Sunset at Porthleven

Gorgeous deep colours of the sunset off the coast at Porthleven.

My Design Process- Colour Palette: Reds and Blues

This image is so striking and bold, I usually wouldn't choose a colour palette with two dominant colours but I think this one really works. The few scattered pale barnicles really adds a beautiful highlight to the overall image and draws your eye in.

(To purchase this print please visit my etsy shop: TactileCoast!)

My Design Process- Color palette: pastles and navy

This colour palette is of beautiful pastels with a deep navy blue, I love the gentle feel it gives, very elegant and subtle.

To purchase this print please visit my etsy shop!

My Design Process- Colour Palette: Monochrome and pink

So I want to have a little play around with colour ideas before I start my experiments and fabric sampling so I have an idea of the colours that I will be using together and I can also experient with the proportion and develop my colour palette as I develop my textile art ideas.

 

Monochromes and pink

 

To purchase this beautiful abstract print of a rock face from my etsy shop visit: TactileCoast

Top 5 tips for abstract painting....and creating textile art!

Whilst watching videos of abstract artists on youtube I came across this really inspiring video. The artist discusses his top "5 tips to make better abstract paintings" but I personally think that these 5 tips lend themselves perfectly to creating textile art.

 

 

I am definitely going to apply these tips to my own work to some degree in order to help me to create something really exciting and beautiful.  Please watch the video as the artist really explains each tip very well and uses examples to demonstrate his point.  

 

These 5 tips are:

1. Tools,
2. Complementary colours,
3. Use the whole space,
4. Layers,
5. Mental tip

 

 

 

 

Juliette Hoffmann

The work of Juliette Hoffmann is just amazing. I love the subtle yet sophisticated colour combinations as well as the stunning textural fabric surfaces that she creates. Each piece is truely exciting and unexpected, whether its through the use of floating yarns, the structures created by the knit pattern or the unsual placement of pleating, her work is just devine!

Jeung-Hwa Park

The work of Jeung-Hwa Park is absolutely stunning. She creates 3D knitwear which is so elegant and colourful. I really love the heavily textured surfaces that she creates, I just find heavily textured and 3D fabrics so much more exciting that a flat piece of cloth.

How Chelsea flower show 2013 has inspired my work...

I have really enjoyed this years Chelsea Flower Show coverage on the BBC. I have never really watched it before or indeed taken much of an interest at all but this year I have seen florals in a completely different light and it has really captured my imagination. Up until now I have never featured florals in my textile work but after following this years Chelsea Flower Show daily I have seen florals in a refreshing new light.

There are 3 elements which have really inspired me and from now on I am going to intigrate into my textile work. These 3 ideas are:

1. COLOUR
2. STRUCTURE/ FORM
3. BEAUTY ON THE INSIDE (REVEALING FROM WITHIN)

 

 

COLOUR

One of the most obvious things about flowers is the amazing variety of colours they produce. Sometimes subtle and elegant, othe times bold and bright but always a huge spectrum to chose from so there will always be a beautiful colour palette to select from.

 

 

 

STRUCTURE/FORM

Florals also have a beautiful structure and are almost like organic sculptures in their own right.  They are something that I have always considered to be quite delicate and fragile but actually flowers can have a really solid structure. They are quite strong enough to stand alone and hold their shape and hold their heads up to the skys. Here are some examples of their sculptural, 3D qualities:

 

 

 

BEAUTY ON THE INSIDE (REVEALING FROM WITHIN)

This element is the one I am most excited about. I love the concept of having some sort of structure or layers to my textile pieces which reveals the most beautful and intricate part of my work either inside or underneath. The images below show how this happens in a flower and how the intricate details of patterning are revealed from within. This concept will also help to give my textile pieces a 3D or sculptural element.

 

 

 

GARDEN SCULPTURES

I also love the garden sculptures, they are such a lovely feature that breaks up the plants and adds an extra element to a garden. They reminds me of the stunning work by Barbara Hepworth which I have always loved and find their large simple curved forms really elegant and beautiful.

 

 

(To find out more about the Chelsea Flower Show scultures check out the website:http://www.thesculpturewebsite.co.uk/rhs-chelsea-flower-show-21st-to-25th-may-2013-c696.html)

 

 

All these factors have given me a whole new and refreshed view on florals and flowers which has really fired up my imagination. I feel like I have a floral collection brewing inside me but for now I can definitly apply these few simple principles to my work which has completely been inspired by this years Chelsea Flower Show:

 

3 Elements that have inspired my work

COLOUR

STRUCTURE/ FORM

BEAUTY ON THE INSIDE (REVEALING FROM WITHIN

To find out more about the show check out the website:
http://www.rhs.org.uk/Shows-Events/RHS-Hampton-Court-Palace-Flower-Show/2013

Norma starszakowna's beautiful textile wall hanging

'Diasporas', hanging textile by Norma Starszakowna, 2005 - Victoria and Albert Museum

 

 

 

I really love this textile piece.  I have been looking into different ways of mounting textile art pieces when I came across this stunning textile piece. Very inspiring in terms of design, colour and also how to hang textiles, proof that you don't always have to use a frame.

 

Below are some more examples of Norma's work. I really love the simplicity of a draped textile length. Her work is so beautiful and elegant I really love it!

 

(above photo from Hannah Lamb's blog- take a look to see more images of the work:

http://hannahlamb.blogspot.co.uk/2010/05/norma-starszakowna.html)