Art Quill Studio

Deconstructed & Polychromatic Screen Printing Introductory Course(ArtCloth Workshop)Tutor: Marie-Therese Wisniowski

2012-02-25T08:54:00.023+11:00

Introduction
Using fewer steps than traditional screen printing, deconstructed and polychromatic screen printing offers the beginner as well as the experienced artist the same flexibility and spontaneity as paint to fabric or paper, with the added result of more than one image.

Polychromatic Printing (PP) is a combination of water color painting and screen printing developed by Joy Stocksdale. By painting directly onto a silk screen with concentrated dyes, the artist can achieve multi colored images, which can be printed on fabric or paper. Using release paste, one pull of the squeegee releases the dyes onto the substrate surface. A series of multiple prints can be obtained, which results in a limited edition of mono style prints with each print becoming a paler rendition of the prior print.

Known for her innovative approaches to dyeing and screen printing processes, Kerr Grabowski developed Deconstructed Screen Printing (DSP), a printing/monoprint technique, which allows for a freer, more painterly approach to screen printing. Printing with thickened dyes over low relief textured surfaces the dye is allowed to dry in the silk screen then printed onto fabric using release paste. The paste gradually dissolves the dried dye, which results in the image “deconstructing” as successive prints are created. No two prints are ever the same and the resultant distressed and disintegrating prints are rich in color, texture and pattern.

Claire Benn and Lesley Morgan have developed Breakdown Printing (BP). Similar to DSP, it varies in that much thicker quantities of dye are layered onto the back of the silk screen. Both low relief and heavily embossed textures can be impressed into the wet dye and left in the screen to dry.

All these techniques can be used individually or combined to create a rich array of complex color, marks, textures and layered imagery. The resulting fabric may be used as an individual work or a point of departure for further embellishment.

Marie-Therese

Two Day Workshop Synopsis
This workshop was organized by Marion Hera-Gorr of Beautiful Silks. It was held at Beautiful Silks at 101 Victoria Street, Fitzroy in Melbourne, Victoria from the 20^th - 21^stMarch 2010.

Participants - who attended this fun and exciting workshop - were Alison Durham, Alison Withers, Gayle Gissing, Jeanette Wilkinson, Madeleine Zegir, Marea McGuire, Rhonda Nadasdy, Robyn Faris, Ruth Zegir, and Sherrie T Jewson.

In this two day workshop titled, “In Pursuit of ArtCloth: Deconstructed & Polychromatic Screen Printing Introductory Course”, participants learnt to create texture and imagery using the resist properties of dried thickened dye on a silk screen creating successive deconstructed organic prints. In unison with deconstructed screen printing (DSP) they investigated the painterly and spontaneous imaging created using polychromatic printing (PP) techniques. As well as the DSP and PP techniques, they also explored and worked on a “breakdown” printed series of images creating lush colors and exciting textures.

Student's Workshop ArtCloths

Alison Withers: Deconstructed and polychromatic screen printing study.

Alison Withers: Breakdown screen printing study.

Alison Durham: Breakdown and polychromatic screen printing study.

Alison Durham: Breakdown screen printing study.

Madeleine Zegir: Deconstructed screen printing study.

Madeleine Zegir: Breakdown screen printing study.

Madeleine Zegir: Deconstructed and riso (thermofax) screen printing study.

Gayle Gissing: Deconstructed screen printing study.

Jeanette Wilkinson: Deconstructed screen printing study.

Jeanette Wilkinson: Deconstructed and riso (thermofax) screen printing study.

Marea McGuire: Polychromatic screen printing study.

Rhonda Nadasdy: Breakdown screen printing study.

Rhonda Nadasdy: Breakdown and polychromatic screen printing study.

Ruth Zegir: Breakdown screen printing study.

Ruth Zegir: Breakdown and polychromatic screen printing study.

Ruth Zegir: Deconstructed screen printing study.

Robyn Faris: Deconstructed and riso (thermofax) screen printing study.

Sherrie T Jewson: Deconstructed screen printing study.

Sherrie T Jewson: Deconstructed and riso (thermofax) screen printing study.

Information Overload?Art EssayMarie-Therese Wisniowski

2012-02-18T08:31:00.005+11:00

The right side of the brain is often associated with emotion and creativity, whereas the left side of the brain is associated with language [1]. Nonetheless, latest research on the brain's plasticity shows that these divisions may be too simplistic: different parts of the brain in the different hemispheres will coordinate in order to complete a function, since most functions are multi-faceted.

It is not scientifically true that if you are artistic, you are basically trapped in the right hemisphere of your brain and thus you are hopeless in articulating your artistic ideas because of your under developed (neuronal speaking) left side of the brain. It has been postulated that if you cannot do maths you tend to study humanities and if you cannot articulate your feelings you tend to deal with images. These hypotheses have never been scientifically tested - they are therefore unsubstantiated notions.

Marie-Therese Wisniowski, Discrimination IV: I am Human (2005).
Medium: Archival Inkjet Print on Paper.
Size: A3.

My university students, when confronted with writing an essay about art, are always quick to point to such myths. When they do, I am quick to point to one of my favourite books – “Writing About Art” by Henry M. Sayre [2]. I also give my students a comprehensive list of art-bloggers who can easily publish lucid conversational essays about their own art, unravelling techniques, and ideas and giving valuable insights into their art practice. They readily use their right and left side of brain interchangeably, imperceptibly and instantaneously.

Cover of H.M. Sayre’s Book – Pablo Picasso, Woman With Book, Oil Painting (1932).

Artists such as Piet Mondrian (e.g. Painting I, 1926) and Jackson Pollack (Number 1 1948, 1948) have deliberately labelled some of their artworks with titles that were devoid of any subject matter. In Pollack’s case he wanted the “doing” of the painting and the outcome of its “doing” to stand paramount during the act of engagement and so not to be obscured or distracted by a title, which may mislead or obviate the central purpose of the act – to “experience” the work unfettered [2]. Some of the ArtCloth titles on this blog have been deliberately named - “Untitled” - perhaps for similar reasons (see earlier blogs).

Piet Mondrian, Painting I, Oil Painting (1926).

All artworks generate their own mien – some are modified by the ambience in which they reside, whereas others distort or even warp the environment that they are located in by their mere presence. As a curator, I am always aware of how the artwork interacted with the space allocated to it and its surrounds (see Engaging New Visions on this blog site). As an artist, I am aware about how my artwork should be presented, even though in “group” exhibitions I may not have a say about its surrounds.

Jackson Pollack, Number 1 1948, Oil Painting (1948).

My trait is that all of my artworks are titled - and I choose my titles very carefully - to inform the viewer of the subject matter of the artworks; that is, my title is a just another clue. However, rarely can it capture the “experience” generated by the work, because often such intricate interactions are somewhat plastic, varying with each viewer’s interpretation and my over-arching intent as an artist - to create an “experience” during the act of engagement. As I have often stated on this blog site, art is an ill defined communication system, albeit intentional by design; it cannot be precise; it is therefore vague in delivery and so may surprisingly generate unexpected constructive or destructive criticisms and/or analysis. See the following blog for some unexpected comments by art critics.

Why ArtCloth

When I exhibit my artwork, I make sure it is properly labelled (Name, Title, Year It was Created, Medium, Size etc.) and depending on the curator, I would normally follow this label with a brief description of my “intent” in creating my artwork; that is, the intended “experience” that I wanted to create during the act of engagement. The latter is usually less than 100 words in length. Nevertheless, I have participated in exhibitions where such statements were shunned. In a solo exhibition, I always leave a pamphlet giving a readable bibliography and shortened version of my curriculum vitae. Hopefully, most of the above material will be in a catalogue, together with reproductions of my artwork. All of these informative tools are mere aids to assist in understanding my artwork. For example, below is the sort of information I would deliver with an exhibited artwork, albeit that is much longer than what I would normally pen.

Marie-Therese Wisniowski, Whose Church? (2006).
Technique: Fine-Art print on paper employing the author's "multiplex" silkscreen printing technique.
Size: A3.

Synopsis Of ArtWork: Whose Church?
As the Catholic Church grew from a seed into a worldwide conglomerate, the Vatican amassed enormous protected material wealth. It did so via capitalism. Even today, it operates its business ventures outside of the constructs of the Church on capitalistic grounds. In 1973, a Peruvian Jesuit Father Gustavo Gutierrez published a book entitled “A Theology of Liberation”. The tenets of what became known as liberation theology rested on freeing the people from political oppression, economic want and misery here on earth. More specifically still, it was freeing the people in Latin America from political domination by capitalism. The underlying assumption was the preferential option that Jesus showed for the poor. Was it not easy for a camel to slip through the tiny eye of a needle than for a rich man to get into heaven? After all, was not Christ himself poor – “…the Son of Man has nowhere to lay his head, while even the birds of the air have nests and the foxes have their lairs”.

This print juxtaposes the material wealth of the Church derived from capitalism with its spiritual wealth (e.g. Saint Francis of Assisi and the cross of Jesus) and so directly raises the dichotomy, which challenged the liberation theologians – Whose Church?

Information Overload?
So where is the mystery in this print if all information about it has been delivered to the viewer? When I created – “Whose Church?” – my intention was to artistically investigate the dichotomy between theory and practice of the Roman Catholic Church. Using deductive reasoning, I settled on a particular theme (e.g. liberation theology) to give my work a compositional uniformity. For a viewer, the unfettered individual “experience” during the act of engagement may have settled on more recent problems of the Church, namely, the sexual abuse by Priests of minors and so the "experience" might have been framed in terms of – Is it the Church of Jesus, or is the Church permanently anchored to the human frailties of its minders - the priests and nuns? (Inductive reasoning). The artist statement informs rather than captures or contextualises the entire array of possible unfettered “experience(s)” felt by the viewer(s).

I should point out that reproductions in a catalogue or on your computer screen do not slavishly follow the color of the artworks, nor do they give you a feel for their size, complexity or yield information about the art marks (fine, rough, smooth or textured etc.) Hence, care must always be taken to “see” the work in situ (if possible) before writing about it.

Replica of the Mona Lisa recently discovered at the Madrid's Museo del Prado. Conservators say that it was painted at the same time as the original — and possibly by one of the master's pupils, or perhaps even by a lover.

Lastly, I never describe formal elements in my work such as lines, space, shape, light and dark, color, rhythm, repetition, proportion, balance, scale, unity, values, variety or more unique elements such as the use of foils, gold leaf etc. or even make comparative studies [2] I might do so when I am delivering a talk about my artwork to an audience, where I may wish to expand on technical aspects that underwrote the intended “experience” and moreover, place in context my artwork in terms of my overall output, my influences and the artwork of others. Generally, I leave these topics to the critics, who may wish to write about my art. After all, there needs to be some mists in what I do!

References:
[1] Smith, Carol. "Brain Tumor Opens Her Mind To Art", The Seattle Post-Intelligencer,March 13, (2006).

[2] Sayre, Henry M.,“Writing About Art”, Prentice Hall, New Jersey, (1995) ISBN 0-12-124975-4.

ArtCloth From UtopiaAustralian Aboriginal ArtClothMarie-Therese Wisniowski

2012-02-11T09:24:00.000+11:00

Introduction
When I read Sir Thomas More's (also known as Saint Thomas More) – Utopia – in the 1960s, I felt he strove for the intersection between fact and fantasy (that later became the hallmark of science fiction writers and more recently of espionage writers such as Frederick Forsyth). More’s Utopia tried to reform the human spirit in an age and place where religiosity was driven towards the mundane (e.g. Henry VIII dumped the Roman Catholic Church in order to divorce Catherine of Aragon, and More in 1535 refusing to take an oath impugning the pope’s authority was then beheaded).

Illustration For The 1516 First Edition Of Utopia.

An area that is 230 kilometers North-East of Alice Springs (Australia) is also called Utopia. The area was named Utopia by early pastoralists in the 1920s since rabbits there were so numerous and tame that they could be caught by hand. Utopia's Indigenous place names — Alhalpere, Rreltye, Thelye, Atarrkete and Ingutanka — are also the particular names of families who are custodians for these aboriginal “counties”. There are approximately 880 to 1000 people who live in some 16 small camps dotted across an area of 2000 square kilometers. The community is structured on extended family groups whose camps are generally centered on their clan lands. There are about 120 working artists in the community.

Geographical Position Of The Utopia Region (Australia).

In 2007 the then Australian Prime Minister, John Howard, in response to child sexual abuse and neglect of Northern Territorial Aboriginals, legislated in law - The Northern Territory National Emergency Response (also referred to as "the intervention"). The response has been severely criticized by aboriginal and non-aboriginal groups but has received bipartisan parliamentary support. The current Prime Minister, Julia Gillard continues to support the response, though her predecessor, Kevin Rudd, did make some adjustments to its implementation.

The Intervention.
Note: Utopia has no high-speed internet connectivity. Internet Pornography Statistics
Pornographic websites 4.2 million (12% of total websites)
Pornographic pages 420 million
Daily pornographic search engine requests 68 million (25% of total search engine requests)
Daily pornographic emails 2.5 billion (8% of total emails)
Internet users who view porn 42.7%
Received unwanted exposure to sexual material 34%
Average daily pornographic emails/user 4.5 per Internet user
Monthly Pornographic downloads (Peer-to-peer) 1.5 billion (35% of all downloads).

One of the measures that the current government agencies are actively pursuing is to remove these disperse camps and settlements into a more concentrated “village” society, where resources (such as health, education, social services etc.) can be more easily administrated and delivered. The “Utopian” aboriginals are currently resisting this move, since they consider their immediate connection to their land and its intimate features are more spiritually important than a “white” notion of a village society.

Northern Territory Intervention Word Cloud.
Voices Against The Intervention

No matter what the reason behind Utopia's original naming, it was nevertheless aptly named; the aboriginal artists spread throughout this region are undergoing a reaffirmation of their kindred spirit via their new found art media and in doing so, they are (in keeping with More's vision) arriving at the intersection of their earthly/geographical reality and their non-earthly/indigenous spirituality.

Utopian Artists

Marie-Therese.

Utopian Aboriginal ArtCloth
Utopia was the name of a pastoral lease taken out on the area in 1927. This lease resulted in the traditional areas being depopulated as local aboriginal people moved to homestead encampments to find work. In 1977, the Aboriginal Land Fund Commission acquired the lease on behalf of the Utopia community and in 1979 the land was returned to them under inalienable freehold title.

In 1977 a batik program was started in Utopia as a source of income for the women. The majority of the artists creating these batik designs were women painting Dreamtime stories of bush tucker and women’s ceremonies. In the preparation for the land claim this direct connection between art and land helped to provide the supportive evidence needed for the Utopia community to lodge their successful land-rights claim. Throughout the hearings the women of Utopia displayed their batiks to demonstrate the economic viability of the outstations, and also as an expression of their Dreaming rights and responsibilities to the country.

The National Gallery of Victoria has the largest collection of Aboriginal ArtCloth in Australia. Below are examples of the Batik ArtCloth of the women artists of Utopia.

Violet Petyarr, Mountain Devil Lizard Dreaming (1997).
Technique: Batik on silk.
Size: 115 cm (width) x 203 cm (length).
Courtesy of reference [1].

Emily Kngwarray, Kam (Pencil Yam Seed) (1988).
Technique: Batik on silk.
Size: 116.9 cm (width) x 191.3 cm (length).
Courtesy of reference [1].

Ada Bird Petyarr, Bean Tree Dreaming (1991).
Technique: Batik on silk.
Size: 91.5 cm (width) x 187 cm (length).
Courtesy of reference [1].

Abbie Loy, Bush Hen Dreaming (1997).
Technique: Batik on silk.
Size: 115 cm (width) x 210 cm (length).
Courtesy of reference [1].

Emily Kam Kngwarray, Anwerlarr (Pencil Yam) (1980).
Technique: Batik on silk.
Size: 84.2 cm (width) x 270.5 cm (length).
Courtesy of reference [2].

Lena Pwerl, Arlewatyerr (Goanna) (1980-82).
Technique: Batik on silk.
Size: 91.2 cm (width) x 230.5 cm (length).
Courtesy of reference [2].

Gloria Ngal, Road Map, Utopia (1989).
Technique: Batik on silk.
Size: 110 cm (width) x 234 cm (length).
Courtesy of reference [2].

Annie Petyarr, Camp Scene (1989).
Technique: Batik on silk.
Size: 110 cm (width) x 230 cm (length).
Courtesy of reference [2].

Ada Bird Petyarr, Inernt (Bean Tree) Dreaming (1991).
Technique: Batik on silk.
Size: 91.5 cm (width) x 187 cm (length).
Courtesy of reference [2].

Ada Bird Petyarr, Arnkerrth Then Ngangkar (Mountain Devil Lizard And Traditional Healer) (1991).
Technique: Batik on silk.
Size: 93 cm (width) x 181 cm (length).
Courtesy of reference [2].

Reference:
[1] J. Ryan and R. Healy, Raiki Wara, National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne (1998).

[2] J. Ryan et al., Across The Desert – Aboriginal Batik from Central Australia, Council of Trustees of the National Gallery of Victoria, Melbourne (2008).

A Selection Of My ScarvesWearable ArtMarie-Therese Wisniowski

2012-02-04T08:55:00.011+11:00

Introduction
There are three basic ingredients (as opposed to definitions) that all artworks possess; (i) they need to be “engaged”; (ii) they are non-functional, and (iii) they are aesthetic. Wearable Art is “Art” when placed in an art context but when it is not placed in an art context, its functionality obscures the act of engagement. My scarves are wearable art.

My scarves have been created using a range of fabrics and various hand dyeing and hand printing techniques. They are a one-off creation, never to be repeated in color, tone or overall design. However, some of the design elements may re-appear in other scarves, but the overall colors and design is what ensures their uniqueness.

What I do not do is sew, even though my mother (Milla Wisniowski) created fashion-wear for the Melbourne (Australia) fashion industry. I figured that one sewer/designer of clothes in the family was more than enough. I have her to thank for all the scarves that required stitching (see below).

My scarves are available in various galleries, art and craft outlets throughout Australia. For example, in the Hunter Valley Vineyards (Australia) they are available from Butterflies Gallery. The most recent outlet for my scarves in Newcastle (Australia) is Timeless Textiles which is owned and managed by textile artist Anne Kempton. It is located at 7 Beaumont St, Islington Newcastle (Australia).

The Timeless Textiles credo is:
“Finding our passions and talents, and learning to nurture and share them with others not only increases our senses of who we are, it restores our sense of community and belonging. It makes us feel happy.”

Timeless Textiles offers a gallery, store and open access studio/s. All of the original works have been created by Australian and internationally recognized textile and fiber artists. So if you are in the vicinity, they are well worth a visit – if not just to imbue and immerse yourself in the splendor of textile art!

A Selection Of My Scarves (Available at Timeless Textiles)

ArtCloth Pashmina Scarf 1.
Techniques: Hand dyed and hand printed by Marie-Therese Wisniowski.
Multi-dyed, block printed and stenciled employing dyes and pigment on viscose blend.
Size: 74 cm (width) x 195 cm (length).
Available For Purchase: Timeless Textiles

ArtCloth Pashmina Scarf 2.
Techniques: Hand dyed and hand printed by Marie-Therese Wisniowski.
Multi-dyed, block printed and stenciled empolying dyes and pigment on viscose blend.
Size: 74 cm (width) x 195 cm (length).
Available For Purchase: Timeless Textiles

ArtCloth Pashmina Scarf 3.
Techniques: Hand dyed and hand printed by Marie-Therese Wisniowski.
Dyed, over-dyed, silkscreened and foiled employing dyes, pigment and foil on viscose blend.
Size: 74 cm (width) x 195 cm (length).
Available For Purchase: Timeless Textiles

ArtCloth Pashmina Scarf 4.
Techniques: Hand dyed and hand printed by Marie-Therese Wisniowski.
Silk screened, discharged and foiled employing dyes and foil on viscose blend.
Size: 74 cm (width) x 195 cm (length).
Available For Purchase: Timeless Textiles

ArtCloth Pashmina Scarf 5.
Techniques: Hand dyed and hand printed by Marie-Therese Wisniowski.
Silk screened and foiled employing dyes and foil on viscose blend.
Size: 74 cm (width) x 195 cm (length).
Available For Purchase: Timeless Textiles

ArtCloth Pashmina Scarf 6.
Techniques: Hand dyed and hand printed by Marie-Therese Wisniowski.
Shibori multi dyed, block printed and silkscreened employing dyes and pigment on viscose blend.
Size: 74 cm (width) x 195 cm (length).
Available For Purchase: Timeless Textiles

Velvet ArtCloth Scarf (Detail View).
Techniques: Hand dyed and hand printed by Marie-Therese Wisniowski.
Dyed, over-dyed, discharged, silk screened and foiled on silk rayon velvet.
Size: 27 cm (width) x 180 cm (length).
Available For Purchase: Timeless Textiles

"Six Memos" - Susan Fell-McLeanArtCloth ReviewMarie-Therese Wisniowski

2012-01-28T09:55:00.004+11:00

Introduction
Over the past six thousand years or more - literature has informed the fine arts and the fine arts have inspired “new” literature. The "old masters" and their renderings of religious contexts are obvious examples of the former, whereas Dan Brown’s book, “da Vinci Code”, is a contemporary example of the latter. It is therefore surprising that so little interplay between literature and the fine arts has occurred of late. Is this because this generation of artists are not confident or mature enough to tackle someone else’s inspiration, appropriate it and render it into their own artistic language? I dont think so! Susan Fell-McLean has paved the way with her inspiring exhibition.

