More Than - the making of comfort

The work in this on-line SVAF exhibition was completed between October 2020 and January 2021. It’s unusual premise was to make a new work from an unfinished piece donated by another artist. The idea was proposed by Franny Swann who made this work from a print of circles passed to her by Christina France.

​SVAF has always challenged my perception of art and I fully expected to be out of my comfort zone with this project but 2020 has left me keen to try new things. Signing up for a "blind date", I was intrigued to receive Canvas and Colour from Maria Turner - I suspect some mischief in the selection. Both are definitely new but I had been considering fabric as a substrate so this was the perfect chance to practice.

​I was drawn to the muted colours on the reverse of the canvas but wanting to see how the colour would complement my use of graphite. Canvas is a very different surface to work with and I found it hard to control any of the marks. Powder made no impression and the canvas sucked in the graphite when mixed with acrylic medium, creating a dense dark grey splodge with no texture. Gradually I began to gain some understanding and control as I varied my tools. 

My original intention was to create a spiral book, however this hid much of the interesting marks and colours.

Leaving the strips in the studio to mull over I began to feel a need to weave, creating 2 different hanging pieces from endless possible combinations.

Rolling up the pieces to keep them safe was a final light bulb moment.

​The project raised questions of ownership and respect, tied in with an understanding that interventions would be irreversible. There were long periods of contemplation, once started there would be no going back. I used the process as an opportunity to learn, eventually letting go of the need to produce something "good".

< PREV

NEXT >