Thursday Thoughts...

"Signs and symbols, scrawls and scratches do not have to signify anything at all but they must look as if they do. Such marks need have no connection with real words, but must have the emotional resonance of words". 

Stephen Silver

I am at that stage of solo exhibition production where I am coming to the end of the project; and my mind is beginning to wander ahead of itself wondering what's next. Even tho there is still plenty to do! And my mind has been contemplating abstract calligraphic art, paper and books all over again.  Perhaps in response to so much time spent stitching.

Hence this quote resonated when I rambled across it in my newly formatted Thursday Thoughts document - a story for another time.

I think Mr Silver catches exactly what it is I love about abstract calligraphic art - it's the hint of, the sense of, writing. That somehow there is meaning to be decoded; that if I could begin to understand the repetitions, the forms and the shapes I could interpret the 'words'.

Apparently he is an animator, not a calligrapher so maybe he makes animated calligraphic art!

I like how he references the emotional resonance of words - for words are powerful (as mentioned in last week's Thursday Thoughts) and they hold power and meaning in a culture.

The beauty of abstract calligraphic art is that it lets you participate in the artwork with all the sense of words and reading and writing and all that they mean; yet leaves you wondering and able to interpret the 'message' as you please. Delicious.

And this is one book that will travel alongside me as I make my explorations into abstract calligraphic art sometime next year...

Four scrolls now done!

 As mentioned, these scrolls are a central feature of the exhibition in Scotland, and I am pushing through stitching as much as I can, and as often as I can, to complete the series.  The fourth one is now finished and it feels a bit better knowing that I have three to go, and that each of them is shorter than this longest one, so hopefully I am well over the half way mark.

Here is the back of the fourth scroll showing two hand stitched seams and the 'interesting' stitching!

And here is the right side with a lovely seam sitting flat and words that can be read.

Here it is unfurling...

And the four of them together in many ways...

And transferring the words onto the fifth one so we can begin again...

Onwards!

15 years of Paperponderings

 This morning as I looked at my phone a reminder came up as 'blog anniversary'. I thought oh, that's nice, and then counted the years and thought again, 'that's a lot of years'

Next Tuesday's post is the one I had planned for today but when I started to think about it I thought the anniversary day deserved its own post, so here we go. This photo is just a lovely photo to do with Tuesday's post!

Back on 16 June 2009 I wrote my very first ever blog post on Paperponderings. Over time the blog has chronicled my progress as an artist, my process and its many twists and turns, and the things I have made and created. It has kept track of my travels and moments of beauty in the sky, in the garden, in the mountains, along the roadside,  on the kitchen bench and by the sea.

Paperponderings has become my most precious resource for recalling where and when I did things, and made things. I come back to it time and again to check how I went about making something, and to check dates when I am required to include a piece in some story.

I am forever grateful that I began this blog, and for the joyful journey it has been thus far. And also for the folk who have been with me on and off across the 15 years, who have read, commented, provided advice and suggestions and let me know they are out there. 

Many a friendship has been formed by blogging, some of whom I have met face to face; others who I may never meet in person; but the support and exchanges between us is a source of great joy and comfort.

In this post on the 10th anniversary, I went back over a decade of posts from the date closest to the anniversary date and found such an interesting random collection of reminders I decided I would do it again for the past 4 years and see what I have been up to.

On Tuesday 16 June 2020 we were in the early stages of learning what a global pandemic meant. This post was about gecko poo which is odd, but a great story about how to make things out of mistakes (or misadventures...). The work that emerged from this episode is now in the State Library of Queensland collection.

On Thursday 17 June 2021 I have a Thursday Thoughts post, which had me cry-laughing apparently! But the words and the image are reminiscent of our short mini-break a few weeks ago; the timings eerily similar. Same place, same view, same routine...

Thursday 16 June 2022 saw another Thursday Thoughts land on the actual date. Pondering thoughts about flowers and fleeting moments, and moments of beauty. I sense that has been a bit of a regular theme in Thursday Thoughts over the years.

Thursday 15 June 2023 just a year ago and the date closest lands yet again on a Thursday! This was interesting to revisit as we begin the countdown plan for Scotland and my mind has turned to art there and thinking about art and walking...

And so to 16 June 2024, where the posts either side of the anniversary are about stitching and an exhibition in Scotland.

Paperponderings has actually been archived by Pandora, a growing collection of Australian online publications, established initially by the National Library of Australia in 1996, and now built in collaboration with nine other Australian libraries and cultural collecting organisations. 

The name, PANDORA, is an acronym that encapsulates their mission: Preserving and Accessing Networked Documentary Resources of Australia.

 It forms part part of the National Library of Australia's ongoing work to identify and record the virtual, as well as the physical, records of our lifetimes.

With thanks to all who follow and enjoy; and with hopes that I can continue to record my ponderings, my progress and my wonder at the world for a few more years.

Thursday Thoughts...

"A word after a word after a word is power". 