I hope you enjoy this Art Review - but more importantly - I hope you enjoy her Art.
Marie-Therese.

Susan's Web Spot

"Six Memos" - Susan Fell-McLean
Susan Fell-McLean has no fears in appropriating, creating and then rendering her virtual collaboration in her exhibition - the “Six Memos”. It artistically reaches into the conceptual framework of Italo Calvino’s six highly personal mediations on the art of writing, namely - Visibility, Exactitude, Lightness, Quickness, Multiplicity and Consistency. She interprets these narratives within her own artistic psychological framework and in doing so produces stunning artworks!

Susan Fell-McLean - at the exhibition (which is no longer on display).

Susan Fell-McLean has shown her work in solo and group exhibitions nationally and internationally (e.g. Belgium, Canada, France, Italy and Malaysia). She holds a Master of Visual Arts from Monash University (Australia) and whilst studying, she was awarded a highly sought-after studio position at the Palazzo Vaj, Prato, Tuscany, Italy. She is regularly invited to international conferences as a speaker and exhibitor.

Many of her ArtCloth processes were adapted from traditional techniques and she has drawn primarily from the Japanese techniques of Shibori and Rozome.

Gallery space devoted to her work needs to be large in this case. It gives the viewer much needed time to reflect upon the artistic islands left behind and to brace oneself for the visual extravaganza to come.

As you enter the Gallery you are visually confronted with her art piece – Visibility. At the very least, it answers to Calvino’s insistence on the priority of the visual image. For this piece Susan uses Rozome, which is a multi-stage process using a layer of wax to create a barrier, which prevents dye from taking to the fabric. She invites us to imagine the story Calvino’s “tellings” in terms of a series of frames, where the top of the art piece yields images that make you want to soar through the roof.

Visibility.
Installation Description: Five vertical panels, suspended from the ceiling, above a plinth on which rest 25 cylinder forms. The viewer is able to walk around all sides of the sculpture.
Materials Used: Kimono silk, cardboard cylinders.
Techniques: Rozome – wax resist with cold acid steam fix dyes.
Dimensions: Plinth size - 2m x 2m x 25cm height - with a drop of 3.5m.

As you move to the left you encounter – Lightness. To Calvino, each of his literary values was distinct, but each seems at the same time to embrace the others. For example, “Visibility” emerges from “Lightness” and so the latter is the primordial variant of the former. What is more, Calvino sees one as rising above the weight of the world, and so even though one is trapped in a gravity field, nonetheless, one has acquired the secret of “lightness”. Susan captures that sentiment visually.

Lightness.
Installation Description: Seven silk pleated plumes resting on seven slate tiles suspended from the ceiling.The wall behind is a background to this sculpture, lighting and shadows playing a significant part in the installation.
Materials Used : Silk organza, cotton ribbon, slate tiles.
Techniques: Pleating and stitching.
Dimensions: 2.5m (width), 1.5m (depth); each plume is approximately 20cm in height.

My favourite artwork in this collection is – Multiplicity. Coincidently, this was also one of Calvino’s most admired characteristics. She presents this concept in a “Stone Henge” like spiral. This ArtCloth installation was created using the itajimi technique. Calvino interprets “Multiplicity” as a vast profusion of worlds, where “…Every life is an encyclopaedia, a library, an inventory of objects...” When you spiral with this installation, you feel and see a “telling” of many past and future cultures. You feel a cosmos unfolding.

Multiplicity.
Installation Description: Fourteen redgum blocks make up a heliocentric spiral and support bamboo uprights onto which eight panels of wool are stretched. The viewer is able to walk into the spiral and around all sides of the sculpture.
Materials Used: Wool (nun’s cloth), prefelt wool tops, silk, cotton thread. Dyed with eucalyptus, chinese scrub, mudguts from a regdum, bamboo, and redgum slabs.
Techniques: Itajime shibori, stitch and dry felting.
Dimensions: 2.5m height, with a spiral area of approximately five square meters.

You then find yourself gliding to – Quickness. In front of this work you recall Calvino’s words: ”My work as a writer has from the beginning aimed at tracing lighting flashes of the mental circuits that capture and link points distant from each other in space and time”. Susan uses Shibori and Rozome techniques and brought them together to produce this work in which she intended to create a piece that was “…transparent and yet had opacity to link and balance colour, texture and form”.

Quickness.
Installation Description: Textile supported by date palm bark on a flat floor plinth. The viewer is able to walk around all sides of this sculpture.
Materials Used: Silk organza and palm bark.
Techniques: Rozome, wax resist, cold acid steam fix dyes, arashi shibori hot acid milling dye.
Dimensions: 50cm high on a plinth 2m x 1m x 20cm.

From Quickness you move to Exactitude, where the artwork must be rendered as infinitely precise in all of its crystalline detail – as if each artistic mark were as distinct in detail and in focus as a 100 mega-pixel image. Nothing, but nothing, is left to the imagination except for the reason of the art piece itself. You find yourself musing – “What is Exactitude” – and then you realise you are looking at it - literally and figuratively.

Exactitude.
Installation Description: Two pieces of antique kimono silk each with the word "exactitude" dry felted into the surface. A "wall mounted" piece is mirrored by a horizontal piece that is supported on a bench.
Materials Used: Antique kimono silk and wool.
Technique: Dry felting.
Dimension: 2.5m long.

It should be remembered that Italo Calvino originally wrote five pieces for the 1985-86 Charles Eliot Norton lectures at Havard and his sixth lecture – Consistency – was not completed due to his untimely death. There is just a shadow, a watermark, an inkling of what he might have proffered for this frame. To explore - Consistency - Susan Fell-McLean organized a collaborative piece namely, a corner frieze of six photographic images (photography by Peter Ward) of textiles as land art (textiles by Susan Fell-McLean), and an essay entitled "Travelling in Calvino’s Landscapes" written by Sari Wawn.

Consistency.
Consistency was a collaborative piece with The Edge Contemporary Art Collective.
Installation Description: A corner frieze of six photographic images of textiles as land art (by Susan Fell Mclean) and an essay entitled "Travelling in Calvino’s Landscapes", written by Sari Wawn. Photography was by Peter Ward.
Materials and Techniques: Digital photographs giclee printed on polyester banner fabric.
Dimension: 65cm x 4m.

The collection - Six Memos – is a tribute to Italo Calvino’s thoughtful frames, but more importantly, it exposes a very important artistic statement. Hopefully Susan Fell-McLean will continue this virtual collaboration with Calvino or with other art literature muses.

Footnote:
Six Memos was exhibited at the Shepparton Art Gallery and was curated by Jo Ely, who described it as: "...transgresses the boundaries of textile art, combining very traditional textile dyeing and construction techniques with contemporary sculptural concerns and notions of sustainability."

In Pursuit of Complex Cloth:Complex Cloth Intensive Workshop at Geelong Textile Fiber ForumTutor: Marie-Therese Wisniowski

2012-01-21T08:21:00.000+11:00

Complex Cloth Discharge Information (Color Removal)
After dyeing the cellulose and silk fabrics, the next step involved in creating complex cloth layered background imagery is the discharge process.

Discharge is the removal of a dyed color, unlike the addition of color that is achieved with dyes or paints.

To achieve such results, there are two different ways to chemically remove dye colour from fabric. One route is via oxidation - which in the most simplest definition, requires the addition of oxygen to a dye molecule; the other route is via reduction - which in the most simplest definition is the removal of oxygen from a dye molecule. The reduction process is more popular due to occupational health and safety reasons.

Occupational, Health and Safety Issues When Using Discharge Agents
Thiourea dioxide, formosul, bleach and Jacquard Discharge Paste are some of the chemicals that are used for removing or discharging dyes. All discharging agents create a chemical reaction that transforms and changes the dye molecule and therefore causes the lightening or color change of the fabric. The results can be unpredictable - but rewarding - and it is an exciting and inspirational approach to creating your own unique fabrics.

The most common discharge agent is household bleach. Its active ingredient is sodium hypochlorite and it uses the oxidation process to remove dyed color. (Please note that household bleach is a toxic chemical and it is extremely harsh on cloth fibres.) It is also more dangerous than “reductive” discharge chemicals. In general, the “reductive” discharge chemicals are less toxic than say, chlorine bleach. Nevertheless, they all produce sulfur dioxide, which has a particular pungent odour and so may be particularly dangerous for people who have a medical condition such as asthma.

It is very important to consult a Material Safety Data Sheet (MSDS), which is the information safety sheet provided by manufacturers, when working with any discharge chemicals. You can ask for a MSDS from your retailer on purchasing any product that may have health impacts.

Always wear protective clothing like gloves, respiratory protection and safety glasses when working with any discharge chemicals. If possible, conduct the process in a well-ventilated environment.

Thiourea dioxide and Jacquard Discharge Paste use the reductive process to remove dyed color. Thiourea dioxide is also known as formamidine sulfinic acid. Jacquard Discharge Paste apparently contains Rongalit ST, water, urea and ammonia. All of the reductive discharge chemicals require heat to activate the reaction; that is, heat is used to break the double bonds in the dye chemicals in order to invoke the discharge process.

The reduction process produces less fibre damage and so more reductive discharge agents are available in the marketplace.

Five-day Workshop Synopsis
In Pursuit of Complex Cloth: Complex Cloth Intensive
This workshop was organized by “The Australian Forum for Textile Arts”, 2009 Geelong Textile Fibre Forum Conference, Geelong, Victoria. The workshop was held in the Sinclaire Building at the Geelong Grammar School from the 27^th September to 3^rd October 2009.

Claire Roberts, Heather Eyers, Julie Howard, Kaye Cross, Lynda Ash, Nancy Ballesteros, Norma Long, Patricia Jones, Raihi Thomas, Rhonda Nadasdy, Robyn Faris and Robyn Bayliss attended the workshop. The workshop participants created unique and personal one-of-a-kind ArtCloth fabrics of great depth and complexity.

The five-day workshop was dedicated to exploring and mastering complex relationships on the cloth surface using “complex cloth” dyeing and printing layering techniques. Using a variety of printing tools, processes and color combinations, participants were introduced to the underlying principles of color (monochromatic and color), contrast, value, scale and texture employed in the creation of complex cloth using dyes, discharge media, fabric paints and foils to create the illusion of depth.

Exercises included immersion dyeing, overdyeing, low water immersion dyeing, resist, discharge (color removal), stamping, stenciling and foiling as well as the creation of tools.

The workshop also explored and encouraged the participants to think about the relationship and impact of the color and design processes via discussion and examples. Participants were encouraged to prepare themed ideas and images as it was possible to prepare some of these tools prior to the class.

Group Photo
Front row left to right: Rhonda Nadasdy, Marie-Therese Wisniowski.
Second row left to right: Kaye Cross, Patricia Jones, Lynda Ash.
Third row left to right: Norma Long, Robyn Faris, Julie Howard.
Fourth row left to right: Heather Eyres, Raihi Thomas.
Fifth row left to right: Robyn Bayliss, Claire Roberts and Nancy Ballesteros.

A Word about the Images
By the end of the weeklong workshop each participant created a work measuring approx. 1 x 1 meter/yard. The following works were dyed and over-dyed using various binding methods, discharged, foiled and printed using the multiple complex cloth layering techniques. Color and design principles were also studied during the weeklong program and effectively incorporated to create this final series of stunning works. Images below include some of the larger 1 x 1 meter works and some of the smaller 30 cm x 30 cm works.

Nancy Ballesteros’s value and depth study employing a complementary color study using dyeing techniques and fabric paints.

Rhonda Nadasdy’s value and depth exploration employing analogous color study using dyeing techniques, fabric paints, discharge and foil.

Robyn Bayliss’s value and depth study employing a complementary color study using dyeing techniques, discharge and fabric paints.

Raihi Thomas’s value and depth exploration employing analogous color study using dyeing techniques, fabric paints and discharge.

Claire Roberts’s value and depth exploration employing analogous colour study using dyeing techniques, fabric paints, discharge and foil on the left. Value and depth exploration employing complementary color study using dyeing techniques, fabric paints, discharge and foil on the right.

Lynda Ash’s value and depth exploration employing complementary color study using dyeing techniques, fabric paints and discharge.

Robyn Faris’s value and depth exploration employing complementary color study using dyeing techniques, fabric paints, discharge and foil.

Heather Eyres’s value and depth exploration employing complementary color study using dyeing techniques, fabric paints and discharge.

Patricia Jones’s value and depth exploration employing complementary color study using dyeing techniques, fabric paints, discharge and foil.

Julie Howard’s value and depth exploration employing complementary color study using dyeing techniques, fabric paints, discharge and foil.

Kaye Cross’s value and depth exploration employing analogous color study using dyeing techniques, fabric paints, discharge and foil.

Norma Long’s dyed and over-dyed fabric employing complementary colors.

Dyed and over-dyed fabrics using various binding methods and colors.

Dyed and over-dyed fabrics using various binding methods and analogous colors.

View of the workshop in progress.

This photo and the five photo's below show images of works created during the week long workshop program. The workshop display was viewed by the visiting public, other workshop attendees and tutors and the forum organizers.

A Letter To A FriendThe Making Of An Artist Printmaker’s BookMarie-Therese Wisniowski

2012-01-14T08:53:00.000+11:00

15^th January 2004

Dear Heather,
The concept behind this artist printmaker’s book was basically born from the Not in My Name essay that I penned in the previous semester. It was your invitation to submit a print for consideration for the Journal of the Sydney Society of Literature and Aesthetics that sealed the project in my mind. I approached Art Quill & Co Pty Ltd and they agreed to publish it as a limited edition printmakers book. It was published in August 2003. Enclosed are artist proofs, which I wish to gift to you.

I had a yearning to map out a struggle that would end in tragedy, but with a beginning that appeared everyday-like in its rhythm. I was opposed to our unsanctioned invasion of Iraq on a number of fronts: it signalled the demise of international law and the irrelevance of the UN when at odds to an economic and military superpower; there was little or no Australian interest in such an unsanctioned war; the Pax Americana template for society was unlikely to be a template for every society on the globe and moreover, hundreds of thousands of lives would be needlessly lost (and this latter point is the most important of all). I was always supportive of the removal of Saddam Hussein (and other self imposed leaders in the world), but the means for his removal and the reorganization of its society had to be led by the grass root of the nation - its people.

In post 9/11, I viewed the war in Iraq differently from the media’s depiction. There were no superpowers left except one (Pax Americana) and so the conflict, although global, was of a different nature. It was a struggle of supremacy between two super powerful templates of society namely, those based on a "fundamentalist" Muslim faith (planned and highly structured) and those based on a Judea-Christian faith (more free market and liase a faire in design). The Buddhist template does not feature in this struggle, since it can co-exist within other templates, whereas the Confucian and Hindu templates are extremely restricted in a geopolitical sense.

The struggle between fundamentalist Muslim and Judea-Christian templates has been going on for eons in the Middle East, but was generally held in check by the tension between superpowers (i.e. more recently between the USA and the USSR). With the collapse of the USSR, a post cold war struggle surfaced, which culminated with 9/11. It is the Judea-Christian stranglehold on mass communication and its ability to penetrate via global trade into "fundamentalist" Muslim societies and influence the norms of these societies that formed the basis of this modern “religious” struggle. The “Weapons of Mass Destruction” and the fear of terrorism gave justification for open warfare in Iraq.

The printmaker’s book - Not in my Name - reflects my voice about Australia engaging in this supremacy struggle, and the subsequent collateral damage. Many of the concepts outlined above have been woven in the prints/poems of the book. I can recall De Musset, who pen in A La Malibran the following:

What we must weep on thy untimely grave,
Is not the art divine the secret wisdom gave;
Someone may read the art thou couldst create;
It is thy soul, Ninette, so simply great;
Heart’s voice alone can every heart obtain,
And none shall give it back to us again.

I wanted to also weave this emotion into my voice of dissent; the preciousness and fragility of the living and how little it featured in the decision making process that led to the unsanctioned invasion of Iraq.

When I mapped out the story, I wanted it to have a Greek structure (since the perspective was going to be Australian European); below were humans at war and in the heavens the gods were also at war. I wanted them to intermingle as was described by Catullus in Nuptials of Peleus and Thetis:

For in that elder time when truth and worth
Were still revered and cherished here on earth,
The tenants of the skies would oft descend
To heroes’ spotless homes, as friend to friend;
There meet them face to face, and freely share
In all that stirred the hearts of mortals there.

The gods in the ancient Greek poems appeared to me to be more like the politicians of today; that is, a disparate cohort, which bring to their electorate what they believe are the important values and experiences. There are the important gods (e.g. Hussein, Bush, and Blair) and the lesser gods (e.g. Ministers, Secretaries of Defence and State etc.) It is these gods that fuel the war and of course, it is the earthlings (the populace) who do their bidding and in doing so, suffer the consequences.

It is not well known that the flower of Iraq is the “Rose”. In the West, it is considered a beautiful flower and it is often associated with love and romance. Nevertheless, it has thorns to give it some protection. Unlike the Buddhist, who can just sit there and admire a flower in its natural state, as Daisetz Suzuki has pointed out in Zen and the Japanese Culture, in the West we have to possess and conquer the rose in order to love and admire it. It is therefore not surprising to read Tomas Hood write (Time of Roses):

Twas twilight, and I bade you go,
But still you held me fast;
It was the time of roses-
We pluck’d them as we pass’d.

Thus, possession is an important plank in a Judea-Christian and Muslim template of a society. It is important, in these societies to overcome adversity via possession.

My first major print in the book is an image of a rose immersed in a satellite type landscape relief in shades of magenta, grey and brown. This colour palette has been chosen to represent the colours of the rose, the charred landscape and the richness of a culture. Soft greyed horizontal lines have been positioned, through each print, acting as “tension” lines that add a sense of subtle discomfort to each image. The Islamic script, which appears throughout most prints, and in this case is positioned within a Middle Eastern window shape, reads, “In the Name of Allah, the Compassionate, the Merciful”.

I have purposely placed a number of mundane symbols (e.g. dollar signs and a cross) in order to tie it down to a more “ordinary” existence. We forget when we are washing the dishes, ironing our clothes, doing the shopping and cleaning the house that “our collective” politic may be causing havoc, mayhem, destruction and deaths in far away places. Graham Green showcased this in the Quiet American. He showed how easy it was for an “ordinary” person, such as Pyle, to be transformed into a killer in a war zone far away from his homeland. To transplant a war zone, was further sheeted home in 1971 by the random IRA bombings of London. They wanted to bring the British war in Ireland back to Britain. Similarly, the 9/11 act was also symbolic – a fundamentlist Muslim notion to attack and fight the Judea-Christian template in its heartland - with no regard for those who were innocent.

I am not a poet and so I tried to write this narrative in prose. It just did not work. Oh, for those wasted hours! I resisted my urge of being poetical. Just like Lady Macbeth:

Out, dammed spot! Out, I say! – One; two.

Those “spots” would not go away. I succumbed and so my thoughts tumbled from my mind onto paper in verse.

These prints/poems were not produced in the sequence that appeared in the book. The Australian Pilot was my first print/poem. The Not in My Name print/poem was the third produced. Obviously, it appears second. I needed it to set the scene - to give the context in which a personal tragedy would unfold.

Howard the "god" (the Australian Prime Minister at that time) is my second print. He occupies the heaven of this print. I wanted him split – just as he splits his personal thoughts from his public musings. (Has he ever really shed those Blainey years when he uttered racist comments?) The print is therefore sectioned. I needed debris in the heavens (i.e. the feeders of war). The maps of Australia and firearms appear like they were “…flung like leaves, by an unspoken force” (see my poem - The Australian Shield). Stealth bombers are causing the explosions, the damage of which has been purposely hidden from view in order to symbolize a populace blinded from suffering, because it is geographically and emotionally distant.

