Oasis Light

11"x13", Bleached fabric, handmade stamps, ribbon, found papers, embroidery, bronze beads and digital transfer on voile.
In this piece I used some of my very bleached cloth and stamped pieces which I then added beads and embroidery. The photo is of an oasis, the only oasis I can say I have visited. It is not located in the Sinai but rather in the California desert. They look very similar and are mostly fed by underground springs. I've read that the desert is not a silent sandy place but a rather noisy place what with the wind, bugs, birds and animals. This piece is in answer to the last piece depicting night at the oasis. I'm imagining  daylight at the oasis to be remarkably different...more alive and safe. The cold night fears are relinquished with the clear explanations of seeing and hearing what might have caused such fears. Shadows and swishing sounds could easily be attributed to palm fronds and tall grasses. Rings of light can now be seen as possible reflections on water from the moon or dense starlight. Isn't that always the way...night fears give way to the warmth and clarity of daylight. How many times in my life did I worry only to see and think more clearly in the morning?

Fresh Start

An assortment of surface cloth treatments. Starting from the left is a brocade strip which I have touched off with embroidery, the yellow and purple squares began as paper napkins which I applied a momigami (Japanese}kneading technique. This technique allows the paper to become more clothlike and easier to sew. The bundles of cloth with rubber bands are folded cloth ready for a bleach bath and the stamped cloth is another step after the cloth has been bleached, dyed and now stamped. Not sure where these will fit but it is good to have these ready options.
The events at Boston had a profound affect on me and I've lacked the energy to go into the studio for art making. I've watched all the horror on TV news since my early 20's but some hurt me more than others. I did get into the studio with these explorations and I'm feeling better this weekend. I'll begin again this Monday with a piece I had started before Boston. During this down time I also had my carpets cleaned and yardwork done...another way to step into fresh starts and feeling hopeful again.
I just don't understand how we all live on this one planet?!

"Nightfall"

12"x14", newsprint, papers, satin, digital photo transfer on cloth, flour paste resist, machine stitching, embroidery and beads.
This was my first effort in using diluted wallpaper paste, a way to attach papers to cloth thereby having an easier time sewing by hand and with sewing machine and allowing less rigid edges.  What is nice is after the glue drys it is still possible to lift a piece of cloth....I'm always changing my mind! The center piece and the circle piece were created in part using the flour paste resist process and the result is a crackled design which I like very much. I took the photo of an oasis while watching my DVD on tv and it came out a little blurred...also turned it into sepia toned. Funny, I bought this newspaper when I was in NY about 25 years ago....the ever wonderful gifts of the collage box!

Thinking about the journey in the desert brought to mind my own traveling. We drove across this country in our twenties and for years we took family road trips. We planned ahead with reservations and all but occasionally the road and circumstances would leave us entering our destination after sunset. The gas stations lights glaring, street shadows and neon signs flashing gave a rather unnerving feeling to our road weary selves. So it was easy to wonder about the ancients traveling in the Sinai. Approaching an oasis with babies crying, animals hungry and everyone tired and thirsty. Again moving shadows, a place of safety or not? Settling into sleep and bundling for the desert cold...hoping for the morning light to chase away the fears. Actually daylight has a wonderful way of calming worries.