Saturday, March 27, 2010

Well Its been a long long time between posts

but finally I feel ready to post about my progress.

Basically, I came to the end of February and thought to my self - this is not going to work!  It is way too ambitious and I am letting myself fail again.  So I changed course :)

I am still working on the calendar idea and fortunately until this year we have had lots of pictorial calendars in the house.  As I was wondering what I was going to do with this project I spied another calendar just lying on my work desk from last year and so the project was renewed but on a must more modest level. 

this is the photo for January (Talbot Bay on the Buccaneer Archipelago)  and this is what I have created so far from it.- Image removed see this blogger's post on copyright

The base is a white felt rectangle bought from any craft shop.  On that I have needle felted the main colors and then I added embroidery and some beading. At the moment I am not sure if it is finished or not but the main components are there.







This is February, a wonderful photo of Thring Rock on the Canning Stock Route, Australia


Image removed - see this blogger's post on copyright


The based is exactly the same as the previous month  although a lot of this was felted on my felting machine (which I bought rather impetuously last year. Little did I know the needles are outrageously expensive and very fragile!)



Unlike my previous attempts at this project in January where I tried to make so sort of progression from idea to form, these works are purely reacting to what I see and feel about the images in front of me. There is no extensive drawing  or wondering what is going where. I just place the wool roving on the felt and punch away!  I think they are working so much better because of that







This is the one I am currently working on, Sunrise over the Thomas Rive, Cape Arid National Park.- Image removed - see this blogger's post on copyright


This is my is my progress so far.  Again the base is a white felt rectangle with wool roving needled felting.  Then I embroidered the top  and then free machined the middle bit.  This is a new technique for me and I am loving the texture it gives me. I have feeling this is about half way done.




I am feeling so much better about this project than I did just 2 weeks ago and know that this is the right direction for this year.   From last years failed attempt and this year's failed beginning, I am realising that much of my art is based purely on instinct and not on planning.  If I think too much about it, I freeze up and become overly concerned about what I am doing.

As for the previous work, I am still going to work on them as I have January and February started but now the pressure is off, maybe they will evolve and grow into something I want to share but but not at the moment.