The people, opposing the war, occupy the earthly position. I gave these faces a soft focus (Photoshop) to give a more ethereal feel to the print, to give a sense of hope and moreover, to represent a diffuse and loose coalition.

Most of this print is in monochromatic tones. However, the Australian shield and Australian maps are in red and magenta, respectively. I did not want a “Red Cross or Red Crescent”. Rather I wanted an angry shield, to represent an irritation with the lack of progress to a more humane society. The shield also tries to represent a “new” awakening; that is, a “new” template for society. The Australian doctor in the poems is in the vanguard of such a movement.

The third print, The Australian Pilot, you have seen before in greyscale mode (which I specifically designed for the Journal). This is how it appears in colour. I wanted two divisions to signify the two society templates that are at center of this conflict. The top is the technologically sophisticated and super powerful Judea-Christian template and the bottom represents the less powerful Muslim template. The top is more liase a faire (deconstructed), whereas the bottom is very structured (planned). You will note a slight penetration of the top template into the bottom template.

The child is an Australian Muslim (hence the positioning). The child symbolizes the fragile innocent victims of war. The fighter plane has wings forged from maps of Australia. These maps are also dispatched from the plane like bombs. The satellite relief of the landscape below gives the print a feeling of altitude and moreover, indicates the act of killing at a distance (which technology has made possible). The child is starkly contrasted with a dotted border being employed. The guns represent a “weak” resistance and also define the internal conflicts under Saddam’s regime. Images of the star and crescent and decorative motifs are positioned in a registered mode, representing the highly structured and planned Muslim state. This concept is further highlighted with outlined images of a mosque and a door inviting the viewer to enter. As a single unit these symbols are designed to depict an extraordinary event – Australian planes bombing Iraq in 2003 and the suffering that such an act causes – which this time is not hidden from view.

The associated poem to this print - The Australian Pilot - is allegorical in structure and so the print appears somewhat at variance with it. However, it is not. The print has a hidden foreboding of future conflict that will become greater in focus in the decades to come, whereas the poem needed to separate the Howard context in order to reach other planes.

I wanted the pilot to die, but in death, to recognise a fatal error had occurred. The poem ends with (The Australian Pilot):

A tear welled, his head pained, he faltered -
No thought of family, country or fame -
A truck he struck fleeing northward was his last gasp of shame.

Just like in a play, the second print/poem (see above) Not in My Name, is the prelude scene and so sets the political context. The third print/poem, The Australian Pilot, puts it in an earthly perspective. The third print/poem (as a single unit) attempts to capture the foreboding of a tragedy - not unlike ACT 1 and SCENE I in Macbeth, where the three witches fore tell a tragedy. Here though, the tragedy is not foreseen but rather it is bemoaned and so hinted at.

The next print - The Bird of Prey - was difficult to do. A winged genius, with the head of an eagle, is a type known from middle Assyrian glyphic art and it also appears on ancient palace walls. This ancient and wise eagle headed genius symbolizes the richness of culture, knowledge and long history of the Middle East. The image is positioned in history’s view – a bottom layer in grey superimposed with the next layer in light magenta. The new millennium is brought to the fore, with a very stylized and linear graphic image of an eagle in flight, hovering above the ancient images in chocolate brown. Below the eagle in flight, a child representing the children of Iraq is depicted.

The sectioning is vertical and not horizontal, extenuating the flight of the bird and symbolizing the plucking of a human being, not for possession, but on humane considerations. The child was dying, the mother was dead and so the child’s death march needed to be quickened. The associated poem contains harsh thoughts, which is contrasted by feelings of compassion. The snap shot of the one child at different focal lengths symbolizes the descent and ascent of the bird of prey. It also symbolizes the loss of many innocent children in war. This country’s involvement is depicted by the maps of Australia floating on the surface of the print.

The print/poem also juxtaposes the evolutionary tract we have taken compared to the rest of the animal kingdom (which the print merges by using the image of an eagle headed genius). For example, the associated poem - The Bird of Prey declares:

He hunted and he was hunted, but never cared to kill,
Using the emotion of a moment or to exercise his skill.

The last line of poem - The Bird of Prey - further emphasizes the evolutionary divergence:

Why disrespect the kill, he thought, why leave this child to die?

Technology no longer respects the “kill”. It enables killing at a distance and so assists to absolve any remorse associated with such deaths. On the other hand, human beings kill for more psychologically driven reasons – for strategy, for power and with emotion. In doing so, we do not care about collateral damage. Hence, the lines in the poem (The Bird of Prey):

Humans kill with dark emotions, politicians kill for power.
This child knew of no evil, but these heathens were built so sour.

I wanted those slaughtered to be truly innocent. In MacBeth when Ross informs Macduff of the slaughter of Macduff’s family, Malcolm comforts him with revenge and then adds:

Malcolm: Dispute it like a man.
Macduff: I shall do so; But I must feel it as a man...Sinful Macduff, they were all struck for thee!
Naught that I am, not for their own demerits but for mine, fell slaughter on their souls.

Similarly, in this narrative, while the Iraqi national was at war, his wife and child were slaughtered not for theirs, but for his demerits (see below).

The next print is The Australian Shield. It is has purposely been designed to appear serene, calm and contemplative. The colour blue has been added to the colour palette to reference the blue eyes of the doctor and his stance in this print. An enhanced image of a gum tree and the squiggly trail of the insect that burrows beneath its surface have been positioned in the background. The metaphor seeks to capture the unexpected directions and turns that life can unfold. Doves fly above and around the doctor’s image highlighting that he is a pacifist.

The angry, red Australian Shield is superimposed with an image of a rainbow snake. The snake is a healing symbol embracing all cultures. In Australian tribal medicine, the snake may be the agent of both healing and sickness and the doctor mediates between these two forces. Floating around the shield are blue maps of Australia depicting the doctors views, his nationality and his country’s involvement. Beneath the floating maps are white crosses referencing the unjust and needless deaths that occur in war situations. The print purposely focuses on the Australian doctor, leaving the Iraqi national in the print as a tiny rose below the red shield.

In the associated poem the Iraqi national is oblivious to the doctor’s socio-political views, but in recognizing his nationality, the Iraqi national wishes to confront the doctor, without blame, but with his political reality (The Australian Shield):

I lived in Australia, heard Howard’s speech and scrambled here to fight!

Priam in the Illiad says it better:

Not thee I blame, but to the gods I owe this woeful war.

The doctor’s retort was that of a man who is certain of the direction that the new template should take (poem - The Australian Shield):

The Doctor shook and angrily said, “It should not have been your right!”

Wordsworth in Rob Roy’s Grave gives a more graphic sentiment, when he wrote Rob Roy’s oath to his sword:

Of old things all are over old,
Of good things none are good enough -
We’ll shew that we can help to frame
A world of other stuff.

The sixth print/poem is The Well. The design components of the print feature a dank, dark wall of a deep well in the background. An enhanced image of King Shalmaneser III of the Neo-Assyrian era has been superimposed over the well. He has been reworked to give a three dimensional appearance of a leader in battle dress. Images of the grandfather appear in the same format as the child in The Bird of Prey. The snap shots at different focal lengths symbolize the descent of the fighter-bombers that are aimed at the grandfather/king images. It also symbolizes the loss of many young men. The large pink rose superimposed over the central area represents the young Iraqi national and the weight of responsibility that those of his generation carry in these times.

The visual symbolizes the Christian Cross (which in Roman times was a structure to inflict death, but which has now become a symbol of suffering to release humankind from the bondage of their sins). The rose overlays this image with strip pictures of the grandfather, the subject of the poem, giving the horizontal arm of the Cross. Red patterns mark carnage. The history of this nation, with remnants of Persia well to the fore, is in stark contrast to all those previous prints.

For the associated poem, I wanted a ballad, but with a visual appearance of a well. In dry lands, such as in Australia and Iraq, a well or a water hole becomes the hive of activity (spiritual and commercial). When it is empty, all activity ceases. Symbolically the poem is playing the role of an empty well. Thus, I needed an economy of words and a very simple structure. I wanted the poem to be vaguely connected to what went before. The reader/viewer, I decreed, would be in possession of more facts than the subject of the poem, thereby assisting in the creation of a forlorn atmosphere in the reader’s/viewer’s mind - both personal and nation-wide. The poem begins (The Well):

The old man sat there trembling,
With no history left to read.

and the poem ends in further despair:

He sat there staring on empty,
In the well of his long life.
A grandson was missing,
In this dank night.

The next print, Her Death, has an ethereal appearance. She looks directly at the viewer with a reflective concern. Born, an Australian of Christian heritage, her conversion to the Muslim faith is depicted by the design concept of the print. The print is based on the design structure of a Persian carpet, which highlights a central motif - her face - and is bordered with flower images. A decayed and burnt piece of lace is depicted in the background to juxtapose her Western background to her Muslim existence. The Persian carpet was an integral feature of the concept as it also highlights the “Magic Carpet”, with inferred tales of new and exotic Middle Eastern places. A fighter bomber, made up of two maps of Australia, is aimed directly at her, signifying that although she and the pilot come from the same country, war does not discriminate in death.

She is killed whilst fleeing from a battle zone. It is clear that she is a victim of everybody else’s decisions. At this point I wanted a poem that was narrative in structure, to fill in some of the gaps. Prime Minister Howard goes to war; the doctor defies Howard and goes to Iraq to heal; she and her child are killed. Her death and her child’s death is hinted at in the poem The Australian Pilot, is more clearly revealed in The Bird of Prey, is lamented in The Well, and is given in graphic detail in Her Death.

In writing and creating the print - Her Death - I was thinking of the Koran in The Story when it states:

As for the abode of the thereafter,
We shall assign it to those who seek neither glory in this world nor evil.
The righteous shall have a blessed end.

I wanted the print to transcend her death and for her to have a blessed end. I purposely gave a sense of calmness in the second last stanza of the poem in order to attain a more dramatic end to her life. That is, (Her Death):

Bodies hurled, her senses furled,
Within one scream was her death.

The Rose of Iraq then completes and complements Her Death. He is a national and fears the penetration of the Judea-Christian template within his own Muslim society and thus the associated poem adds (The Rose of Iraq):

He fought those thoughts and those youths imbued in the US way.

The Rose of Iraq and Her Death are both narrative poems and are similar in structure. Nevertheless, these two prints purposely do not have a shared experience (which may be expected in times of war, where separation and divisions in families becomes commonplace).

The design components of this print feature the satellite type landscape relief in the background. This is superimposed with images of the Islamic words, “In the Name of Allah, the Compassionate,the Merciful”, which wrap around the top section of a mosque outline. Middle Eastern diamond shaped windows have been designed in a structured and random fashion to highlight the unexpected directions and turns that life can unfold, no matter what society one lives in, much as a chess board. Three red roses float beneath the image of the young man representing his two family structures, namely: (i) his traditional Iraqi family with his mother and father and; (ii) his more recent contemporary family of Australian wife and child. The image of the rose to his left has been specifically printed in chocolate brown, an unnatural colour for a rose, to confirm the ravages and colours of war.

In putting the collection of these prints and poems together I wanted a number of people viewing the same event from different vantage points in space and time. I did not want the prints to be sequential in time. I wanted the war and moreover, my dissent to revolve around this one transient event. I wanted to say – there is no need for a supremacy struggle but there is a need for understanding and fusion. The latter is emphasized by the child’s birth, but his death questions whether fusion could be maintained over a sizeable duration of time.

The book begins with a national, Prime Minister Howard, and it climaxes with another – The Rose of Iraq. As nationals go, these men are cut from the same cloth. Hence - Not in My Name - is synonymous with the last line of the poem (The Rose of Iraq):

He coined the phrase – in Iraq’s name – to keep the peace at bay.

The last print – The Iraqi Lament - and the subsequent poem, is my voice. I encapsulated my sentiment in the forward when I stated:

It also reflects on the collective shame of my era of humanity, namely: the need to go to war; the need to paint human suffering as collateral damage; the need to vouchsafe the warmongers who led us into conflict.

That Bush and Hussein are in the "god" domain is obvious. That Kofi Annan is a "god" is not so obvious. Nevertheless, he is there since the UN caused extreme human suffering of a nation in order to bring a leader to heal and often mediated between Iraq and the USA. Prime Minister Howard is not there since, although he struts on the Australian stage and is an Australian "god", on the world stage he is a follower of the greater "gods". In other words, he follows international action rather than defines it. The top panel of the print also includes the presence of the media and circumstances associated with war that are depicted as “entertainment” value. Hence, anti-war slogans appear in the background of the top section, which has been designed using textures, colours and lighting to give the appearance of a TV monitor. Images of presidential seals, international logos and firearms float on the surface with the gods of this domain. The central panel is one of hope. That eventually the world will televise a nation at peace. The bottom panel is the anti-thesis of this scenario. Images of the star and crescent are positioned in a registered mode, representing the highly structured Muslim state but these are fewer in number than in the Australian Pilot print. This is due to the carnage and loss of life, which is further depicted with a central image of a coffin and bearers in this panel.

I make my sentiments about Hussein very clear in the Iraqi Lament when I wrote:

His family were murdered with his hands;
The Sunni’s were murdered with his hands;
The Kurds were murdered with his hands;
The Shi’ites were murdered with his hands.

The last print is an anti-climax. The full consequences of a transient moment and decision-making process that took place are completely on display. The struggle between these templates of society will continue in the absence of another superpower.

How cheap it all was and then for what? Where were those weapons of mass destruction that propelled us into this unsanctioned war?

Rudyard Kipling in Epitaphs of War, 1914-18 wrote:

If any question why we died,
Tell them, because our fathers lied.

When I started this project, nothing but women came to my mind. At the end of this project the victim’s were the women and children, with the men being the oppressed and the oppressors (very stereotypical). Nevertheless, there is one difference here - the voice of the poems, the hands that made these prints and the mind that forged it was that of a woman. I was hoping to do what Gautier defined in his poem Art:

Chisel and carve and file,
‘Till thy vague dream imprint
Its smile
On the unyielding flint.

I am sorry to have burdened you with such a long tale about so very little. I had to show you my intent before handing over to you my effort.

With warmest regards,
Marie-Therese

Postscript To The Letter Written On 15^th January 2004:
(i) Australia does not have a legally binding bill of rights. After 9/11 the Howard Government (Australia) introduced one of the most draconian laws in the Western world in terms of detention without trial, trials without public scrutiny, and a shift in the onus of proof, thereby creating an atmosphere of fear amongst dissenters and so in effect promoting a self-imposed restriction on freedom of speech. For example, more than 100,000 Australians in Sydney alone marched against the prospect of invading Iraq prior to these laws. After these laws were put in place, there was little dissent against the invasion. As a consequence, this printmakers' book was conceived and then published in August of 2003 in spite of the legal risks since the publisher felt that voices of dissent needed to be unfettered and so heard. These draconian laws have yet to be repealed under the current Gillard Government.
(ii) When the prints from Not in My Name were exhibited at the Swan Hill Regional Art Gallery, the only print defaced was – Her Death.
(iii) The artists printmaker’s book – Not In My Name – was collected by the following Australian libraries: Fisher Library - The University of Sydney (NSW), The University of Queensland Library (QLD), NSW Parliamentary Library (NSW), State Library of NSW, The National Library of Australia (ACT). Some limited edition artist printmaker's books of - Not in My Name - are still available for purchase.
(iv) All Australian and American troops have been withdrawn from active duty from Iraq on 1/1/2012. Iraq has now sovereign control over its destiny.
(v) In October 2002 Barack Obama gave a speech opposing the Iraq War - Full Speech. In that speech he argued that the Iraq War was: "... A dumb war. A rash war. A war based not on reason but on passion, not on principle but on politics."

Pop ArtArt EssayMarie-Therese Wisniowski

2011-12-24T08:56:00.000+11:00

Introduction
When I began this blog, I was committed to penning ca. 50 blogs per year. As this is the beginning of the festive season, this will be the last blog for 2011. The next blog will appear on the 14^th of January 2012 (or three weeks from now).

This blog is a lengthy dissertation that I wrote sometime ago for a seminar I gave to an art group and it is primarily concerned with an art movement - Pop Art - that refashioned the way we think of art. I am continually foraging for techniques and ideas from any art movement. Pop Art unleashed so many different art avenues. For example, because of it Grafitti and Post Grafitti ArtCloth would emerge many decades later as art forms in their own right.

I hope that you have a very enjoyable festive season and a rewarding new year - whatever your belief system and whenever your new year begins. The festive season is always a time for retrospection, introspection, and prognostication - with or without family and friends. No matter what your situation, have a good one!
Marie-Therese

Pop Art
By embracing popular culture stimuli, Pop Art broke with "High Art" traditions of the past and impacted on later art movements.

“Collaged, layered, torn, worn graffiti poster creating exciting compositions and juxtapositions of colors and fragments that have the power of carefully crafted collages”. David Robinson, Soho Walls, Beyond Graffiti, Artist Unknown.

The mood throughout the sixties was expansive. The turnover in artistic modes and motifs accelerated. A proliferation of targets in art and processes abounded. Nothing was sacred - from the shape of canvases to splashing, rolling and staining of paints. Within a decade all of these features would be digested and become the “norm”. That these processes were not just randomly accentuated events is evidenced in the appearance, within the 1960s, of such movements as Minimalism, full-blown Color Field painting and Pop Art [1].

What is Pop Art? Richard Hamilton in 1957 listed the qualities of existing mass-media imagery as (to which he was attributed to give the name “Pop”) [2]: popular (designed for mass audience), transient (short-term solution), expendable (easily forgotten), low-cost, mass produced, young (aimed at youth), witty, sexy, gimmicky, glamorous and big business. He was concerned with the nature of style and glamour and the processes of creating and projecting consumer imagery. The phrase - Pop Art - was attributed to Lawrence Alloway, the British art critic, who helped organize a Pop Art exhibition for the Guggenheim Museum in 1963 [3].

Richard Hamilton – Study for “Portrait of Hugh Gaitskellas a Famous Monster of Filmland” (1964).

In an interview with Gene Swensen in 1963 one of the founding fathers of Pop Art, Roy Lichtenstein, explained more succinctly its pervasive and subversive nature [4]:
“I don’t know – the use of commercial art as a subject matter I suppose. It was hard to get a painting that was despicable enough so that no one could hang it – everybody was hanging everything. It was almost acceptable to hang a dripping paint rag - everybody was accustomed to this. The one thing everybody hated was commercial art; apparently they didn’t hate that enough either”.

Roy Lichtenstein – Hopeless (1963).

What Lichtenstein succinctly captures is the mood of the sixties and moreover, the intent to subvert the accepted sources of art. It is clear to him that sources drawn from popular culture such as from film, cartoons, magazine strips and commercial images were as valid a source for art as was religion, landscapes and portraits. Pop Art - as he envisions it - is a reaction to modern society in terms of its depiction of the urban technology.

There is a tendency to attribute the poster work of Jules Cheret (1836-1933) and Toulouse-Lautrec (1864-1901) as the fore runners of Pop Art. After all, both designed mass produced posters advertising places and events (see Les Girard (1879) [5] and Reine de Joie (1892) [6]). Cheret and Lautrec designs are not masterpieces of the art of advertising, but rather are significant works of art in themselves. Instead of interpreting events of their day by creating large salon canvases they found a new place for their work – the street. These posters contain elements of caricature, humor and satire - all attributes suited for instant digestion in the street when on the move.

Jules Cheret - Les Girard (1879).

Jules Cheret - Reine de Joie (1892).

Toulose-Lautrec - Divan-Japonais.

They also contained a decorative line and simple flat shapes. All of these elements could be employed in a poster, but could not be expressed so simply and directly within the conventions of a painting. It is these elements, which are often reproduced in the Pop Art of Warhol, Lichtenstein, Dine and Rosenquist. That is, the breaking with High Art traditions in the interpretation of solid form and the illusion of depth as well as a need to connect with the street or the urban society by encapsulating everyday objects (e.g. soup cans etc.) and emotions (such as humor, satire or irony). The depiction of these objects and emotions were not previously evident in High Art traditions.

