Monday, October 1, 2012

Shibori to ori

This was not an easy theme. "Maverick" didn't speak a lot to me! I decided to forget "maverick" for a while and to think "different" instead. Much easier!
Some time ago, I started to teach myself to weave. It's always been a kid's dream for me. And now my new quest has become to somehow incorporate weaving into my art and to do something DIFFERENT from what I've been doing for the last few years. I really don't know yet where this will lead to, but in the meantime, I thought I would simply add a little woven piece to my quilt.
My Maverick quilt had to follow my self-imposed Japanese theme and fit in with the first three quilts of the 20x12 series. I thus used a shibori piece of fabric I had dyed when I was working on my "Mythology" quilt. This dyed piece in itself is a bit of a Maverick as it came out really different from my other shibori pieces, with very definite marks, strong contrast and lots of personality.
The small weawing was done with a paper yarn purchased in Kyoto last spring. At first, I only attached it to the quilt with some hand stitches, but it kept moving as it is rather loosely woven.
Thus, I added some machine stitching using the same variegated thread as for the quilting of the solid blue part of the quilt.
I also used this thread to quilt one square of the shibori fabric, to add a little layer of Maverick to my piece...
Two other squares are quilted in dark blue. I might quilt the rest of the shibori piece in the same way (i.e. blue), but I'm not sure yet it really needs it.
The title means "Shibori and weaving". Thank you to my dear Japanese friend for suggesting it!

13 comments:

Gerrie said...

Well isn't that just what a maverick is? Doing something differently. I like the way you worked through that maverick mental block that most of us seemed to have. There is a Japanese artist who uses weaving in her work. Her name escapes me at the moment. I have always loved seeing that bit of texture in her work. She also uses pieces of wood.

I like how you stayed with your Japanese aesthetic. Very nice.

Jaye said...

LOVE the Shibori!!! My little group is trying to emulate you all...I have a little difficulty getting some of them to be motivated by our monthly themes though....you gals are great!!

Diane Perin said...

This piece gives me such a feeling of joy! The contrasts in this are so effective -- the glow of the beautiful shibori, the bright colors against the deep blue, the wonderful weaving and irregular lines against the straight blocks... This really sings. And I love that you have included your weaving as an aspect of a new adventure!

kirsten said...

You have addressed our theme in a very clever fashion! And with a beautiful result. I love the luscious background cloth.

Brenda said...

The dark Shibori background is bold and dramatic. The weaving is more delicate but still asserts itself in this beautiful piece.

I often struggle with how to quilt Shibori pieces. Your diagonal lines of stitching enhance the diamond shapes and the areas of more intense stitching add layers of interest. It looks complete to me.

Kristin L said...

I love the way that little bit of weaving pops in the rest of the composition. There are so many subtle contrasts here: the loose weaving and the dense stitching, the dark shibori and the bright solids, the large piece of cloth and the smaller ones, the pop of the bright strip and the way the deep blue recedes.... Very nicely done.

Deborah Boschert said...

I am so excited to hear about your weaving! Fantastic. I really like how it's incorporated here... subtle, but integral. I especially love the varigated thread in the section at the bottom. It picks up the other colors so well. The green binding at the bottom is great too.

Robin said...

Hope you remember how to get that shibori design because it is wonderful!

Terri Stegmiller said...

Oh I just love that shibori fabric. Beautiful. The weaving is such an intriguing focal area and the horizontal strip of colors behind it really sets if off.

Karen said...

That shibori is just beautiful Françoise, and you incorporated the very nicely.

Nikki said...

I love how you've gone a bit maverick with the sharp contrast and the bit of weaving. I'm excited to see where you go with it in the future.

Unknown said...

i am going to be a bit maverick with my comments compared to the rest because to be honest I don't think you need the weaving. I think it sits awkwardly and is not intergreted. i think the coloured bands are maverick enough alone. But the shibori effect is great and it makes me want ti try it out myself.

Terry Grant said...

Well, like everyone else, I love the shibori, but I really love the whole thing and I do think the weaving is a wonderful bit of contrast. The crispy spikiness of the woven threads gives it such a nice organic spark of texture and dimension and the weft thread that meanders in from one edge and then out the other edge pulls it all together. In terms of composition, the placement of the little woven piece is nearly a perfect expression of the rule of thirds. Don't know if that was intentional or intuitive, but it is very effective. This may be my favorite of all your pieces, but I also may have said that before!