Margaret Atwood

In the world we live in, words and writing and sentences and letters and books all hold power. Our laws are written in words; our many contracts are written with words; our shopping receipts list words; and so many, many instances of our daily lives that are official, demand and require words.

Being able to manage and handle and use words is a certain sort of power and this quote has made me think hard about how much power is unobtainable; inaccessible; when one does not have the power of words. When reading, or writing or speaking is denied you, how much power is taken away?

I am pretty sure Ms Atwood wasn't headed in this direction when the wrote these words; but I imagine she might agree nevertheless.

I imagine she was speaking/writing as a writer, whose job it is to put one word after another; and describing how powerful that can be as a novelist. The ability it gives you to give form to your thoughts; to describe and speak of situations; to tell stories others may be afraid to tell.

Words are powerful in so many ways. 

They can keep you safe; help you feel safe; or force you to seek safety...

Three scrolls complete

 The major and central work of the exhibition Scotland is a cascade of seven hand-stitched scrolls. Household inventories.  I have enjoyed finding the fabric, and stitching it together (learning how to do hand stitched run and fell seams) and now the hard slog of stitching all the items onto each scroll is underway in earnest.

I have finished three of them and am almost finished the fourth which is the longest. and holds the most words It will feel good to have cracked 4/7!

The dappled studio light has been delightful yet again and gives them a dreamy kind of look I think. Each scroll is stitched using a different colour and hopefully they will all complement each other and look as if they belong in the Highlands.

Here is number 4 scroll underway. For some reason I have decided to stitch from the bottom up!

And dried Australian eucalyptus leaves also look lovely in the light. It is good to stop amongst the busy-ness of life and smile at small moments of beauty.

The cubes

 With refreshed mind and eyes and hands I was also able to get in and finish off the fabric covers that go around the cement cubes.

I drew the travel lines on with my frixon pen, and stitched them with double strand dark grey thread. Then I tacked the folded edges down to make sure I knew the space available for the writing. 

I began adding some writing to the cubes, describing a dangerous sea voyage back in 1813.

And some notes about the landing in Canada and the new life to be built there.

Upside down they looked pretty good.

And right way up they did as well. 

No photos since bringing them home; but thanks to Liz A, I was able to remove the frixon pen marks by using my hair dryer as the heat source, rather than an iron!

I might be a while before I can pull together their whole story and display, but I am happy to have made it this far.

Thursday Thoughts...

"Learning to let go should be learned before learning to get. Life should be touched, not strangled. You've got to relax, let it happen at times, and at others move forward with it." 

Ray Bradbury

I like the gentleness of this quote and how it appears to try and encourage us to move lightly through our lives.

For me it is a bit of a reminder to step back and release what can sometimes be hard bonds or ties. I can often get myself deeply involved and deeply attached to things that need doing, but with these words I am encouraged to step away and get a differing perspective. 

The thought that taking time, going slowly, listening to the rhythms and moving in synch with things is better than pushing harder and pulling tighter. That life is more than controlling the outcomes. 

Torriesdale rainbow 2023

Burning the bundle

After our few days away I had a day where could I lock myself in the studio and get a proper run at things; which hasn't happened in over  month. 

It felt so good.

One of my goals was to have some quiet and focussed time to work on the burning of the bundle. I had had intermittent moments here and there to practise with this and that; but I knew I would need steadiness to get the burning right for the final piece. 

Because it matters.

As part of my exploration of home for my exhibition in Scotland, I am preparing works around the dramatic Clearnces of people from their homes along the Strathnaver River near where our cottage is.

This piece is based on the testimony of one of the folk who were cleared from the Strathnaver back in about 1817. Aged 89 in 1883, Angus Mackay from Ceann-na-coille stated:

"My friends, and several of the townspeople endeavoured to obey this cruel summons, and carried their effects down to the river's side. Here they formed a kind of raft, whereon was placed all their furniture, farm implements, clothes, etc., in fact all their worldly possessions, except their cattle. Then they took shelter, and anxiously awaited the rising of the river to enable them to float the raft down the stream towards their new home.

Soon, however, the furious burners came, and in spite of the poor people's entreaties and promises, the raft was easily set on fire, and before the party left the ground it was all in ashes along the banks of the river".

The cruelty was monumental.

And so I began.

I started with a bunch of hand made envelopes.

I lit a candle and began dipping the papers in and out, and over the flame...

I wondered how many to do.

And when there seemed to be enough, I tied them with the string I had singed and smoked before.

And then I added some more bits. I think it is done now.

For part of the display I want to include some scattered charred and burnt bits, and a small pile has begun.

So I hope I am honouring the experience of some of these folk in this small way.

Re-charging

 It has been a busy time of late, across a range of events and issues and places, and I was so pleased that a few months ago we had anticipated things could get a bit much around now and had booked a few days away by the water.

This is our past few days - so so beautiful, and so so restorative.

And as another way of stilling my mind, I did this jigsaw...

All ready to go now for the next big burst of things.