Since the 19^th century, there have been many roots associated with Pop Art (e.g. from the Bauhaus movement to the influence of the Beats and even to the influence of Zen Buddhism). Generally, there has been a tendency to think that Pop Art emerged out of an abrupt break with Abstract Expressionism [7]. The first wave and second wave of Abstract Expressionists considered the reality of the painting as its only subject (see Jackson Pollack’s (1912-1956) Untitled 1950 & 1951 [8]). On the other hand, for Pop Artists (e.g. Lichtenstein, Warhol, Dine, Rosenquist and Oldenburg) the environment (i.e. popular culture) is in fact the world outside the picture frame. High Art traditions, as thought by these latter artists, were trying to distance themselves from popular culture by transcending it, thereby becoming exclusive and so laying a veil of mystical pretentiousness between them and the populace [9].

Jackson Pollack’s - Untitled (1950).

Jackson Pollack’s - Untitled (1951).

The real relationship between Abstract Expressionism and Pop Art is in fact far more complex. In 1993 the exhibition at the Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles entitled: “Hand-Painted Pop American Art in Transition 1955-62” [10] examined the historical and complex relationships of American Pop Art. At some point in time in the 1950s there was a conviction among several painters that painting was an “act” that existed in time; that is, paintings themselves became viable when their real subject was their own making. The choice of 1955 was made in deference to the year Jasper Johns produced his first flag and target paintings (see Flag 1954-55 [11]) and in which Robert Rauschenberg shifted from his nostalgic collage work to his proto-Pop pieces (see Untitled 1955 [12]), which fully engaged the material of popular culture. These artists were initially confused as Pop Artists, since they introduced mundane objects into their work (see John’s, Fool’s House 1962 [13] and Rauschenberg’s Octave 1960 [14]). However, both artists retained the Abstract Expressionist's characteristic concern for surface textures [15].

It is bracketed by 1962 since this was the year in which Pop Art became an internationally recognized and acceptable cultural phenomenon with exhibitions such as - “Blam! The Explosion of Pop, Minimalism and Performance” - becoming more commonplace.

Book Cover Of Hand-Painted Pop American Art in Transition (1955-62).

Jasper Johns - Flag (1954-55).

Robert Rauschenberg - Untitled (1955).

Jasper John - Fool’s House (1962).

Robert Rauschenberg - Octave (1960).

Blam! The Explosion of Pop, Minimalism and Performance.

By 1962 the phenomenon that was packaged and labeled as Pop Art had emerged. It was largely centered in New York. In Europe, Pop Art lacked the glamour, drama and market impact of the American varieties. For example, the imagery of Pop as practised by Oyvind Fahlstrom in Sweden, Martial Rayesse in France and Richard Hamilton, Eduardo Paolozzi and Peter Phillips in England tended to be more obtuse and oblique [16]. It was no wonder that Lawrence Alloway, the British art critic, who helped organize a Pop Art exhibition for the Guggenheim Museum in 1963, exclusively focused on the American artists [3]. This perhaps recognizes the vast differences in approaches and maturity - see Richard Hamilton’s Epiphany (1964) [17] and compare it with James Rosenquist’s Marilyn Monroe I (1962) [18].

Richard Hamilton - Epiphany (1964).

James Rosenquist - Marilyn Monroe I (1962).

In America Pop Art was dominated by such artists as Lichtenstein, Warhol, Rosenquist, Oldenburg and Dine. The need to invigorate the connection between themselves, their art and the populace required unashamed self-promotion. No other art movement in history so openly and consciously touted themselves and their works in the public eye. Warhol and Oldenburg epitomized the Pop Artist’s creed to demand fame because they were “cool”. It was Warhol who claimed: "In the future, everyone will be world-famous for 15 minutes."

So what does their art expose? The basic materials used by the Pop Artists involved enamel and acrylic paints, plastics and vinyls. These were imparted as two-dimensional images in a glossy smooth form, yielding a perception not too dissimilar to the images from a television screen or on the pages of a glossy magazine. Most Pop Artists labored to smooth away any traces of brush strokes. Commercial techniques permeated all phases of Pop Art. Roy Lichtenstein simulated Benday dots in his paintings (see Girl with Ball (1961) and Drowning Girl (1963) [19]). In commercial printing, tiny dots of primary colors are spaced closely together so that when these are viewed at a distance, the dots merge to form additional hues and shadings. Lichtenstein prepared metal stencils that were perforated with holes in order to clearly highlight these painted, regularly spaced dots of considerable size on his canvas. On the other hand, Warhol tried to achieve the texture of commerciality by turning to such mechanical processes as silk-screening (see Gold Marilyn Monroe (1962) [18]). Here an image is transferred to a silk-screen stencil and then varied colored inks are forced through the screen to yield halftone dots which give an appearance of a visual roughness. Unlike Lichtenstein and Warhol, James Rosenquist utterly abandoned any Abstract Expressionistic ideas. His works completely impart a glossy smoothness in which he has labored to smooth away any traces of brush strokes. He employed his sign painter’s techniques. He painted President Elect (1960-61) [20] on a Masonite board with commercial paint and scaled up small magazine illustrations. This painting is done in flat areas and his images mimic advertising styles. Nevertheless, it is clear from these three diverse approaches that the Pop Art movement intensified a feeling of slickness in order to further move away from High Art traditional concerns with paint and canvas textures (as distinct from the purpose of mimicking commercial processes).

Roy Lichtenstein - Girl with Ball (1961).

Roy Lichtenstein - Drowning Girl (1963).

Andy Warhol - Gold Marilyn Monroe (1962).

James Rosenquist - President Elect (1960-61).

The subject matter was also designed to move away from High Art traditions. Roy Lichtenstein took an image from comics and transformed it into an icon of Pop Art. The tone of the paintings, such as Girl with Ball (1961) and Drowning Girl (1963) [19], engages our sympathy whilst at the same time gives us an underlying expression of irony and even social criticism. Moreover, the subject matter is no longer the property of the publisher, but now becomes the property of Lichtenstein. The cartoon-like images are now his and so becomes part of his signature.

Similarly, Andy Warhol’s Gold Marilyn Monroe (1962) [18] also shows that the reproduction process is an important part of the subject matter. Since his presentation of the image is literal we are purposely being directed to the surface marks, blotchy paint, and imperfect color registration. Our directed gaze is designed to more enliven and artistically assimilate this otherwise banal and disturbing subject matter. Furthermore, Warhol’s objects also became his property. The stacked soup cans (see Four Campbell’s Soup Cans (1962) [21]), which initially belonged to Campbell became “a Warhol”. These products were of negligible value unless they adorned his signature.

Rosenquist also throws back to us billboard/commercial images or product art (see Zone (1960) [22]). Once again without his signature these commercial images are valueless. This is a feature of Pop Art: the highly personalized visions based largely on subject matter was the real signature of the Pop Artists. Hence, it is a movement generally more united by themes than by styles and so even this aspect is a large deviation from High Art traditions.

Andy Warhol - Four Campbell’s Soup Cans (1962).

James Rosenquist - Zone (1960).

Pop Art seeks the references that it needs to project its expression, rather than being restricted in a projected cone of previous art movements. This is clearly shown here by Drowning Girl [19] and Gold Marilyn Monroe [18]. The former is a highly ornamental drawing that recalls Japanese prints, notably Hokusai’s The Great Wave [23], whilst the latter is almost Byzantine in style insofar that Marilyn Monroe is set against an ethereal, other worldly gold background. Thus, despite the extremely mechanistic look of both art pieces, the work of Lichtenstein and Warhol is a sophisticated irony of art and in fact, of art style.

Hokusai’s The Great Wave.

Pop artists also went beyond painting; that is, they strove into performance as a strategy to make their art more immediate. Warhol churned out eight-hour films on stationary subjects such as a sleeping man and the Empire State building between dusk and midnight. Painters like Jim Dine staged elaborate live tableaux: his Car Crash was a stylized slice of life featuring remnants of mangled limousines and crash victims [24]. Claes Oldenburg, the master of soft sculpture, was one of the first practitioners of so called “Happenings”. These were zany mixtures of theatre, dance, kinetic sculpture and vaudeville. For example, in a scene from Stars (an event Oldenburg staged at the Gallery of Modern Art in Washington D.C. in 1963) an awkward waiter carries a huge tray of food (realistically presented but in the form of bits of chopped plastic) which he is about to spill over the unsuspecting audience [25]. In another, Store Days, theatrical events and real sales transactions were mingled [24]. “Happenings”, events staged by artists, became so well established that a decade later one of the principal exponents, Allan Kaprow, was appointed to an academic chair in “Happenings” in California [26].

Jim Dine - Car Crash.

These “Happenings” generated a wave of new ideas in the form of Performance Art, Participatory Art or Action Art [27-28]. Perhaps one of the most famous exponents of these concepts was an American-Japanese artist called Yoko Ono. Yoko Ono’s open-air “be-ins” established the role of the artist's as a catalyst for the purpose of focusing on the creation of art rather than just on the output of art [27]. These “Happenings” and “be-ins” were aimed to challenge the notion that the “best” form of art was produced by individuals in studios. Furthermore, the acceptance of Pop Art greatly accelerated acceptance of the work of Christo, who was instrumental in developing a reflexive, and participatory mode of art [28].

By the mid-1960s Pop Art ran out of steam. Op and Minimal Art had appeared to challenge it. Both swung back again to abstraction and yet both appeared in certain circles as continuations of Pop Art. Like Pop Art, Op and Minimal Art also emphasized a detached anonymity, employed the colors of commercial paints and featured hard edges and surface brightness. An excellent example of Op Art is Victor Vasarely's Feny (1969) [29] and that of Minimal Art is Al Held, Mao (1967) [29].

Victor Vasarely's Feny (1969)

Al Held - Mao (1967).

Did Pop Art feedback into commercial art? It did so by ushering in a new renaissance in the comic strip to the television generation. Notably the work of such artists as R. Crumb came to the fore. His work also reached into the “Pop” musical industry being used to adorn the Cheap Thrills album cover of Janis Joplin and Big Brother and the Holding Company. Furthermore, in legitimizing two-dimensional, flat cartoonlike images as fine Art, Pop Art enabled the later development of un-Disney like cartoon television series such as the Simpsons and South Park. Previously, Disney had established that cartoon characters had to be in solid form with an illusion of depth [30].

Perhaps the most enduring legacy of Pop Art is the emergence of Graffiti Art as an art form. Here the connection with Pop Art is that it brings art by the youth to the youth without any form of mystical pretentiousness, using the streets as its forum. It relies heavily on themes rather than on styles. It is glamorous in that it seeks fame since it is outside of the law; that is, it is “cool”. Like Cave or Rock Art, which was constantly replenished, Graffiti Art also recognizes its temporal, kinetic and expendable nature. It is low cost, witty, sometimes sexy and gimmicky. It usually attacks the premises of big business. It seeks fame by enlivening a city of concrete and bare flat surfaces. Unlike Rapp music, which replaced a melody with a river of words, some Graffiti Art uses cartoon images and typography as more than just words; that is, it uses them as images in an art form. This art then matches the criteria as defined by Richard Hamilton (see second paragraph of this dissertation); that is, Graffiti Art has the qualities of existing mass-media imagery to which he attributed the name “Pop”.

Relm, New York (2009).

The commitment to painting on canvas as a self-contained activity was over. The idea that art can be made of any material is a recurrent theme in the twentieth-century. Pop Art legitimized that art could now be made by the action of a person using any medium on any surface and exploiting any subject (no matter how despicable). The emphasis shifted to the activity of the making of artwork so that the work itself became a witness and an on-going memory of the energy and thought that was put into it. A further conceptual shift would emphasise the idea rather than the end result. And a still further shift would phase out the artwork (that is the studio work) in favor of the discussion of art in theoretical terms. In conclusion, Pop Art accelerated these processes that enabled each of these stages of conceptual development to be more easily and quickly reached.

References:
[1] Read, H. “A Concise History of Modern Painting”, Thames and Hudson, London,1968, p 293.

[2] ibid. p 299.

[3] The Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles, “Hand-Painted Pop: American Art in Transition, 1955-62”, Publications Inc., New York, 1993, p17.

[4] Barnicoat, John, “A Concise History of Posters”, Thames and Hudson, London, 1972, p203.

[5] ibid. p21.

[6] ibid. p14.

[7] Read, H. “A Concise History of Modern Painting”, Thames and Hudson, London,1968, p286.

[8] Museum of Modern Art New York, “The Museum of Modern Art New York”, Harry N. Abrams, New York,1990, p315.

[9] Gombrich, E.H. “The Story of Art”, Phaidon, New York, 1968, p462.

[10] The Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles, “Hand-Painted Pop: American Art in Transition, 1955-62”, Publications Inc., New York, 1993.

[11] ibid. p120.

[12] ibid. p31.

[13] ibid. p138.

[14] ibid. p39.

[15] Time-Life Books, “Modern American Painting”, Time-Life Books Inc., 1970, p163.

[16] Read, H. “A Concise History of Modern Painting”, Thames and Hudson, London,1968, p302.

[17] Thompson, P. and Davenport, P., “The Dictionary of Visual Language”, Bergstrom and Boyle Books Ltd, London, 1980, p13.

[18] Museum of Modern Art New York, “The Museum of Modern Art New York”, Harry N. Abrams, New York,1990, p235.

[19] ibid. p234.

[20] The Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles, “Hand-Painted Pop: American Art in Transition, 1955-62”, Publications Inc., New York, 1993, p53.

[21] Time-Life Books, “Modern American Painting”, Time-Life Books Inc., 1970, p175.

[22] The Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles, “Hand-Painted Pop: American Art in Transition, 1955-62”, Publications Inc., New York, 1993, p50.

[23] Museum of Modern Art New York, “The Museum of Modern Art New York”, Harry N. Abrams, New York,1990, p234.

[24] Read, Herbert. “A Concise History of Modern Painting”, Thames and Hudson, London,1968, p303.

[25] Time-Life Books, “Modern American Painting”, Time-Life Books Inc., 1970, p166.

[26] Read, Herbert. “A Concise History of Modern Painting”, Thames and Hudson, London,1968, p302.

[27] Carmichael, Rodick. “Actuality and Artifice”, Deakin University, 1984, p103.

[28] Carmichael, Rodick. “The Art Structures Reader”, Deakin University, 1984, p165.

[29] Time-Life Books, “Modern American Painting”, Time-Life Books Inc., 1970, p183.

[30] Carmichael, Rodick. “Actuality and Artifice”, Deakin University, 1984, p206.

BIBLIOGRAPHY
BOOKS
Braziller, George. “The Obvious Illusion”, George Braziller Inc, New York, 1980

Carmichael, Rodick. “Actuality and Artifice”, Deakin University, 1984.

Carmichael, Rodick. “The Art Structures Reader”, Deakin University, 1984.

Cooper, M. and Sciorra J. “New York Spray Can Memorials”, Thames and Hudson, London, 1994.

Farrelly, L. and Blackshaw, R. “Scrawl: Dirty Graphics and Strange Characters”,Booth-Clibborn Editions, 1999.

Futura 2000, “Futura”, Booth-Clibborn Editions, 2000.

Gardner, James. “Culture or Trash?: A Provacative View of Contemporary Painting, Sculpture, and other costly commodities”, Carol Publishing Group, Secaucus, N.J. 1993.

Gombrich, E.H. “The Story of Art”, Phaidon, New York, 1968.

Hendrickson, Janis. “Roy Lichtenstein”, Benedikt Taschen, Koln, 1994.

Hoffman, Katherine. “Explorations: The Visual Arts since 1945”, Icon Editions, Harper Collins, New York 1991.

Museum of Modern Art New York, “The Museum of Modern Art New York”, Harry N. Abrams, New York,1990.

Read, Herbert. “A Concise History of Modern Painting”, Thames and Hudson, London,1968.

Rennie, Ellis. “Australian Graffiti Revisited”, Sun Books, Melbourne, 1979.

Robinson, David. “Soho Walls: Beyond Graffiti”, Thames and Hudson, New York, 1990.

The Museum of Contemporary Art, Los Angeles, “Hand-Painted Pop: American Art in Transition, 1955-62”, edited by Russell Ferguson, Rizzoli International Publications Inc., New York, 1993.

Thomas, F. and Johnston, O. “Disney Animation: The Illusion of Life”, Walt Disney Productions, California, 1981.

Thompson, P. and Davenport, P. “The Dictionary of Visual Language”, Bergstrom and Boyle Books Ltd, London, 1980.

Time-Life Books, “Modern American Painting”, Time-Life Books Inc., 1970.

Create Unique Fabrics Using Discharging Dye MethodsTechnique Based ArticleAuthor: Marie-Therese Wisniowski

2011-12-17T08:33:00.000+11:00

Introduction
Deborah Segaert, the editor of one of Australia’s exciting new magazines for fibers, yarns and textiles, "Down Under Textiles" magazine (Creative Living Media) invited me to write a technique based article on discharging dye from fabrics for the November issue of the magazine.

The article, “Create Unique Personalized Fabrics – MultiSperse Discharge Dye Technique”, has been published in the November 2011, No. 6 Issue of “Down Under Textiles”. It is an in depth article that focuses on how to create your own unique personalized fabrics using the discharge process on natural fibers. Methodologies, various chemical formulae, technical information and my own processes are discussed in detail in the article.

The magazine is available from specialist outlets and is also available via subscription. If you would like to see this issue or past back issues, “Down Under Textiles” now have a FREE online subscription. Check out the following URL to access the free subscription and other subscription offers:
Down Under Textiles

Issue 6 contains some of the following articles:
How to use Evolon & Romeo
Up-cycled Knitwear with Gill Brooks
African Painting by Dijanne Cevaal
Profile Article - The Art of Australian Shibori by textile artist Ken Smith
Painting Plastic Fantastic with Dale Rollerson
Art Elements & Principles Part 2 with Neroli Henderson
Textiles Without Boundaries exhibition by the Macarthur Textile Network
The Kids Got Style – 2010 Higher School Certificate Textile and Design students’ works
…and much more...

Disclaimer: Marie-Therese Wisniowski, Art Quill Studio, and Art Quill & Co have no financial interest in “Down Under Textile” magazine (Creative Living Media) or in any of the products mentioned in the article.

Here is a snapshot of the article in order to whet your appetite.

In surface design "to discharge" means to remove some or most or the entire color from a dyed fabric. The color removal process can be created using a variety of chemicals and various methods such as stamping, stenciling, screen-printing, spraying and hand painting to create highly personalized, unique and complex fabric designs.

Whilst commercial and industrial discharge processes generally produce a white discharge color, artist’s usage has spawned a wider range of possible colors that the discharge process can realize. By careful manipulation, artists can produce multiple, varied colors and mottled, faded colors, which can also imbue imagery with a timeless appearance of being aged, worn or distressed.

To achieve such results, there are two different ways to chemically remove dye color from fabric. One route is by oxidation, which is - in the simplest form - the addition of oxygen to a dye molecule; the other route is via reduction, which is - in its simplest form - the removal of oxygen from a dye molecule. The reduction process is more popular due to occupational health and safety reasons.

Secure clean, dry, dyed fabric to your printing surface.

Keep steam ironing and move the iron to avoid vent marks having an effect until the cloth changes color to the hue you are after or until the fabric will not discharge any further.

The completed discharged piece of silk, which has been dyed, over-dyed, discharged and over-discharged.
Photograph courtesy of “Down Under Textiles” magazine.

Detail view of the completed discharged piece of silk that has been dyed, over-dyed, discharged and over-discharged.
Photograph courtesy of “Down Under Textiles” magazine.

Autumn SplendorArtCloth Banner ProjectGuest Editor - Teresa Paschke

2011-12-10T08:41:00.035+11:00

Introduction
In 2011, I had the pleasure of meeting and working with Teresa Paschke. Teresa was the workshop co-ordinator for the Surface Design Association (SDA) and Textile Centre’s International “Confluence” conference that was held from the 9^th to 12^th June in Minneapolis-St. Paul, Minnesota, USA where I tutored my “Melding Experiences: New Landscapes Using Disperse Dyes and Transfer Printing” workshop. Teresa also exhibited an outstanding body of work titled, “New Tools and Ancient Techniques” at The Gage Family Art Gallery, Ausberg College, Minneapolis, which was featured before, during and after the conference. Teresa Paschke is now on the SDA board.

Teresa Paschke is an Associate Professor at the Integrated Studio Arts, Iowa State University, Ames, Iowa (USA) where she teaches textile design and follows her research interests in contemporary fiber art, historical embroidery and digital printing on fabric.

See her website for further images of her exciting textile art:
Teresa Paschke's Website

or contact her:
Teresa Paschke's Email

To celebrate the 2011 fall season, Teresa and her students worked on a series of large banner projects employing MultiSperse Dye Sublimation (MSDS) processes using disperse dyes on polyester fabrics. This post features some of the visually rich, complex and beautiful works that the students created under Teresa’s supervision.

