Flour paste resist - after pictures

As promised, here are the "after" pictures from one of my flour paste resist experiments. I soda-soaked the yard of rayon before applying a thin-ish flour paste using a squeeze bottle.



In the detail shot below you can see that there's a halo around the lines. I think that the water in the paste migrated into the fiber and pushed some of the soda ash away from the flour paste. I let the paste dry on the cloth overnight and I think that helped produce good contrast. Cleanup was a lot easier than I thought. After a bit of soaking, most of the paste flaked off. The rest dissolved. After a trip through the washer there's no trace of the flour.

Must post

My last post was on March 2. What a scandal. I still consider this blog to be active. It's just lethargic, that's all.

OK, really quick, I've got three photos to share. First, I was so proud to see "Seeds of Change" at the Laurel Art Guild show. It's been up most of the month of March and closes this weekend. The show was hung very nicely. There were a couple of other fiber pieces--all of us very different from each other. This is the first time I've seen my work in a show that included other media. It is interesting to see how very different fiber feels from everything else.



Second, I've been experimenting with flour paste resist. I love my soy wax but the wash out is kind of a mess (I know, I should be on my knees thanking God for soy wax instead of paraffin). So here's a piece in process. At this point it hasn't been washed out, but you can see where the flour resist is. It worked very well. I'll post an "after" pic soon.


And finally--brace yourself--I got it into my head that I needed to save torn scraps of cloth (selvages, etc.) and turn them into something. I decided to do some completely unstructured, uninhibited, and unorthodox crochet.



I started out just goofing around, but I think this might turn into something. Who knows? This might be turning into a piece that I could submit for the studio "Island" show.

And, ugh, speaking of the studio. It's almost time to reapply for my residency. My original award was for a little shy of one year. We need to reapply every year in an open competitive process. I went back and forth about whether to apply again. Now I'm committed. I really do want to stay. I feel like I've got more work to do in that space. Fingers crossed.

"Controlled" chaos

Notice the title. That was my workshop yesterday. I can't say that there was that much control, hence the quotes. But, that was a good thing. Yesterday I led a workshop at the community center (notice I did not use the word taught). Lots of kids and a few adults brought in shirts or other garments and painted, stamped, and stenciled all over them. I made plans, and samples; I set up workstations and did demos for my assistants. We were ready when the first person came through the door at 1pm. Over the course of 2 hours we must have had 50 people. The workstations dissolved into all sorts of work happening everywhere. And, it was fearless work. I expected there would be a couple of very tentative folks who would be cautions about making the first mark. Kids just are not like that.

The stuff they did was great. They were using freezer paper to make iron-on stencils. They cut out adhesive-baked foam and stuck it to foam core to make stamps and printing blocks. They painted freehand. We were working in a really well stocked art room. Lots of the kids had been to other activities there before. Let me tell you, if they wanted something that I didn't supply they asked for it politely and in come cases showed me where to find it on the shelves. After two hours I was worn out. I don't interact with a lot of kids on a regular basis. They generate a level of mental stimulation that I'm not used to. It was great, but whew. I have a renewed admiration and appreciation for all of you out there who are teachers and parents. How do you do it?

Here's a picture of some of the folks at work. Barbara and Ann, the organizers, are standing in the back. They were great helpers and cheerleaders.


Here's a small sample of some of the work. I saw some pretty uninhibited stuff.


And finally, here's a picture of my most valuable helpers. They are the reigning Miss Greenbelts in various age groups. Along with their titles comes a commitment to a year of community service. They help out at all of the Artful Afternoons and they are dynamos: setting up, cleaning up, helping the other kids, everything. This photo was taken at the end of the workshop. Notice the benches are all on top of the tables. They washed everything in sight, cleaned the tables, then put the bench on top so they could SWEEP THE FLOOR. Amazing.



You also have to notice the tiaras and sashes. Each young lady arrived carrying what appeared to be a jewel-encrusted Lucite purse. I'm thinking to myself, "Is this some new teen fashion to which I am oblivious?" No, it's what they use the transport their tiaras, which they wore with pride all day. They were polite, articulate, friendly and have my deepest gratitude.