WIP with Helen Frankenthaler

Painted & Stitched

Spending some time looking at Helen Frankenthaler in preparation for a MamaCITA show in March reminded me of why I got into this crazy art business in the first place: color. Fields and streams of color. 

Sketching, pouring paint, printing and then stitching. With only an idea in mind. Sunny doorways in a lane in Italy. Of course, the hours I spent looking, sketching and painting all led to this. 

and a mountain and sunset and wee houses in the foreground. I'm not sure where all of this is going but since sitting and stitching is reliably the only thing I can do right now (ortho pillow on my back, ankle elevated) I'm feeling rather grateful that I love to stitch and very grateful for Helen. 

And a note ... Helen Frankenthaler was discussed in my art history classes with a bit of disdain because she pour her color onto raw canvas. Not very ARCHIVAL! How come it was OK for Jackson Pollack? It all seemed so perfect to me at the time and now with the idea of treating raw canvas as a textile or using muslin or vintage linen, it is even more delicious. 

Comments

[daniela]

belle sfumature bella texture

[Wendy]

Wonderful, I can almost feel them - soft,soft, soft. Well certainly I can imagine the feel.
The second one Diana, I love the colour choices . . . is it on paper or fabric?

[Diana Trout]

Grazie, Daniela!

[Diana Trout]

all on muslin, Wendy. And it is soft. And Im going to break into my stash of vintage linens as soon as I have a bit of experience with painting on fabric.

[Wendy]

Oh, wonderful. I can almost feel them. When I don't need to hold down a day-job and more . . .

[Cynthia]

Diana, newbie question: do you wash your fabric first before starting to paint or embroider on it?

[Aloquin]

Wow, these look fantastic... muslin, hrm? I have used some fabric here and there in my art journal before, but I think I'm going to have to expand my horizons :) Dare I say I gessoed (is that even a word??) paper towels into my journal as background for pages... the sky is the limit! Keep up the great work :) Any plans for another book?

[Diana Trout]

It is very time consuming, Wendy. I just got thrown a curve and need to finish 2 paintings by the end of Dec and at least one of these pieces by end of Jan. Off to pull out the sketchbook.

[Diana Trout]

There are two school: the washers and the non-washers. I am a washer. I wash every fabric because the hand is better, any chemicals and sizing are washed away and any potential shrinkage is taken care of. My advice is to wash it.

[Diana Trout]

Gessoed is absolutely a word :) A noun or a verb or a nerb and gessoing is a word too! No plans for another book. It is a very long term commitment! I am happy where I am for the moment

[cynthia]

These little paintings are stunning. Love the stitching, color and the tiny houses. Helen is definitely a wonderful inspiration.

[Diana Trout]

and it is time for me to push into abstraction with more dedication! Thanks so much, Cynthia. Good weekend