I know you will enjoy her guest editorship of her university student project: “Autumn Splendor”.
Marie-Therese

Autumn Splendor
Guest Editor: Associate Professor Teresa Paschke
Textile Design, Iowa State University (Iowa, USA)
Inspired by one of my favorite times of the year, I introduced my textile students to disperse dyes and, using the flora of the season, they printed stunningly beautiful textile compositions. Students were asked to collect a wide variety of leaves to work with and we spent the morning painting designs on paper using yellow, red, blue, and black disperse dyes (we also mixed colors to create purple, green and orange). Using a heat press and 14 inch squares of polyester fabric, students arranged the leaves that served as resists onto the fabric, placed dyed papers on top and pressed the layers in 350 degrees (this made the leaves somewhat brittle). Leaves were added, shifted, and/or removed and the process was repeated until the designs were complete. The printed squares will be stitched together to create striking banners that will hang in our college atrium.

The Students
Note: All photographs below are with courtesy from Associate Professor Teresa Paschke.

Group photo from left to right:
Back Row: Kelsey Gill, Brittney Lynch, Brooke Batterson, Donny Chen, Jennifer Sonner, Christine Prince.
Front Row: Binnie Bae, Kate Derksen, Karen Schmidt, Ananya Arora, Jordan Delzell, Rahele Jomepour.

Kelsey Gill positioning her piece prior to printing using the heat press.

Completed Banner Project And Detailed Views

One of the completed banners featuring each of the students individual pieces which have been stitched together to create the completed piece.

Detail view of Jordan Delzell’s MSDS artwork.

Detail view of Jennifer Sonner’s MSDS artwork.

Traditional Indian TextilesArt ReviewMarie-Therese Wisniowski

2011-12-03T08:20:00.005+11:00

Introduction
A great reference book for your ArtCloth library is – Traditional Indian Textiles, John Gillow and Nicholas Barnard, Thams and Hudson, London (1993) ISBN 0-500-27709-5. It contains 160 pages with 195 illustrations, 149 in color and 4 maps of the Subcontinent. Below is just a snapshot of the images it has to offer.
Marie-Therese.

Traditional Indian Textiles
The application and significance of color was central to the three historically dominating religions on the Indian Subcontinent, namely, Hindu, Buddhism and Islam. Hence, the subcontinent dyers were motivated to create colorful textiles very earlier in their civilisation - since the second millennium BC.

Rabari shepherd families dressed to go to Krishna’s birthday festival (outside of Anjar, Kutch).

Modern Europeans did not discover the Subcontinent dyer’s art until the 17^th Century and so for over three thousand years the coloration of European textiles was severely limited (e.g. in the case of woollens they were generally restricted to dun-colors). That is not to say that trade in cloth between the Subcontinent and the Ancient Romans and Greeks and their fellow Mediterraneans did not exist. Rather, the Subcontinent dyeing secrets were not passed on to them when they traded. Moreover, most of the Subcontinent traded textiles were reserved for the elite classes of these Ancient societies, with the poor relegated to cloth with little color.

Turban lengths – tie-and-dyed using the “leheria” method (Jodhpur, Rajasthan).

The Subcontinent dyers used natural dyes that were either substantive (no mordant needed to fix the color) or adjective (required a mordant for any degree of permanency). For example, certain lichens produce substantive dyes etc. An adjective dye such as alizarin (e.g. derived from a dried root of a madder plant) needed to be mixed with alum (a mordant) to produce hues ranging from pink to deep red. By mixing an acidic solution of iron (a mordant) with tannin, a black dye was created. It should be noted that the black and red dyed fabrics have a strong presence on the Subcontinent.

Woman’s wedding shawl (Rabari Shepherd Caste, Badin District, Sind).

The secret of the fast coloring of vegetable fibers lay in the Subcontinent dyers clever use of metal oxides (mordant – derived from Latin “mordere” meaning to “bite”). Mordant bites the fabric in combination with the dyestuff to fix the color. Generally, the problem with iron mordants was that they bite too hard on natural fibers, thereby rotting the black of a woven or embroidered pattern.

Preparing “ajarakh” cloths with yellow dye (Dhamadkha Village, Kutch).

It should be noted that there are considerably fewer hues that can be obtained from substantive dyes when compared with adjective dyes. The masterly use of the latter gave the Subcontinent dyers a significant edge when compared to the Europeans, who had either not mastered nor knew about the use of mordants. Note: In a future blog we shall go into why mordants were needed when using adjective dyes.

Block printed yardage (Bhairongarth, Madhya Pradesh).

With the development of the chemical dye industry in the late 19^th and 20^th centuries (mainly driven by organic chemists in Germany), a vast array of hues can now be selected from a color chart. These chemicals are not subject to the vagaries of climatic conditions that bedevilled the natural dye industry nor do they lock up land in undeveloped countries with burgeoning populations. They therefore supplanted natural dyes on the Subcontinent. India's chemical dye industry is now booming.

Traditional Indian textiles declined a century after the industrial revolution, because of their misuse of the earliest available chemical dyes such as the aniline dyes. A renaissance of interest in the textiles of India occurred in the middle of the 20^th century due to their expert use of the high quality and the fine color of the more recent and modern chrome dyes, thereby yielding contemporary textiles with a more traditional aesthetic.

Contemporary bedcover decorated with pen work and printing (Masulipatnam, Andhra Pradesh).

The Subcontinent dyers used two main methods for regulating patterns on their textiles. The first technique was the tie-and-dye technique, where textiles or yarns were screened or party screened by being tied with threads that were impermeable to the dye. This was known throughout the world as “ikat” tie-and-dyed textiles. Ikat textiles entail binding (resisting) and dyeing the warps and wefts before weaving.

Note: The word “ikat” is a derivative of the Malay word “mengikat”, which means “to tie” or “to bind”. An active textiles trade existed between India and South East Asia for many centuries and so the Subcontinent dyers adopted and re-framed a Malay word.

Section of cotton “bandhani” (tie-and-dyed) shawl (Jamnagar, Saurashtra).

The second technique created patterns either by painting or printing with a substance that would react with a dye to fix the color (mordant resist dyeing), or by applying an impermeable dye and removal of a substance such as mud, gum or wax, that will resist the dye and then may be removed by dissolving, washing and/or heating.

Drawing out a design with a kalam pen (Kalahasti, Andhra Pradesh).

Aside from applying pigment directly onto the surface of a prepared cotton fabric, the techniques of fixing color to create patterns and compositions again involved either the use of resists, mordant resists or a combination of the two, applied with a pen, brush, metal or wooden block or through a stencil.

“Kalamkari” (pen work) cloth depicting a scene from the Bhagavad Gita (Kalahasti, Andhra Pradesh).

The four main regions of Subcontinent are: The West – states of Madhya Pradesh, Gujuarat, Rajasthan, Thar Parkar and Sind (Pakistan); The North – states of Uttar Pradesh, Haryana, Punjab, Himachal Pradesh, Kashmir; The East - states of Orissa, Bihar, West Bengal, Bangladesh, Tripura, Mizoram, Manipur, Nagaland, Meghalaya, Assam and Arunachal Pradesh; The South – states of Maharashtra, Goa, Karnataka, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, Andhra Pradesh.

"Pichhavai" - painted shrine cloth (Nathadwara, Rajasthan).

Each of these regions was noted for their various techniques. For example, the Gujarat region was one of the great textile exporting areas of India, the textile patterns of which were usually applied by block printing. In Gujarat and western Rajasthan, the three main types of hand printed textiles were: Ajarakh worn by Muslims, which was a pattern cloth in predominately red colors; screen-printed and block printed designs of floral sprays and simulated bandhani on a predominately red background; the floral prints with Persian associations.

Block-printed shrine cloth made by members of the Vaghri Caste (Ahmedadad, Gujarat).

Near the central post office (Ahmedabad, Gurarat).

Veiled CurtainsFine-Art Prints Series (Silkscreen) Marie-Therese Wisniowski

2011-11-26T09:28:00.009+11:00

Introduction
I have always combined my passions. My prints on cloth techniques inform my prints on paper techniques and vice versa (where such overlaps are possible). Hence I developed my Matrix Formatting and Low Relief Screen Printing (LRSP) techniques for prints on paper and then modified and transferred these technique for usage on cloth.

One of my other signature techniques for prints on paper I have termed "Multiplexing". It involves careful application of resists to numerous color plates, transparent color glazes, multiple layering of printed images and accurate registration. It is an extremely complex and time intensive technique, which works "best" on paper.

I hope you enjoy my “Veiled Curtains” fine-art prints on paper series.
Marie-Therese

Veiled Curtains
Limited Edition Prints on Paper Series
Although the culture of the non-aligned countries is normally male dominated, the following women; Indira Ghandi, Aung San Suu Kyi and Benazir Bhutto, led their people in times of crisis. Each of these women were popular with their constituents. Each one of them was either assassinated or at one point in time, imprisoned. All had come from families, which had a rich political history and their families were revered. All gained early experience living amongst politicians and watching their fathers or husbands at work. They capitalized on their families popularity in order to reform their country, to better prepare the population for what they perceived would be the next stage in their nation’s development. Needless to say, the conservative forces within their nation attempted to modify or destroy their vision.

The series has been designed using the format of a stamp. Stamps depict the national identity of a country. Pictorial and commemorative issues usually depict historical figures or generalized subjects and seldom represent the specific contemporary themes that lend themselves to controversial political statements. Hence, this series highlights issues, through these women leaders, that their dynasties provided transitional leadership as their countries developed political systems - more often than not, to replace colonial rule. Yet while they have helped to build or restore democracy at some stage of their country’s history, they have subsequently failed to do much more. In the case of Aung San Suu Kyi, the struggle is still continuing; she is contesting the upcoming Myanmar by-elections.

The limited edition series is held at The University Of Newcastle Print Collection and in private collections. Veiled Curtains - Indira II is held in the following collections: Australian Print Council (Australia), London Print Studios (UK), Printmaking Collective Workshop, Chicago (USA), Tasmanian Museum and Art Gallery (Australia).

Some editions are available for purchase. Each print in the series is 56 cm (width) x 76 cm (length).

Veiled Curtains: Indira

Indira Ghandi, (1917 - 1984), was Prime Minister of India (and the first woman Prime Minister of the largest democracy in the world), in 1966 - 77 and 1980 - 84. In 1964, the year of her father’s (Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru) death, Indira Ghandi was elected to Parliament where she held the position of Minister of Information and Broadcasting. Unable to agree on contenders for the position of Prime Minister, she was later picked as a compromise candidate. She held the office of Prime Minister from 1966 - 77. She was riding on the crest of popularity after India’s triumph in the 1971 war against Pakistan. The explosion of a nuclear device in 1974 helped to enhance her reputation among the middle-class as a tough and shrewd political leader.

In the second, post-emergency period of her Prime Ministership, Indira Ghandi was preoccupied by efforts to resolve the problems in the state of Punjab. In her attempt to crush the secessionist movement of Sikh militants, she ordered an assault upon the holiest Sikh shrine in Amritsar, the ‘Golden Temple’. It is because of this attack on the Temple that Sikh militants waged their campaign of terrorism against the government. In June 1984, the Golden Temple was stripped clean of Sikh terrorists. However, the Temple was damaged and Mrs Ghandi earned the undying hatred of Sikhs, who bitterly resented the desacralization of their sacred site. In November 1984, she was assassinated at her residence by two of her own Sikh bodyguards, who claimed to be avenging the insult she had heaped upon their nation.

Images in the print show Indira flanked by her spiritual mentor, Mahatma Ghandi, on the right, who was assassinated during his term in office and, on the left, her son, Rajiv Ghandi who, whilst on the 1991 campaign trail, was killed by a bomb blast. Mahatma Ghandi made himself the force of non violence whilst Rajiv’s period in office was marred by scandals and allegations of corruption. The trio are framed in a Hindu Temple entrance outline and the overall print/stamp is encased in a deconstructed Indian paisley border design.

The temple curtain in the background highlights iconic symbolism associated with Idira’s terms of office as Prime Minister. Guns depict her internal exploitation and use of the army to resolve internal disputes. The use of the army greatly increased during her time. A nuclear mushroom depicts her explosion of a nuclear device in 1974.

A section of the Sikh’s Golden Temple depicts her attempt to crush the secessionist movement of Sikh militants whilst destroying and desacrilizing their sacred site. The flower images depict her assination in the garden of her home by her two Sikh bodyguards.

Veiled Curtains: Suu Kyi

Aung San Suu Kyi (1945 - ) has become an international symbol of heroic and peaceful resistance against military rule. She advocates freedom and democracy for the country now called Myanmar, a name chosen by the present military dictatorship. For the Burmese people she represents their best and perhaps sole hope that one day there will be an end to the country’s military oppression. In 1991, while under house arrest, she was awarded the Nobel Peace Prize for her efforts in trying to bring democracy to Burma.

For many of the years since she returned to Burma from overseas, she has been under house arrest in the capital, Rangoon. She was initially under house arrest for six years, until she was released on 10^th July 1995. She was again put under house arrest in September 2000 when she tried to travel to the central northern city of Mandalay in defiance of travel restrictions. However on the 6^th May 2002 she was released unconditionally following secretive talks with the military junta.

Images in the print show Suu Kyi with her father, the independence hero, General Bogyoke Aung San. He was assassinated during the transition period in July 1947, just six months before independence. Studying law at Rangoon University, he gave promise of a brilliant academic career winning prizes and scholarships. Political interests and activities as a nationally prominent student leader affected her father’s academic career. In 1938, he ended his law studies abruptly, in order to serve the cause of national freedom by joining the only militant and intensely political party in Burma, the Dohbama Asi-(ayone).

The two are framed in a Buddhist Temple outline and the overall print/stamp is encased in an architectural temple door border design. The temple curtain in the background highlights iconic symbolism associated with Suu Kyi’s struggle for her country.

The Bhudda image defines the fact that Suu Kyi is a Buddhist and that Buddhism is the predominant religion of Burma. Windows depict her detention and house arrest. The star and solitary bird depict the National League for Democracy Party, which she headed in 1990 and which won a landslide victory with 80% support. The letter “N” and the Bird of Peace represent the Nobel Peace Prize, which she was awarded in 1991. The Norwegian Nobel Committee wished to honour this woman for her unflagging efforts and to show its support for the many people throughout the world who are striving to attain democracy, human rights and ethnic conciliation by peaceful means. The “UN” image relates to the involvement of the United Nations. It was only in 2001 that the UN envoy, Razali Ismail, was able to reveal that talks had in fact been under way with the military junta. The UN had been pressing the government to make a number of key concessions. The main concession - Suu Kyi’s release - has now been met. The UN also wants freedom for political parties to operate, and moves towards power sharing.

Veiled Curtains: Benazir

Benazir Bhutto (1953 - 2007) was sworn in as Prime Minister of Pakistan on December 2, 1988, becoming the first woman to head the government of an Islamic State. Her objectives were to return Pakistan to civilian rule and to oust the men who executed her father. In 1990 President Ghulam Ishaq Khan dismissed her government for alleged corruption, but she ran on an anti-corruption campaign and was re-elected Prime Minister in 1993. In the preceding decade of political struggle, Benazir Bhutto was arrested on numerous occasions; in all she spent nearly six years either in prison or under detention whilst the leader of the opposition Pakistan Peoples Party. Throughout the years in opposition, she pledged to transform Pakistan society by focusing her attention on programs with respect to health, social welfare and education for the underprivileged. Her two terms in office had ended in allegations of corruption, which included $1.5 billion dollars in bribes.

Born in Karachi in 1953, she completed her early education in Pakistan and later attended Radcliffe College and Oxford University. As well as obtaining a degree in Philosophy, Politics and Economics, she also completed a course in International Law and Diplomacy at Oxford. In 1988 she received the Bruno Kreisky Award for Human Rights and in 1989 the Honorary Phi Beta Kappa Award from Radcliffe.

Images in the print show Benazir and her father, Zulfikar Ali Bhutto. He was one of Pakistan’s all-time popular leaders. Zulfikar seems to have favored Benazir over his two sons, suspecting that she was the most politically adept of them. He was hung in 1979 after a coup by General Zia, a Senior Army Chief.

The two are framed in an Islamic Temple outline and the overall print/stamp is encased in a representational star border design. The temple curtain in the background highlights iconic symbolism associated with Benazir’s terms of office as Prime Minister.

Guns depict assassinations, military coups, political turmoil and the crackdown she staged on armed rivals. The Rupee and Dollar signs are framed within a traditional Islamic mosaic pattern. They depict the corruption, mismanagement and poverty that surrounded her legacy in government. The hajib, depicts her as the first Islamic woman Prime Minister. The window framed with vertical lines depicts her detention, imprisonment and time in solitary confinement at Sakkur Jail. The Crescent and Star are the national symbols depicted on the Pakistan Flag and on the national currency.

The prints were developed using the same techniques in order to ensure that the series would be consistent. The prints are uniform in size, form and design structures. Using a mix of transparent, opaque and metallic inks, a consistent palette of deep, jewel like colors and contrast colors were printed for the series. Colors were mixed by hand using oil based screen printing inks. Each print required a new set of colors to be mixed that complied with the palette range. Each print incorporated the use of political and deconstructed historical images to substantiate the research in various forms as well as in text form.

The scale of various images and their positions on the page were also considered for uniformity. All prints employed extensive layering of images and colors. The primary focus of using transparent inks was to add layers of depth to the overall image thus seamlessly connecting the series.

As the series was screen printed, the photo stencil technique was the primary reproduction method employed for each print. Gum acacia and cold wax were overlaid on the stencil images using dry brush, wet brush and sponging methods. This enabled the extensive color layering of the images to be made and introduced areas of contrast.

Paper stock used for the print series was White Stonehenge. Cartridge and Stonehenge papers were used for initial experimental and proofing stages that this project required.

Mintulee of Thurrabarree – The Last RainmakerArtClothMarie-Therese Wisniowski

2011-11-19T08:44:00.012+11:00

Introduction
I was invited to exhibit an ArtCloth work, “Mintulee of Thurrabarree - The Last Rainmaker” - by Helen Lancaster (curator) for her - A Conversation with Rain - exhibition which was held at the Fairfield City Museum and Gallery 23^rd May – 5^th July 2009.

Mintulee was known as Joe the Rainmaker. He became a Birdsville (Australia) resident in 1899 when he and the remnants of his Wangkangurru mob emerged from the southern Simpson Desert and made camp by the Diamantina River within sight of Birdsville.

Aboriginals believed that the Earth breathes and so issues steam that then produces clouds - which if coaxed - will condense to give rain. Joe the Rainmaker follows a long tradition of aboriginal elders who have the ability to coax rain.

The central image gives a mystical interpretation to Joe coaxing rain from the "Earth’s breadth". The artwork is a Shibori dyed whole cloth pattern with the central image being discharged and collaged on cotton. The image of the shibori dyed "cross" in the background signifies his poor treatment at the hands of his Christian protectors and also simulates the Earth "breathing", whilst the blue rain clouds are being coaxed over the land.

Mintulee of Thurrabarree - The Last Rainmaker

Full View - Mintulee.
Technique: Shibori dyed pattern and discharged on cotton.
Size: 105 cm (width) x 127 cm (length).

Detailed View 1.

Detailed View 2.

Detailed View 3.

Detailed View 4.

Improvisational Screen PrintingWorkshopTutor: Marie-Therese Wisniowski

2011-11-12T08:25:00.003+11:00

Introduction: Improvisational Screen Printing
In “Improvisational Screen Printing” the printed image is not under complete artistic control as in traditional screen printing. It is an exciting, creative approach for the adventurous spirit, who loves serendipitous and spontaneous effects.

Improvisational screen-printing techniques can include the use of every day materials like wax crayons, low relief texture items and fabric interfacing to create multi-faceted, rich and colorful layered imagery.

Improvisational screen printing includes the application of non-permanent, semi-permanent and permanent screen surface media. Non-permanent applications include wax crayons, low relief texture items and paper stencils. Semi-permanent applications include cold wax, soy wax, and Ezy Cut stencils. Permanent applications include photo emulsion, acrylic paint and spray paint media. Both fabric paints and fabric dyes can be used with all of the above applications of screen surface media.

Newcastle Printmakers Workshop Inc.
This workshop was organized by Vale Vincent from the Newcastle Printmakers Workshop Inc., Adamstown, Newcastle, Australia. It was held at Studio 48 Art Gallery in New Lambton, Newcastle, Australia on the 5^th November 2011.

