by all the times I have seen birds either flying out in the morning or heading home to their roosting spot in the evening. By the way, this design is the result of an online class Working in a Series that I took with Lisa Call. I was thinking about the many variations of a line that might be possible, thinking dotted line, and so evolved this design. In fact, I don’t think I’m through with this idea. For the guild show, no work could be larger than 1440 sq in–an unusual parameter for me.

I think about inspiration a lot. Sometimes inspiration comes from a picture, or colors in a painting, a feeling, etc. For me, sometimes inspiration is as mundane as a desire to experiment with a technique. More on that later.

By the way, for a really beautiful tapestry with birds flying, look at the American Tapestry Alliance’s website.  There’s a piece by Evelyn Campbell, who won the ATA Award for Excellence in Tapestry. Beautiful!

What’s your inspiration? Or an artist that you admire. What was the inspiration? How was it translated into art?

Silly me

Ikat-yarn-balls In the misguided hope that I might be more creative and look for inspiration all around me, I signed up for the 365 Project. You know, where you submit one picture per day for a year? I’m already three days behind. In my defense, it is very hot, and who wants to go exploring for inspiration in the heat? I’ve submitted exactly one picture, and it wasn’t taken on the day I submitted it. Maybe today will be the day.

The picture on above is in “inside” picture of the ikat yarns balled up. I hope I’ve done them in the correct direction for a center pull ball with the starting point in the center. One of the balls I did last night has a huge loop of yarn that doesn’t seem to belong anywhere, so obviously I went walk-about in the measuring process. Guess it will be straightened out in the weaving.