For those who live in Newcastle (Australia) the annual mini-print exhibition by members of the Newcastle Printmakers Workshop - "SURFACE" - can be currently viewed at Back to Back Galleries (57 Bull St, Cooks Hill, Newcastle, Australia). The works feature a broad range of printmaking techniques including linocut, silkscreen, etching, drypoint, collagraph and monotype. The prints are accompanied by ceramic works decorated using printmaking techniques. All work in this fabulous collection is both collectable and affordable. The exhibition is on from November 11^th to the 27^th, 2011 and is open Friday, Saturday and Sunday between 11am to 5pm.

For further information about this non-profit making organisation visit:
Newcastle Printmakers Workshop Inc

One-Day Workshop Synopsis
This was a one-day introductory “Improvisational Screen Printing” workshop, where participants learnt to use the silkscreen in a non-traditional, exciting, improvisational manner. Using everyday easily accessible materials like water-soluble crayons and wax, temporary and semi-permanent image creation techniques were explored using the silkscreen on fabric. The course delved into inspiring color and design combinations and included multi-layered patterning and texture techniques.

The People
Maureen Cafe, Jan Downes, Gay McDonell, Jacqueline Nash-Brummell and Patricia Williamsz attended the workshop.

Group Photo.
From left to right: Jacqueline Nash-Brummell, Patricia Williamsz, Jan Downes, Maureen Cafe and Gay McDonell surrounded by Studio 48 Art Gallery’s lush garden.

Sandra Baker (center), owner and founder of Studio 48 Art Gallery, looks on as Jan Downes (left) and Patricia Williamsz (right) work on their printed fabrics.

The Exciting Output
Below are some of the outputs of the participants printed works that were created during the workshop.

Maureen (a) Silkscreen print using water-soluble crayons.

Maureen (b) Silkscreen prints using water-soluble crayons on a multi-hue printed background.

Maureen (c) Silkscreen prints using cold wax imagery and water-soluble crayons on a multi-hue printed background.

Jan (a) Silkscreen prints using color, value and texture to create a multi-hue printed surface.

Jan (b) Silkscreen prints using water soluble crayons on a multi-hue printed background.

Jan (c) Silkscreen prints using cold wax imagery on a multi-hue printed background.

Gay (a) Silkscreen prints using water-soluble crayons.

Gay (b) Silkscreen prints using color, value and texture to create a multi-hue printed surface.

Gay (c) Silkscreen prints using cold wax imagery and water-soluble crayons on a multi-hue printed background.

Jacqueline (a) Silkscreen print using water-soluble crayons on a multi-hue printed background.

Jacqueline (b) Silkscreen prints using cold wax imagery and water soluble crayons on a multi-hue printed background.

Jacqueline (c) Silkscreen print using rubber bands, color, value and texture to create an organic, multi-hue printed surface.

Patricia (a) Silkscreen print using water-soluble crayons.

Patricia (b) Silkscreen prints using water-soluble crayons (left corner) on a multi-hue printed background.

Patricia (c) Silkscreen prints using cold wax imagery on a multi-hue printed background.

Master Classes in Australia
For those who requested additional teaching information, I am available to tutor Master Classes with respect to the following printing/dyeing on fabric classes: "Melding Experiences: Master Class in Disperse Dyes And Sublimation Printing" and "Master Class In the Art Of Complex Cloth". Personal one to one instruction is also available for my "Low Relief Screen Printing" (LRSP), "Improvisational Screen Printing" and other print based techniques. For further details please email: studio

ArtCloth Dyptich:The Making of the “Separation of Life”ArtCloth PracticeMarie-Therese Wisniowski

2011-11-05T08:16:00.004+11:00

Introduction
Tiselius won the Nobel Prize in 1948 for separating proteins and polynucleotides using electrophoresis. It separates their charged form, due to their differential migration rates in an electric field. My ArtCloth dyptich reflects on the “Separation of Life” using an imaginary separation process.

The Making of “The Separation of Life”
Before I can create a work of art, whether on paper or on cloth, I need to be passionately moved by what I am about to create.

The concept underlying “The Separation of Life” evolved from a dinner table conversation I had with my husband one evening. He is a Professor of Physical Chemistry doing research on biomedical processes. I asked him what he had done at work this particular day and in his usual fashion he said, “Oh not much,” and then added in a bemused fashion, “Today, we separated some proteins associated with stress”.

“So”, I said, “You separated a building block necessary for a process in life.”

He replied, “I don’t think I would have put it as dramatically as that.”

Over the next few days a concept grew in my mind. These scientists were now so firmly rooted in an abstracted world that the wonderment of their work was becoming lost in the humdrum of everyday activity. What if one day the very essence of human life itself could be separated by scientific means? That is, the drivers of life such as DNA, RNA and proteins can already be separated, but what if the life force itself could be separated? What would the separation look like?

Whenever I have a project, I do intensive research. In this case I must have spent 100 hours researching the topic. Hence, extracting information from my husband and elsewhere - at those headland points one reaches - I discovered that Tiselius won the Nobel Prize in 1948 for separating proteins and polynucleotides (DNA or RNA) using electrophoresis. I was determined that my ArtCloth piece would reflect on the separation of the essence of life.

This is what my husband would see. The staining of the proteins yields colors of blue or grey or reddish brown. The trails that these proteins leave are globular in shape. In some cases it appears as knots on a fiber length.

When I create some of my ArtCloth pieces I appropriate imagery, but in doing so I turn it in my mind so as to re-create a totally different feel; that is, with intent I change the act of engagement. For the "Separation of Life", my imagery will be loosely based on the electrophoresis image, but it will be so significantly altered that the interaction with the viewer will become a totally different art experience.

The Separation of Life - An Artistic Concept
The colors I employed for the ArtCloth dyptich needed to convey a subtle, ethereal quality. I used Procion MX Dyes because they are color-fast, and light-fast; that is, the dye molecules bond securely to the fiber polymer system (albeit cotton, silk or rayon). They are also suited to a dyebath, printing or hand painting techniques. Moreover, these colors are intermixable and so provide a large array of hues that yield consistent and controllable results.

I was working on a dyptich which I shall label A and B.

Dyptich Component A
ArtCloth A was dyed, and then over-dyed using the following shibori techniques:
(i) The fabric was folded in half and folded over in half again.
(ii) The ArtCloth piece was then folded horizontally in halves until it formed a thin strip.
(iii) Small clamps were positioned on the fabric to act as a resist and to hold and tie the fabric in place whilst in the bath. The clamps were also positioned to create the desired effect that was envisaged to imprint on the surface layers.
(iv) The still-clamped fabric was then placed in its fourth and final navy immersion dyebath to add surface richness to the final layer.

Dyptich Component B
ArtCloth B was dyed and then over-dyed using the following shibori techniques:
(i) The fabric was folded in half and folded over in half again to form a square.
(ii) The ArtCloth piece was then folded horizontally in halves until it formed a thin strip.
(iii) The strip was rolled and elastic bands were positioned on the fabric to act as a resist and to hold and tie the fabric in place whilst in the bath. The elastic bands were also positioned to create the desired effect that was envisaged to imprint on the surface layers.
(iv) The still-tied fabric was then placed in its fourth and final navy immersion dyebath to add surface richness to the final layer.

The two ArtCloth pieces were clamped and discharged with discharge paste to create subtle shapes that have been created in each piece.

My Approach to Art Making
Whilst I do a large amount of research prior to creating any artwork, on the day of creation I leave my mind outside of the Art Quill Studio and do all the artwork intuitvely. The research is now a part of each act of my art mark making. In other words, I do it in an unself-conscious manner as if I was a complete stranger to it and so I leave my unconscious thoughts free to roam all over the cloth.

The Zen Masters, as outlined by D.T. Suzuki, felt that:
”Man is a thinking reed, but his great works are done when he is not calculating or thinking”.

Finished Artwork

Dyptich A: “Separation of Life” - full view.

Dyptich A: “Separation of Life” – detailed view.

Dyptich B: “Separation of Life” - full view.

Dyptich B: “Separation of Life” – detailed view.

Postscript
Both ArtCloth pieces were framed in mat plexiglass frames - to hang side-by-side as a dyptich. After it was exhibited in ‘New Frontiers: an exhibition of contemporary fibre art’ @ the ArtHouse, McAllen, Texas, USA, both were sold to a private collector in the USA.

Wangi’s Djirang: “Unique State” PrintsArtCloth Marie-Therese Wisniowski

2011-10-29T07:40:00.004+11:00

Introduction
In 2009 I was invited by Michael Florrimell (printmaker and print media artist), who was a founder of Exchange Partners in Print Media, to produce 40 “Unique State” print artworks for the Exchange Partners in Print Media - 20^th Anniversary Portfolio 2010 – 2011, together with 19 other professional print media artists (see Octobr 22^nd 2011 blog).

Nothing like this project had ever been attempted in Australia as far as we know. It was an interesting and awesome challenge and an honor to be a participant in such an exciting and historical venture. I was looking forward to this challenge with great relish!

All participating portfolio artists would also receive a set of 20 works, with the other 20 portfolios being donated to major Regional and State Galleries and Libraries throughout Australia.

Criteria
Artists were asked to make 40 x A4 unique state artworks using any form of print media. These artworks had to be a signature work, consistent with the artists practice. The size of each artwork had to be A4 in size (i.e. 29.7 cm long x 21 cm wide). All 40 works had to be different in some respect and the 40 artworks, when pieced together, had to rebuild an artwork in its own right. Artists were asked to use acid free materials and long lasting archival inks. Artists could use textile materials or different papers and media.

For example, some artists would have the same dominate image in all 40 prints on paper, but change one critical factor in each, thereby changing the act of engagement. Others would produce a video and extract 40 frames, which when put together would render the video itself.

My Interpretation Of The Criteria
What I wanted to do was slightly different to these approaches. I saw in my minds eye a mosaic in which each tile was self contained, but only when all tiles were put together would the mosaic be revealed. More than that, I wanted the act of engagement of the mosaic to be identical to the act of engagement of each tile, even though all were unique states. Knowing that each tile would be separated perhaps forever, made it more important that I hold fast to my interpretation of the criteria. It would be a miracle if all these tiles of mine would ever be re-constituted.

Artist Statement: Wangi’s Djirang
The aboriginal word “Djirang” translates as “leaves”. This series of unique state prints captures native leaves and flora found in the Wangi Wangi area of Australia (where I live). It is part of an on-going print series, which celebrates the uniqueness of Australia’s flora and pristine rain forest environments, and in doing so, raises our consciousness on how fragile these environs are to climate change and to human clearage due to the population explosion.

Technique
Over the last decade and more, I have been experimenting with hand printing techniques using disperse dyes on synthetic/polyester fabrics. These experiments have led to one of my new signature techniques, which I have developed and termed, MultiSperse Dye Sublimation (MSDS). I have taught my MSDS technique at national and international conferences and textile forums, textile/print groups and within university courses.

The MSDS technique employs disperse dyes and involves hand printing multiple resists and multiple overprinted layers employing numerous color plates and plant materials. The completed works are rich in color, light, shade, contrast, movement and depth. The multiple layers also imbue a painterly aesthetic and textural, three-dimensional quality to the finished printed ArtCloth works. Disperse dyes are light-fast, color-fast and wash-fast.

Summary Of ArtCloth Work
On the back of each unique state print was an image of the original holistic printed artwork. The original ArtCloth measured 3.15 meters in width x 80.4 cm in length. The unique state printed artworks (each tile) could be re-constituted to one holistic panel of 40 ArtCloth works.

Individual Tiles
Nos 1/40 - 15/40 are positioned in a vertical side-by-side format.
Nos 16/40 - 30/40 are repositioned in a vertical side-by-side format directly under the first row of prints.
Nos 31/40 - 40/40 are repositioned in a horizontal side-by-side format directly under the second row of prints (working from left to right).

Media
The artist’s signature - MultiSperse Dye Sublimation technique - was employed using disperse dyes on a satin substrate, backed with organic cotton.

Size Of ArtCloth Works
Size of Whole Work: 3.15 meters width x 80.4 cm length.
Size of Individual 40 Panels: Nos 1/40 - 30/40, 21 cm width x 29.7 cm length; Nos 31/40- 40/40: 29.7 cm width x 21 cm length.

Wangi’s Djirang - The Complete Mosaic

Wangi’s Djirang - The holistic ArtCloth work.

Wangi’s Djirang - The holistic ArtCloth work showing individual panels, trimmed to A4 size. Each panel was sensitively and strategically designed so that each could be viewed as an individual ArtCloth print in its own right.

Wangi’s Djirang - The Individual MSDS Printed ArtCloth Panels Showing Printed Unique State Works 1/40 to 40/40

Unique State (Partners in Print)20th Anniversary Portfolio, 1991-2011MutlimediaGuest Editor - Michael Florrimell

2011-10-22T07:46:00.004+11:00

Unique State
Partners in Print 20^th Anniversary Portfolios 1991 - 2011
Michael Florrimell Coordinator Notes

Welcome to the Partners in Print 20^th Anniversary Portfolio Project Unique State Portfolios

In 2010, I selected 21 professional print media artists to undertake a project in unique state media. Each artist was requested to make 40 x A4 art works as unique state prints to be collated into 40 unique state portfolios. From the 40 portfolios 21 artists would receive one portfolio each and 19 portfolios would be donated to a variety of Australian and International print collections.

I selected artists who have worked with my two organisations - Partners in Print and Exchange Partners in Print Media over the past 20 years. I regard all the Unique State artists as professionals in the arts of polymedia and the ideologies which go with being a long term media artists. Marian Crawford, Jodi Heffernan, Anne Marie Hunter, Jan Palethorpe, Bridget Hillebrand. Heather Hesterman, Richard Harding and Bob Stewart have all worked on large and small scale original unique state works over the past 20 years. To give the portfolios depth of polymedia I selected photographers and digital artists such as Michael Prior, Elizabeth Rodda, Julie Lancaster, Michael Zschech, Jim Brodie, Jutta Pryor and Gerard Morrissey who have used sequence photography, media clippings and video to produce 40 frames of images - each frame unique. Consideration was also given to artists using fabric such as Rebecca Mayo and Marie-Therese Wisniowski. Further consideration was given to artists who have used multiple combinations of media such as Rebecca Beardmore, Cherie Winter and Paula McLouglin.

Printmaking and polymedia arts have a representation in both reproduction and original production. Over the past 50 years Australian artists have been experimenting with a huge variety of historical and recent methods and materials in fine art institutions and workshops. In the 1960s printmaking was introduced into the fine art universities to provide artists access to commercial reproductive methods. Photography and the graphic arts were also introduced as professional fine art and commercial courses in the 1960 – 70s period extending the domains of polymedia culture.

From 15^th century wood engraving to the latest phone applications most communications methods are regarded as practice in fine art circles. Many artists within the history of arts have produced work with association to original fine arts and reproductive commercial graphic reproductions. Combinations of polymedia methods and personal ideologies have been practiced by fine artists such as Andy Warhol, Damian Hirst and Shepard Fairly resulting in the finest art of the past century. Polymedia arts have retained a strong following and will grow even more popular with time. We live in times where media is prolific, we use it every day in many ways, and hopefully now as artists we can celebrate and interact with media to produce works of art which push the boundaries and domains of our imagination.

As this is the last exchange portfolio under the name of Partners in Print I would like to thank all the artists, coordinators, curators and institutions who have supported and been involved with these initiatives from 1991 – 2011. Particular thanks to all the “Unique State” artists for making the “Unique State” portfolios possible. I have now registered the name Polymedia and will resume print media projects under this name in 2012. I look forward to working with you all again in the future.

Rebecca Beardmore

Title: Reflection Series (2011).
Media: Digital and silkscreen.
US/8 from 40 US prints.
Size: A4.

Title: Reflection Series.
Media: Digital and Silkscreen.
Examples of 8 from 40 US prints.
Size: Each panel A4.

Jim Brodie

Title: Amamoor (2011).
Media: Digital Print.
US/8 from 40 US prints.
Size: A4.

Title: Amamoor (2011).
Media: Digital Print.
Examples of 8 from 40 US prints.
Size: Each panel A4.

Marian Crawford

Untitled (2011).
Media: Etching.
No 1 of 40 US prints.
Size: A4.

Untitled (2011).
Media: Etching.
Examples of 8 from 40 US prints.
Size: Each panel A4.

Michael Florrimell

Untitled (2011).
Media: Digital print on Arches rag paper, double sided prints.
US/8 from 40 US doubled sided prints.
Size: A4.

Untitled (2011).
Media: Digital print on Arches rag paper, double sided prints.
Examples of 8 from 40 US doubled sided prints.
Size: Each panel A4.

Richard Harding

Title: Queer Zone Suck it up (2011).
Media: Etching and Silkscreen with glitter.
U/S 8 from 40 US prints.
Size: A4.

Title: Queer Zone Suck it up (2011).
Media: Etching and Silkscreen with glitter.
Examples of 8 from 40 US prints.
Size: Each print A4.

Jodi Heffernan

Title: Coral Series (2011).
Media: Lino Cut, Printed on Paper and Tulle.
Size: A4.
US / 8 from 40 US prints.
Size: A4.

Title: Coral Series (2011). Media: Lino Cut, Printed on Paper and Tulle.
Examples of 8 from 40 US prints.
Size: Each panel A4.

Heather Hesterman

Title: Clearer Eventually (2011).
Media: Silkscreen, double sided print.
US/ 8 from 40 US double sided prints.
Size: A4.

Title: Clearer Eventually (2011).
Media: Silkscreen, double sided prints.
Examples of 8 from 40 US double sided prints.
Size: Each panel A4

Bridget Hillebrand

Title: Beautiful Possibilities (2001).
Media: Lino cut and pencil.
US/ 8 from 40 US prints.
Size: A4.

Title: Beautiful Possibilities (2011).
Media: Lino Cut and pencil.
Examples of 4 from 40 US prints.< Size: Each panel A4.

Anne Maree Hunter

Title: No Shoes (2011).
Media: Collograph, letter press, stitching and chine colle on obsolete maps.
US/ 8 from 40 US prints.
Size: A4.

Title: No Shoes (2011).
Media: Collograph, letter press, stitching and chine colle on obsolete maps.
Examples of 8 prints from 40 US prints.
Size: Each panel A4.

Julie Lancaster

Title: Changeling(Captured states) (2011).
Media: Giclee prints printed on museo silver rag paper.
US/ 8 from 40 US prints.
Size: A4.

Title: Changeling(Captured states) (2011).
Media: Giclee prints printed on museo silver rag paper.
Examples of 4 prints from 40 US prints.
Size: Each print A4.

Rebecca Mayo

Title: Mistletoe (2011).
Media: Silkscreen on cloth, ceramic on copper discs.
US/ 8 from 40 US prints.
Size: A4.

Title: Mistletoe (2011).
Media: Silkscreen on cloth, ceramic on copper discs.
Examples of 8 prints from 40 US prints.
Size: Each panel A4.

Paula McLoughlin

Title: Some walking and talking going on (2011).
Media: Silkscreen/pencil.
US/ 8 from 40 US prints.
Size: A4.

Title: Some walking and talking going on (2011).
Media: Silkscreen/pencil.
Examples of 8 prints from 40 US prints.
Size: Each panel A4.

Gerard Morresey

Title: Tea – Party – Life (2011).
Media: Digital Video Capture printed on rag paper.
US/ 8 from 40 US prints.
Size: A4.

Title: Tea – Party – Life (2011).
Media: Digital Video Capture printed on rag paper.
Examples of 8 from 40 US prints.
Size: Each panel A4.

Jan Palethorpe

Title: Take a leaf from my book (2011).
Media: Mixed etching and papers.
US/ 8 from 40 US prints.
Size: A4.

Title: Take a leaf from my book (2011).
Media: Mixed etching and papers.
Examples of 8 from 40 US prints.
Size: Each panel A4.

Michael Prior

Title: Pom Pom Girls (2011).
Media - Digital Photograph Printed on Epson 4800 Ultra Proof Trade Satin Archival Paper.
US / 8 from 40 US prints.
Size: A4.

Pom Pom Girls (2011).
Media: Digital Photograph Printed on Epson 4800 Ultra Proof Trade Satin Archival Paper.
Examples of 8 US from 40 US prints.
Size: Each panel A4.

Jutta Pryor

Untitled (2011).
Media: Digital print.
US/ 8 from 40 US prints.
Size: A4.

Untitled (2011).
Media: Digital print.
Examples of 8 from 40 US prints.
Size: Each panel A4.

Elisabeth Rodda

Title: Swan Dreamtime Story (2011).
Media: Digital photographic print on architectural transparent paper.
US/ 8 from 40 US prints.
Size: A4.

Title: Swan Dreamtime Story (2011).
Media: Digital photographic print on architectural transparent paper.
Examples of 4 from 40 US prints.
Size: Each panel A4.

Bob Stewart

Title: On stage with Kate Ceberano (2011).
Media: Digital video print.
US/ 8 from 40 US prints.
Size: A4.

Title: On stage with Kate Ceberano (2011).
Media: Digital video print.
Examples of 8 from 40 US prints.
Size: Each panel A4.

Cherie Winters

Title: Wear we put our feet (2011).
Media: Mono print, woodcut and chine colle.
US/ 8 from 40 US prints.
Size: A4.

Title: Wear we put our feet (2011).
Media: Mono print, woodcut and chine colle.
Examples of 8 from 40 US prints.
Size: Each panel A4.

Marie Therese Wisniowski

Title: Wangi’s Djrang (2011).
Media: MultiSperse Dye Sublimation (MSDS) technique employing disperse dyes on satin. A single holistic print from which 40 US artworks were cut.
Size: A single A4 panel.

Title: I don’t want to be here anymore, people are too cruel (2011).
Media: Photographic scan of collage on high gloss acid free photo paper with cotton thread, montage.
US/ 8 from 40 US prints.
Size: A4.

Title: I don’t want to be here anymore, people are too cruel (2011).
Media: Photographic scan of collage on high gloss acid free photo paper with cotton thread, montage.
Examples of 8 from 40 US prints.
Size: Each panel A4.

Disperse Dye and Transfer Printing WorkshopFive-Day Workshop at Fiber Arts Australia Cloth Arts@Hunters Hill, SydneyTutor: Marie-Therese Wisniowski

2011-10-15T08:19:00.004+11:00

Introduction
Glenys Mann - founder and owner of Fibre Arts Australia – organizes five-day textile/fiber conferences throughout Australia, which feature highly talented international artists and designers, who share their knowledge and practices. My time at Cloth Arts@Hunters Hill was an immensely rich and rewarding experience and I am grateful to Glenys, my students and the other tutor’s who made it such a memorable event.

Other international tutor’s, who shared their valuable knowledge, techniques and informative lectures included: John Garrett (Experimental Fibre Constructions with Alternative and Recycled Materials, USA); Sherrill Kahn (Mixed Media, Collage/Applique and Composition Techniques, USA); Cherilyn Martin( New Dimensions in Surfaces & Stitch, A Journey of Discovery, Netherlands); Cherrilyn Tyler(A Little Bit Of Frippery, UK); Els Van Baarle (Transformation through Wax, Netherlands). At the end of the workshops programs, each class displayed their final projects at a gala evening exhibition for all to admire.

If you are contemplating doing a five-day workshop in Sydney I would highly recommend attendance at next year’s Cloth Arts@Hunters Hill. It will be a fun filled and rewarding experience for all who attend. See the following url for more information about 2012 Cloth Arts@Hunters Hill and other conference workshop programs - Fibre Arts

Five-Day Workshop Synopsis
This workshop – “In Pursuit of ArtCloth: Disperse Dye and Transfer Printing” was organized by Fibre Arts Australia as part of the Cloth Arts@Hunters Hill conference/workshop program. It was held at St. Joseph’s College in Hunters Hill, Sydney from the 26^th September to 1^st October 2011.

The following attended the workshop: Maz Beeston (NSW), Jayne Carruthers (NSW), Judi Crawford (NSW), Kathy Geurts (NSW), Carolyn Hickey (Qld), Robyn (NSW), Carole McLachlan (Chile, South America), Barbara McLennan (NSW), Dianne Leith Page (NSW), Susan Pepper (Vic) and Mandy Smith (Vic).

This five-day workshop was an introduction to the dye sublimation process (transfer printing) and melded participants experiences as valuable resources to create new artistic landscapes using disperse dyes. Participants created their own custom dyed fabric using disperse dyes via direct imaging, experimental and layering exercises. They applied painted, textured, printed imagery onto papers with disperse dyes and then transfer/sublimated the prints to polyester and blended synthetic fabrics to create a suite of color and pattern studies via an iron or heat press. Participants were also introduced to the tutor’s signature MultiSperse Dye Sublimation (MSDS) technique featuring multiple layering and resists employing flora as ‘the thematic’ experience. The MSDS works imbue richly colored, textural and vibrant 3-dimensional imaging to the cloth surface. With these new skills participants could then collage, layer, applique, hand & machine embellish their newly made fabrics into truly unique creative expressions.

In summary, a fun and exciting workshop, where individual instruction and experimentation forged the potential of each participant. All levels were welcome to attend. See participant’s outputs below.

To view other workshops employing disperse dyes on this blog site use - "SEARCH THIS BLOG" tool - employing keyword: disperse dye workshop (without quotes).

To view tutor’s disperse dye works see February 5^th, May 7^th, June 11^th, July 23^rd, August 27^th, September 3^rd, in 2011 posts in the blog archive.

St. Joseph’s College Grounds And Buildings
St. Jospeph’s College was founded by the Marist Brothers in 1881. The College has a proud reputation as one of Australia's leading independent boys Catholic schools. For over 125 years, the college has educated boys to become confident, intelligent and compassionate young men, capable of making a valuable contribution to their world.

View of the college grounds.

Another view of the college grounds.

Tranquil water features and waterfalls are set amid beautifully manicured gardens on the college grounds.

Workshop Participants

Standing from back left to right: Jayne Carruthers, Maz Beeston, Judi Crawford, Dianne Leith Page, Susan Pepper, Carole McLachlan, Barbara McLennan and Kathy Geurts.
Sitting from front left to right: Mandy Smith, Carolyn Hickey and Robyn.

Some Of The Student’s Outputs

Maz Beeston (a) Personal exploration employing hand painting, texture and color study.
First panel in a series of five works.

Maz Beeston (b) Personal exploration employing hand painting, overprinting and color study.
Fifth panel in a series of six works.

Maz Beeston (c) Personal exploration employing hand painting, texture, batik style-resist and color study.
Seventh panel in a series of seven works.

Maz Beeston (d) Resist, texture and overprinting study.

Maz Beeston (e) MultiSperse Dye Sublimation (MSDS) technique employing flora.

Jayne Carruthers (a) MultiSperse Dye Sublimation (MSDS) technique employing flora; version 1.

Jayne Carruthers (b) MultiSperse Dye Sublimation (MSDS) technique employing flora; version 2.

Jayne Carruthers (c) MultiSperse Dye Sublimation (MSDS) ghost print.

Jayne Carruthers (d) MultiSperse Dye Sublimation resist (MSDS) technique employing leaves on woven paper.

Jayne Carruthers (e) Batik style-resist, texture and color study.

Judi Crawford (a) Personal exploration employing hand painting and writing, gradation, resist, stamping, color and overprinting techniques.

Judi Crawford (b) Detail view of above personal exploration study.

Judi Crawford (c) MultiSperse Dye Sublimation (MSDS) technique employing flora on multiple fabric layers.

Judi Crawford (d) MultiSperse Dye Sublimation (MSDS) technique employing flora; version 1.

Judi Crawford (e) MultiSperse Dye Sublimation (MSDS) technique employing flora; version 2.

Judi Crawford (f) MultiSperse Dye Sublimation (MSDS) ghost print.

Kathy Geurts (a) Personal exploration employing hand writing, texture, resist, color and layering study.

Kathy Geurts (b) Personal exploration employing hand writing, drawing, stamping, texture, resist, color and layering study.

Kathy Geurts (c) Personal exploration employing hand writing, drawing, stamping, texture, resist, color and layering study.

Kathy Geurts (d) Design and color study employing layered imagery on a multi panel, multi hued background.

Kathy Geurts (e) Personal exploration employing MultiSperse Dye Sublimation (MSDS), patterning and color wash techniques.

Carolyn Hickey (a) Personal exploration employing lace as a color, texture, resist, and layering study.

Carolyn Hickey (b) MultiSperse Dye Sublimation (MSDS) technique employing flora.

Carolyn Hickey (c) MultiSperse Dye Sublimation (MSDS) ghost print.

Carolyn Hickey (d) Personal exploration employing multi texture, resist, design, wash, color and overprinting study.

Carolyn Hickey (e) Personal exploration employing multi texture and color, resist, design, wash and overprinting study.

Robyn (a) Batik style resist, texture and color study.

Robyn (b) Design, texture and color study employing layered imagery on multiple fabric layers.

Robyn (c) MultiSperse Dye Sublimation (MSDS) technique employing flora; version 1.

Robyn (d) MultiSperse Dye Sublimation (MSDS) technique employing flora; version 2.

Robyn (e) MultiSperse Dye Sublimation (MSDS) ghost print.

Carole McLachlan (a) Design study employing solid color, stamping and line drawing techniques.

Carole McLachlan (b) Batik style resist, texture and color study.

Carole McLachlan (c) Personal exploration employing multi color batik style resist, texture, gradation and overprinting study.

Carole McLachlan (d) Personal exploration employing batik style resist, hand painting and drawing, crayons, texture and overprinting study. One of three works.

Carole McLachlan (e) MultiSperse Dye Sublimation (MSDS) technique employing flora.

Barbara McLennan (a) Design study employing solid color, stamping and line drawing techniques.

Barbara McLennan (b) MultiSperse Dye Sublimation (MSDS) technique employing flora.

Barbara McLennan (c) Personal exploration employing MultiSperse Dye Sublimation (MSDS), flora and color wash techniques; version 1.

Barbara McLennan (d) Personal exploration employing MultiSperse Dye Sublimation (MSDS), flora and color wash techniques; version 2.

Barbara McLennan (e) Personal exploration employing MultiSperse Dye Sublimation (MSDS), flora and color wash techniques; version 3.

Dianne Leith Page (a) Batik style resist, texture and color study.

Dianne Leith Page (b) Personal exploration employing MultiSperse Dye Sublimation (MSDS), flora and color wash techniques.

Dianne Leith Page (c) MultiSperse Dye Sublimation (MSDS) technique employing flora; version 1.

Dianne Leith Page (d) MultiSperse Dye Sublimation (MSDS) technique employing flora; version 2.

Dianne Leith Page (e) MultiSperse Dye Sublimation (MSDS) technique employing flora.
Small section of a long scarf.

Susan Pepper (a) Personal exploration employing resist, hand painting and drawing, texture and overprinting study. First panel in a series of five works.

Susan Pepper (b) Personal exploration employing resist, hand painting and drawing, texture, color and overprinting study. Fifth panel in a series of five works.

Susan Pepper (c) Personal exploration employing hand painting and drawing, texture, color and overprinting study.

Susan Pepper (d) MultiSperse Dye Sublimation (MSDS) technique employing flora; version 1.

Susan Pepper (e) MultiSperse Dye Sublimation (MSDS) technique employing flora; version 2.

Mandy Smith (a) Personal exploration employing multi wash, resist texture study.

Mandy Smith (b) Personal exploration employing MultiSperse Dye Sublimation (MSDS), flora, wash, resist texture study; version 1.

Mandy Smith (c) Personal exploration employing MultiSperse Dye Sublimation (MSDS), flora, wash, resist texture study; version 2.

Mandy Smith (d) MultiSperse Dye Sublimation (MSDS) technique employing flora.

Mandy Smith (e) MultiSperse Dye Sublimation (MSDS) ghost print.

Exhibition Workshop Display (Photographs courtesy Mandy Smith)

Front view of some disperse dye printed works in the exhibition workshop display.

Another view of some disperse dye printed works in the exhibition workshop display.

Side view of some disperse dye printed works in the exhibition workshop display.

ArtCloth Swap and Exhibition ArtCloth Article Marie-Therese Wisniowski

2011-10-08T09:29:00.004+11:00

Introduction
During June 11^th - 13^th 2011 ArtWear Publications hosted and exhibited Australia’s biggest ArtCloth Swap in conjunction with the Textile Art Festival, which was held at the Brisbane Exhibition Centre, South Bank, Queensland.

Surface designers who contributed to the “ArtCloth Swap” were asked to decorate a 70 cm square piece of silk, which could include some of the following processes and media: dyeing, over-dyeing, shibori, discharge, rubbings, stamping, stenciling, screen printing, hand painting and foiling using dyes, paints, crayons, stitching, applique and embroidery.

After the Textile Art Festival closed, each participant was sent a surprise piece of ArtCloth that was created by one of the other “Swap” artists. The Swap was fun, challenging and showcased the diversity and creativity of ArtCloth enthusiasts.

Images and information about the ArtCloth Swap and Exhibition have been published in the September 2011, Issue No. 7 of Embellish magazine (ArtWear Publications). The issue will be available in newsagents until December. It is also available via subscription. Hence in order to ensure that this blog does not contain the full article (for ethical reasons) only some of the excellent contributions are presented here. I apologize for those who were not included in this blog but who nevertheless made the article in Embellish such a compelling “view”.

ArtWear Publications also publish Felt magazine, Yarn magazine and Textile Fibre Forum magazine. See the following URL for more information:
ArtWear

Below you can see some of the stunning entries that were showcased during the exhibition.

Disclaimer: Marie-Therese Wisniowski, Art Quill Studio, and Art Quill & Co have no financial interest in ArtWear Publications or Embellish magazine.

Some Of The ArtCloth Works In The Swap And Exhibition
People’s Choice Winner

“Daisy Daze” by Deb Clarke (full view).
Colored with turmeric and liquid acrylic fabric paints using marble resist technique.
Embellished with pearlescent ink. Overlaid with chiffon, hand stitched and heat gunned.

“Daisy Daze” by Deb Clarke (detailed view).

Highly Commended

“Untitled” by Jane Dunnewold (full view).
Interfacing stencil print and thickened fiber reactive dyes; gold leaf. Inspired by the paradox of the intersection of life (plant forms) but also death (regenerated by the skeletons).

“Untitled” by Jane Dunnewold (detailed view).

Highly Commended

“Corrosion” by Linda Stokes (full view).
Deconstructed screen prints, thermofax, mono prints using Procion MX, chocolate and wine bottle packaging, to produce interesting designs with free, unstructured print processes.

“Corrosion” by Linda Stokes (detailed view).

Highly Commended

“Natural Treasures” by Marie-Therese Wisniowski (full view).
Inspired by the pristine waterways and scenery of the unique wilderness of the Huon Valley in Tasmania, Australia. Dyed, over-dyed, shibori over-dyed, discharged, hand painted and foiled on silk habutai.

“Natural Treasures” by Marie-Therese Wisniowski (detailed view).

Some Other Contributors

“Tumbling Flowers” by Marj (full view).
Dyed with Procion MX, over-dyed, deColourant discharge applied to sponge flower shape, flower stencils with Shiva Paintstiks, mulberry bark to print and heavy lace as stamp.

“Tumbling Flowers” by Marj (detail view).

“Under the Silk Tree” by Gail Stahmer (full view).
Background from masses of leaves and pods dropped from silk tree, transfer dyes, stamping, silk screening, flour paste, stenciling, foiling,and stitching.

“Under the Silk Tree” by Gail Stahmer (detail view).

Another Brick Post-Graffiti ArtCloth InstallationMarie-Therese Wisniowski

2011-10-01T08:00:00.014+10:00

Introduction
This ArtCloth installation was exhibited in several galleries (e.g. WattSpace Gallery, Ewart Gallery and at the Geelong Fibre Forum). Currently it is not on display. Seven of the thirteen pieces from the installation (plus exhibition site photographs) are shown below.

The focus of my ArtCloth installation - “Another Brick - was to exhibit the various issues inherent in Graffiti Art and its relationship to the communities that bare the brunt of civil society’s inability or unwillingness to address poverty, racism, exploitation and social degradation that is embedded in the visual language of Graffiti.

Marie-Therese.

Another Brick: A Post-Graffiti ArtCloth Installation
Definition of Graffiti: Inscriptions of figures, designs or words on rocks or walls or sidewalks or the like, or on artifacts made of plaster, stone or clay, the singular form is graffito.

An image created on a rock wall is humankind’s oldest form of graphical communication. The first primitive artists, although they depicted hunting scenes on the walls of the Lascaux caves in Southern France, did so without tangible rewards (unfettered). It was the first conscious act of our prehistoric ancestors to indicate liberation from a reflexive instinct, namely, survival. This act conveyed the presence of an active and moreover “unfettered” imagination. The ability to possess a mind capable of an “unfettered” imaginative process (concomitant with a body able to express it) is a defining characteristic that only human beings possess.

Caves were Formed . . .Walls were Born (full view of Post-Graffiti ArtCloth).
Concept: Paying tribute to graffiti found on cave walls (which is an antecedent of Graffiti Art).
Technique: Resist, discharged (color removed), monoprints, over-discharged, stenciled, silk screened on cotton.
Size: 3.34 x 1.08 meters.

Caves were Formed . . .Walls were Born (detailed view of Post-Graffiti ArtCloth).

The Graffiti Art of Neolithic man no longer needed realism. It became more abstract, thereby indicating a deeper phenomenon: that is, an imaginative depiction of inner feelings and thoughts framed as concepts. With abstract images, a giant leap in organizing consciousness and expressing it had emerged. Repetition of graphical images to represent fixed or “agreed” concepts were therefore the first steps taken in developing a written language. Using reduced images (i.e. cutting out detail and using the fewest lines possible to convey the object) these “agreed” symbols were created and communicated sequences of animals, men and objects therefore yielding an iconic alphabet of sorts. These conventionalized symbols are now labeled generically as pictographs and when painted or drawn on rock walls they are labelled petroglyphs.

The development of human consciousness and the manner in which it is depicted (from Lascaux to the modern urban landscape) is phenomenal. Nevertheless, reductionist forms of art from cubism to minimalism keeps reappearing like dots on the timelines of human existence. A similar situation has occurred with written styles. For example, typography is now a thriving commercial business. What is now coined contemporary Graffiti Art appears on a large array of community surfaces (e.g. from train and building walls to pavements, fences etc.). It can be thought of as an emerging kindred spirit linking the art of the huntsman of prehistoric times to the present day.

Mona on the Urban Wall (full view of Post-Graffiti ArtCloth).
Concept: Appropriated images of Mona Lisa appear in many Graffiti Artworks.
Technique: Dyed, monoprints, stenciled, silk screened, digital transfers, hand drawing, studs and safety pins on cotton.
Size: 3.52 x 1.15 meters.

Mona on the Urban Wall (detailed view of Post-Graffiti ArtCloth).

As modern society has become more complex and social alienation more extreme, layers of conscious thought and reductionist thinking in art became only accessible to a smaller and smaller group of artists. At the extremes, with little education and no prospects to understand their complex society, a group of artists emerged, stripped of any sophisticated tools, training or consciousness. In other words, they were not generally professional artists and so did not possess the technical expertise in terms of painting, draughtmanship, and principles of composition or color theory except on a relatively rudimentary level. Nevertheless, they were in contact with their inner feelings and thoughts and so wanted to communicate these to the society at large. Their minds were artistically primitive (as prehistoric humankind) and yet, they innately possessed an “unfettered” imagination.

Street Hearts (full view of Post-Graffiti ArtCloth).
Concept: Depicts the evolution of new visual images and typography which form an important expression of Graffiti Art.
Technique: Dyed, discharged, stamped, lino blocked, stenciled, silk screened on cotton.
Size: 3.5 x 1.2 meters.

Street Hearts (detailed view of Post-Graffiti ArtCloth).

As images needed to be conveyed to the community at large and because the images are embedded in a “street” culture, Graffiti Art abounds on such surfaces as public and private buildings, pavements, windows, doors, fences, electricity poles and garbage dump bins. The tools that are used are simplistic. Images are usually formed employing paint brushes, paint spray-cans and stencils. Stencils are used since they are simple and the stenciled messages can be reduced to a few elements in order to make them intelligible; that is, they are producing the modern pictograph.

The voice of contemporary Graffiti artists represents the hopes, desires and fears of the “street” culture. On the wall surfaces they embed their hostilities, fantasies, triumphs, frustrations, propaganda and rebellion through the use of provocative pictographic symbolism. They directly challenge authority, and as socio-political alienated people have done throughout the ages, developed a guerilla movement organized at grass-roots level by ad hoc affinity groups.

Urban Mark Making (full view of Post-Grffiti ArtCloth).
Concept: Based on pictographic symbolism used in Graffiti Art.
Technique: Resist, sprayed, over sprayed, matrix formatted silk screen prints on cotton.
Size: 3.43 x 1.10 meters.

Urban Mark Making (detail view of Post-Graffiti ArtCloth).

The strength of the contemporary Graffiti works lies primarily in their location and their relationship to it. Hence, Graffitist’s have not attempted to become more sophisticated in form, or in the main, to move their art off the streets onto gallery walls. In other words, at present there is only an emerging Post-Graffiti movement (see past and future blogs). Generally, they have continued to produce works that highlight their sense of desolation and isolation from a complex sophisticated society. Their images revel in the mainstream society’s embarrassment of the degree of human degradation and the “real-life” situations in the neighborhoods of the alienated. The socio-political use of their art directly communicates with the public on issues of interest to “their” community (as in the case of New York’s Memorial Walls - see last week's blog). Family and friends, who commissioned mural artists to create murals on the sides of buildings, commemorate Young Latino and Afro-American men and women, who have died on the city’s battle-torn streets. In other words, to paint their “own” images and to depict their "own" stories in their visual language.

Urban Blues (full view of Post-Graffiti ArtCloth).
Concept: The anarchy of the social alienated.
Technique: Dyed, over-dyed, texture prints, silk screened, aerosol sprayed, hand painting, hand drawing, coal smudging on cotton.
Size: 3.55 x 1.15 meters.

Urban Blues (detailed view of Post-Graffiti ArtCloth).

Through policies of neglect and lack of resources to those born in unequal circumstances, the world’s wealthiest societies have turned away from the alienated. Yet these Graffiti artists have demonstrated once again that no matter what the circumstance, from primitive human beings of yesteryear to the contemporary socially alienated, art forms need to emerge to give voice to their “unfettered” imagination (the latter of which underpins the human spirit).

In Remembrance: Candle Marches For Our Youth (full view of Post-Graffiti ArtCloth).
Concept: Based on the imagery and associated religious iconography that commemorates the youth who have died on city streets.
Technique: Discharged, over-discharged, dyed, lino blocked, hand painted, stenciled, sponged, stamped, foiled on cotton.
Size: 3.65 x 1.05 meters.

In Remembrance: Candle Marches for our Youth (detailed view of Post-Graffiti ArtCloth).

The focus of my ArtCloth installation – “Another Brick” - was to explore and expose the various issues and artistic evolution inherent in Graffiti Art and its relationship to the communities that bare the brunt of civil society’s inability or unwillingness to address the poverty, racism, exploitation and social degradation that is one driver in the visual language of Graffiti Art.

Casula Walls . . . Textures and Surfaces (full view of Post-Graffiti ArtCloth).
Concept: Casula Powerhouse has set space aside for Graffiti Artist to make their art marks.
Note: The marks on this ArtCloth have been purposely distressed.
Technique: Dyed, discharge, carbon release, digital transfers, marker pens, hand painting, acrylic washes on cotton.
Size: 3.20 meters x 87 cm.

Casula Walls . . . Textures and Surfaces (detailed view of Post-Graffiti ArtCloth).

The Post-Graffiti ArtCloths were hung horizontally on building safety fencing so as to recreate a cityscape of sorts. Understandably, the Gallery declined the offer to graffiti their pristine ceiling, floor and walls, which would have given the exhibition a colorful cavernous ambience!

Post-Graffiti ArtCloth Installation At WattSpace Gallery.

New York Spray Can Memorials: A Backdrop to Life Art EssayMarie-Therese Wisniowski

2011-09-24T08:30:00.004+10:00

Introduction
In order for people to get a wider appreciation of my Post Graffiti artwork - and where it springs from – a series of art essays have been and will be posted in order to put into perspective future posts on my Post Graffiti ArtCloth.

These art essays are in themselves self-contained and attribute the work of previous artists (some unknown) that have contributed so much for the development of Graffiti Art and for the fledgeling Post Graffiti Art movement on cloth.

The book, "R.I.P.: Memorial Wall Art", by Cooper, Martha and Joseph Sciorra, New York, Henry Holt and Company, 1994 [also published by Thames and Hudson in UK as "R.I.P.: New York Spraycan Memorials" and in France as "R.I.P. N.Y.C.: Bombages in Memoriam a New York City"] - was an extremely valuable resource. Most of the images below were procured from this book. It would be a truly remarkable tome in your art reference library.

Marie-Therese.

A Background Briefing
The picture drawn on the wall is mankind’s oldest form of graphic communication. It was the first conscious act of our prehistoric ancestors to liberate themselves, via communication, from the daily grind of survival. In learning to draw images on cave or rock walls, they separated themselves from all other living creatures. The ancestors of the Australian Aborigines have been shown - via recent genetic studies - to be the first peoples to escape from the cradle of Africa. Their rock art abounds across all parts of Australia, including where I live in Lake Macquarie.

A kindred spirit links the huntsman of antiquity with the street muralist of today. Although the bison paintings of Lascaux are revered among the world’s finest works of art, many of today’s art critics would assign a lesser status to today’s wall art murals, the latter of which are displayed in our urban landscape. Note: I use the word “wall” in a generic sense and not in terms of a distinctive surface.

A timeless bond exists between the wall art of antiquity with its modern variant. For example, the huntsman were motivated by an artistic drive to transfer an image onto a solid surface - as do the wall muralists of today. Both are communicating via a visual language and using the wall structure as their art medium. Furthermore, today’s wall muralist, in common with their ancestral mentors, entertain no illusions regarding the life expectancy of their artwork. The surfaces employed, necessitates that nothing they paint may survive the natural and/or social forces at work in the cave or urban setting. It is therefore transitory art – not necessarily by design, but most likely by circumstance.

There are differences starting to emerge. Graffiti Art is often splashed on trains and buses – moving items. Ever since Einstein, we now realize our universe contains four dimensions: three with respect to space (length, width, height) and one with respect to time. Unwittingly Graffiti artists when using the “walls” of moving vehicles are now introducing a time element into their art (i.e. displaying a form of kinetic art). Time with respect to the act of engagement becomes an important factor. Fleeting glimpses of Graffiti Art have serendipitously introduced pace of engagement into the art equation. Even murals are often engaged at a brisk walking pace, where a passerby would not entertain the notion of loitering.

In developed democratic countries, such as Australia, UK and the USA, economic and social policies of governments eroded the essential urban qualities of industry, density, service and transportation - policies that unwittingly ensured the political and social enslavement of the poor and furthermore, the cultural alienation of the middle classes. The establishment - under peacetime conditions - of the most deplorable state of urban desolation and alienation known to western civilization, was exasperated due to its systematic implementation via misguided social planning.

In the Arab Spring of 2011, the political disenfranchised - armed with the internet and courage - rioted, bringing sweeping changes to their political infrastructure in some of the Arab countries. However, the Spring riots in the UK in 2011 was of a different ilk. It was forged from the anger of a social disenfranchisement; anger against authority, anger against unemployment and reliance on social services for their existence, anger against a pluralistic society, and anger against cultural isolation, all of which culminated into social riots - although anarchistic, nevertheless without a political framework - of youth with mindsets that were completely and perhaps unwittingly - via government policies and enactments over several decades - stripped of hope. Looting, trashing of small businesses, acts of violence against the police and against the public in sympathy with law and order, were the actions of the hopeless and the hapless of a mobile modern democratic internet-connected society.

The modern demonstrations against Corporate greed in Europe, USA, Australia and elsewhere reflect the views of those who are economically disenfranchised. The common refrain of - "privatising profits, but socialising any losses" - reflects the unfair burden that government expenditure cuts have on those economically disenfranchised, when those who have the means to contribute are effectively insulated from any monetary pain.

New York Spray Can Memorials
In the USA atrocious social conditions over past decades have provided the context for the emergence of spray can murals. They were attempts to come to terms with a tragic and hopeless situation through a visual language using public spaces for mass dissemination. The special nature of this genre - naïve orientation, nearly spontaneous creation, rapid deterioration and public location - may have been the catalyst that brought together diverse elements to produce works of unusual significance and power. Nevertheless, Graffiti, Mural, and Cartoon Art that sit on walls is embedded within a current modern art frame. It has antecedence in terms of cave or rock art and modernity in terms of post modernistic art.

Graffiti artists currently producing memorials differ in a number of ways from earlier subway writers [1]. They comprise a much older group, with the average age being about twenty-five years old. To date, there are few well-known female memorial artists [1]. Several artists are academically trained: Jabster, Jad and Tracy attended Manhattan’s famed High School of Art and Design; Nomad holds a bachelor’s degree from the School of Visual Arts. However, the majority of memorial artists are not artistically educated. Moreover, most have a Puerto Rican heritage. The work of white artists, such as Michael Tracy and Frank Fischetti, are found on spaces in the Bronx and furthermore, African American painters entered the scene only in 1993.

The strong Latino presence reveals a historic precedent for the memorial tradition. The walls are updated versions of the simple roadside crosses often erected at the site of a car accident in Latin American (Catholic) countries (and now in many developed Countries). These crosses manifest the belief that the souls of those, who die unexpectedly, have not received the last rites, and so their souls are suffering in purgatory. The marks on the walls, serves as a lasting reminder for passersby to pray for the person’s soul and so speed its delivery to heaven.

New York memorial artists were also inspired by the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington D.C. The chevron shaped, black granite monument has been internationally acclaimed for its ability to elicit quiet contemplation on warfare’s destructive magnitude rather than champion blind patriotism and/or macho glory.

New York’s memorial art [1] developed in close connection to the indiscriminately violent street battles waged for market share of the city’s lucrative drug trade. Dealers seeking to honor fallen comrades could afford to pay top dollar for a wall artwork, and as a result they helped to establish the business of memorial art. While Tracy and Chico have made a conscientious choice not to commemorate drug dealers, others did not wish to relinquish what they considered to be a money making opportunity.

An advertisement for the United Martial Arts School in the Bronx also doubles as an anti-drug mural. Artists: Alfredo “Per” Oyague Jr. and Joey “Serve” Vega.

Community patronage is paramount; the artist must consider the aesthetic tastes and religious sensibilities of the deceased’s family and friends, and not those of the Graffiti world. A wall is selected because it is near the place where the deceased died, lived or congregated with friends.

The artist Jad stands on the terrace of Carol’s apartment building. “The letters have to be really nice because this is for the family. When they come to look at it and to think about the person who died, they don’t want to see really deep Graffiti because they don’t know what it says. You got to make sure that everybody knows what it means. You have to give them the picture”. Artist: Jose “Jad” Diaz.

The memorial wall transforms personal grief into shared community sentiment by serving as a vehicle for community affiliation and potential empowerment. Covering the expenses for materials and the artist’s labor is often a collective endeavor, with neighborhood residents making contributions in memory of one of their own. The murals create new public spaces for community ceremony. Life is celebrated at the walls with parties, marking anniversaries and birthdays etc. These centers of congregation become rallying points for candlelight processions and demonstrations held by community people, who march through the streets in opposition to violence, drugs or police brutality.

A trio of painted candles burning brightly with perpetual flames is reminder of the “living” that remember the deceased in prayer. Artist: Unknown.

These neighborhood billboards are used to elicit critical examination of the root causes and solutions to the daily onslaught against inner-city youth. Teenage members of the South Bronx Photographic Centre used their photo exhibit documenting community life and commemorative murals to kindle discussion on the untimely deaths of neighborhood residents.

Paco’s graveyard scene in Brooklyn’s East New York.

These professional and semi-professional artists are creating a body of stylistically discernible work, distinguished from the untrained individual, who paints a simple but heartfelt memorial to a close friend. This new genre of art - born from bloodshed and grief - has established a close relationship to the proliferation of handguns and escalating violence. Memorial walls are designed to stimulate the heart and the mind, tapping art’s transformative and healing powers.

The late Graffiti artist, Eugene “Risk” Cleary, appears as a winged spray can, flying to heaven. Artist: Hoist.

Religious imagery, overwhelmingly Christian, predominates. Crosses, angels, hands clasped in prayer, heaven’s clouds and portraits of Christ and the Virgin Mary are among the favorite emblems of faith. Walls containing Islam’s Star and Crescent or the Jewish Star of David, although rare, indicate an acceptance of memorial murals beyond their original Catholic Latino audience. Painted candles, flowers, hearts and other traditional finery motifs abound.

In the early hours of 9^th September 1991, a knife wound punctured 14 year-old Robert Torres lung. Robbed of his wallet, the body of "John Doe" lay in the morgue for a week until his frantic parents found him. This mural features a rare representation of God. Artists: Jose “F-Boom” Crespo and “Dek”.

A single red rose was chosen for Jessica’s mural, a twenty-one year old, shot by a bullet intended for her boyfriend. Artist: Nicer.

Memorial artists borrow images from mass-produced holy cards and religious calendars, which they enlarge and incorporate into their public art. These memorials also proclaim an optimistic belief in the afterlife.

Artist: Unknown.

The deceased may be remembered by their possessions as well as by their portraits. Evoking prestige, and expensive consumer goods bestowed in life, images such as the red Nova identify an individual in the same way, as do the iconic attributes of Catholic saints.

Cano’s killer was AIDS. It was the cause of death for a number of American men aged between 25 to 44 years of age. Artist: Antonio “Chico” Garcia.

Cartoon characters were a major source of images for subway Graffiti writers of the 1980s. These animated stars, which bounce back to life when shot, continue to pop up to pay their respects. Betty Boop was a favorite of 10 year old Jenny Valentine and 11 year-old Evelyn Leon, who were crushed beneath a collapsing marble entrance.

Chico’s memorial decorates a nearby playground created in the tragic aftermath as a safe haven for neighborhood children. Artist: Antonio “Chico” Garcia.

Unlike subway Graffiti, the name of the deceased, rather than the artist, is the centerpiece of memorial wall art. The artist’s name if included at-all, is of minor significance. While subway writers painted their tag names in esoteric wild-style, memorial artist’s inscriptions are legible to the general public. Since these murals offer the passerby a station for solace and contemplation, it is important that they be visually accessible. As with tombstones, birth and death dates are listed. The artist is allowed his say in the epitaph written for the deceased even though the two may never have met. Often, another person actually composes the words. Painted in scrolls or open books, the text might extol a person’s character or empathize with the family’s loss.

Poem, The Legend Lives On. Artists: Julio “Fade” Caban, Oliver “Kazo” Rios and Jose “Solo” Cordero.

Artist:Unknown.

Artist: Unknown.

At the Graffiti Hall of Fame in East Harlem, Bio reserved a space in his contemporary wild-style burner for the late writer Shy 147.

As memorial walls became increasingly common in New York, old-school Graffiti artists have taken to dedicating pieces to colleagues, as they occasionally did on subway trains. Artist: Bio.

Portraiture has emerged as a key feature distinguishing contemporary memorials from sub-way art. A common bristle brush or electric powered airbrush, are the portrait painter’s tools of choice. Either of these offers greater control than the spray can, allowing for a more detailed and defined shaded image. Portraits range in style from cartoon line drawings to photo realist depictions. Memorial artists mostly work from a photograph.

Shahid. Artist: Vonce Campbell.

Seventeen year-old Noemi “Suly” Villafane was three months pregnant when a bullet from her boyfriend’s gun snuffed out her life.

While painting the portrait, Per improvised the anti-violence message on the spot in rap-like fashion. Artist: Per.

As artist, Art Guerra summarizes [1]: “A mural is a sort of barometer measuring the different pressures in a neighborhood at that particular point in time. They are a testament to the local people and they voice a concern for the issues of the day. By looking at the murals, you can know a lot about the community around them. Maybe that makes the communication even more intense.”

Note:
[1] M. Cooper and J. Sciorra, "R.I.P.: Memorial Wall Art", New York, Henry Holt and Company (1994).

Barbara ScottMaster Class In Using Disperse DyesTutor: Marie-Therese Wisniowski

2011-09-17T07:45:00.005+10:00

The Master Class Grant
Barbara Scott was awarded a grant to do a five-day Master Class in “Melding Experiences: New Landscapes Using Disperse Dyes and Sublimation Printing” under the tutorship of Marie-Therese Wisniowski from the 15th - 19th August 2011 at Art Quill Studio in Arcadia Vale, New South Wales, Australia.

The Grant was awarded by “The Regional Arts Development Fund”, which is a Queensland Government and Toowoomba Regional Council partnership in order to support the local arts and culture. It is a prestigious grant that is merit based.

Barbara Scott and Marie-Therese Wisniowski in the studio.

Barbara Scott’s Shortened Biography
Barbara Scott has spent many years working with wool and other natural fibers in the fashion industry. She has now returned to her first love – developing her art concepts through the exploration of textile media on wool.

She loves to work with wool, silk, cotton and their blends. She loves to spin, dye and manipulate these fibers.

She began designing original knit wear in the 1960s, progressed to developing Aboriginal artefact industries in the late 1970s, studying all areas of textile art in the 1980s, before moving to the commercial production of superfine woollen garments using cutting edge technology in the 1990s.

Along her sojourn in creating textile industries, she has won some major business awards. For example, in 1993 she won the NSW Business Award For Excellence; in 1996 she was the ABC Australian Rural Women of the Year; in 1997 she was listed in the top 100 of Women in Australian Agriculture and she was Business Women of The Year (Sydney Business Review); in 1998 she was a national finalist in Business Woman of the Year.

Her textile art has galvanized in the new millennium. She has exhibited her textile art in a number of group exhibitions. In particular, in October of 2010 she was in a group exhibition with the “Women on the Edge” group titled - “Elements of Red” - which was exhibited at Goombungee Gallery, operated by the Toowoomba Regional Council, Queensland, Australia.

Barbara Scott’s Artist Statement and Motivation
“I believe there is a spirituality indigenous to every land. When you move in harmony with that spirit of place, you are practicing native (not Native) spirituality. If you are from a race or culture that isn’t indigenous Australian, you can still feel a soul connection to the spirit and form of this land. All of Earth’s life is interconnected and sacred - its flora, fauna, land and people, all parts that make up the whole. We have the opportunity to participate in life, attune to the natural pace of rhythmical change. Wherever we live, there is an underlying presence of indigenous change - the shifting balances of light and dark, dry and wet, growth and rest. There are moon cycles, seasonal cycles as well as the cycles of bodily function - hormonal, digestive, respiratory. Whether we live in an urban or rural environment we can experience a way of life offering connection to the natural forces of the universe. My artwork explores the spirituality of the land, its shifting balances and the integration of the Soul to the Earth.”

Barbara Scott working on one of the ‘illusion of depth study’ projects.

The Master Class Program
The Master Class program followed on from the - “In Pursuit of Art Cloth: Disperse Dye and Transfer Printing” workshop, which was held on Sunday 4th July 2010 at Crows Nest Community and RSL Centre in Queensland, where the master class participant, Barbara Scott, learnt some of the basic techniques and principles of dye sublimation processes on synthetic and polyester fibres.

This advanced, comprehensive master class melds the student’s experiences as a valuable resource to create new artistic landscapes using dye sublimation processes that included complex multiple resist and overprinting.

Barbara was introduced to the tutor’s signature, MultiSperse Dye Sublimation (MSDS) technique employing multiple layering and resist techniques, using flora as "the" thematic experience. Employing papers, stencils, brushes and flora, Barbara created richly colored, textural and vibrant three-dimensional effects on polyester and synthetic fabrics. In summary, it was a fun and exciting workshop, where individual instruction and experimentation forged the potential and artistic growth of developing the voice of a "new" master in the use of disperse dyes.

Barbara Scott's Project Outputs

Value study employing color wash plate.

Batik style resist, texture and color study.

MultiSperse Dye Sublimation technique employing flora – version 1.

MultiSperse Dye Sublimation technique employing flora – version 2.

MultiSperse Dye Sublimation technique employing flora - version 3.

MultiSperse Dye Sublimation technique employing flora - version 4.

MultiSperse Dye Sublimation ghost print.

Barbara Scott using the iron to sublimate the disperse dye painted plate to the fabric.

Barbara’s sublimated print on fabric incorporating texture studies.

Barbara’s dye painted plates and shapes for her "rock formations" personal explorations studies.

One of Barbara’s initial "rock formation" printed exploration study.

More of Barbara’s personal "rock formation" exploration studies.

Detail of one of Barbara’s above "rock formation" studies after overprinting.

Barbara’s "rock formation" and landscape movement study.

Master Classes are available in situ (i.e. in my studio) with respect to the following: "Melding Experiences: Master Class in Disperse Dyes And Sublimation Printing" and "Master Class In the Art Of Complex Cloth". Personal instruction is also available for my "Low Relief Screen Printing" (LRSP) and "Improvisational Screen Printing" techniques. For further details please email: studio@artquill.com.au