Rainbow Wools

Rainbow wools is an Australian yarns supplier. The serves is wonderful and helpful. The companies owner, Carol will source yarns if possible for you and is very helpful with any enquiries. I just love the new little Ashford table looms they stock.

info@rainbowwools.com

Fluro Wire

Just quickly, my latest project is working with Fluro Wire. I am trying to weave this for an istallation with the FyberMotion group. I have also been working on a new production range of bed runners, in mohair, now that's a challenge and a hard, when every time I use mohair I start to get hayfever but it is such a wonderful fibre I have to use it. Rainbow Yarns.

'There and Back Again'

Last Saturday I was asked to speak at the New South Wales Spinners and Weavers Guild in Sydney.

I was quite nervous, as most people are when public speaking, but I have to say that it was a wonderful day! I was so impressed by the high standard of work shown at the meeting before I spoke, and the very professional manner of the guild - it really made you want to be a part of it! I have placed the Guild's website on our links bar, so if anyone is in Sydney check out their meeting schedule - I highly recommend it.

I have to say that it was truely wonderful to see so many people who I haven't seen for so long - people who have seen me grow up in textiles, people who have known me through my mother's business and people with who I have had just a brief contact with but have left a huge impact.

Preparing the speech, and then seeing so many familiar faces really made me think of where I've come from. It was always filled with textiles. So here I present :

Mel's child-state
(in brief)

When I was still a wee bub my parents decided they wanted to live on a farm. I suspect they were also watching many episodes of the BBC's 'The Good Life' as we were soon virtually self sufficent. We also ended up with about 120 angora goats.


Which naturally lead Mum to spin and weave the mohair. Through an interesting set of circumstances Mum started a spinning and weaving supplies mail-order business. I was about eight then, and inquisitive so I was learning everything I could too. I also had awkward hair, and it was the eighties... and this ended up in the local newspaper.

That is still my spinning wheel in the picture although poor 'Alice' doesn't get much use anymore, although I look at her everyday when I walk through my from door...

After a while Mum bought a spinning mill (factory - more on that another day) so we were producing our own yarn. This was where I spent most of my time. I learned to weave from Mum, but I learned about fabric production from old mill records given to me by the previous owner of the factory.
And we had stands at shows to promote the yarn (and my hair had still not decided what it wanted to do...).

This photo was taken just before I went to Italy to study, age 18.

And many, many tales were told after then, but this was the beginning...

And I wanted to make Belinda laugh at these silly photos!
cheers,
Mel.

Distort Exhibition

From my recent exhibition Distort this is my artist statement...


What makes our subconscious distort everyday emotions and objects into strange new worlds during day-dreams and night dreams? What process of subconscious flow creates images in our minds that can portray deep emotions or fanciful sojourns? I do not attempt to explain the functions of the process - I delight in the pleasure of using such mental meanderings by articulating them in stitched collage and weaving.

Within my processes I have borrowed ideas and methodologies of surrealists – most predominately that of 'the omnipotence of dream ... the disinterested play of thought' ¹. My work is not entirely true to this ideal, as I constrain myself with boundaries and objectives at the outset of the construction of the work. I always reach a point where I stop thinking about what I am creating and let my subconscious take over. The making of the work is more like a day-dream – a little control in a fanciful world.

In my own dreaming, I experience recurring themes, which, when reduced to intent, can be related to desire, innocence and trickery, and growth. The patterns these themes create are not always identical but rather, are part of the distorted whole. I relate this to my weaving by using separate but similar recurring patterns within the structure of the fabric. The viewer who considers the patterns notices that the repetition occasionally diverges from the expected. Often when the pattern repeats, the shading and colours change. I enjoy this as a metaphor for subconscious musings.

Glowing colours and threads enhance the depth of the image and evoke the lusciousness of the mind's conceptual interior.

Simple elements inspire my intuitive responses when I make the collage work. I have an initial inspiration and then try not to think about the subject further, allowing nonsensical wanderings to articulate themselves in the work from the initial ideas of object, line and colour. This gives collages that rely on the surrealist ideas of unconscious play and are pleasurable in their spontaneity.

The viewers orientation is relaxed, and the viewer chooses what the subject and final meaning are.

The collages are pleasurable in their spontaneity and almost nonsensical wanderings from initial ideas of object, line or colour. I try not to think about subject more than that initial inspiration while making the work. The construction is able to rely more on the surrealist ideas of unconscious play. The viewer's orientation is intended to be a relaxed one; it is entirely the viewer's choice what the subject or final meaning is.

In constructing the series of scarves I wished to play more on the viewer's and wearer's idea of how a scarf should be. Instead of starting from this end point, I considered 'How would the subconscious make a scarf?' The only constraining factor of a scarf is it's usability as something to be worn around the neck. So I decided to experiment with how not to make a scarf – cutting, pulling and distorting the fabric up to but not including the point of destruction – so long as it still functioned. It is up to the wearer how they are worn. The scarves are the functional articulation of the concepts I used to create the artworks.

As James Gleeson succinctly states “I've never accepted the external appearance of things as the whole truth. The world is much more elaborate than the nerves of our eye can tell us... " James Gleeson. So I encourage the viewer to consider the work inside their mind – stare at the pattern for five minutes. What does it evoke in your mind? Something, or nothing, that's ok.

1ANDRÉ BRETON Le Manifeste du Surréalisme, 1924

- cheers, mel

A Few More Photos From Melbourne

Rachel from RMIT textiles, Rachel spent the week running from teaching duties to looking after us. Thank you rachel for all your help!

Weaving on the loom by one of RMIT students. I am not sure who but it is a very interesting piece.

Cybil and Monique see what is going on in the shed.

This is Rocky my dog isn't he cute? he is lying beside me now as I am writing. Eyes to melt your heart.

What Next

After many months of no weaving I have started again. This week I wove off an old warp that had been on my small 8 shaft Tokia floor loom so about 9 months.

It felt good to just weave mindlessly for a few hours. The warp was white mohair that Mels Mum sells, its beautiful and soft. I was sampling for a new range of bed coverings. Must say mohair is sticky but Mel's solution of drinking straws is great.

I hate getting under the loom to tie up the treadles, its hard to climb under the looms and I always put if off.

The sample produced some interesting effects and I am happy with the result, so back to the warping mill for a few hours of winding and try again maybe using all 8 shafts this time.

Mel visited Canberra last week and we talked about many asspects of art with coffee and lunch at the National Gallery of Australia and visits to many of the galleries we are inspired to work together on an exhibition so think lots of colour and texture!.

So its time to start some research and play with some collage.

I had the most wonderful images sent to me from a friend in Florence Italy showing the new Fendi bag fabric delightful! I can't post the images as they don't belong to me. I will ask if I can publish them.

Jacquard week in Melbourne.

This is the joining of the old and new warp. Rachel said a little crab like machine does the work. I just love all the little knots.

My fabric sample (Friday) this took about Halp an hour to weave, with the help of Cybil winding bobbins for me.

Liz Williamson left and Pat Jones right

From left myself, Helen and Monique Van Nieuwland (from ANU textile deptment)

Well its been a while since Mel or I have posted anything on this blog, we are slack I know but with exhibtions, study,work etc we are both busy people.

I spent a wonderful week in Melbourne at RMIT University 2 weeks ago. Helen Houston from Scotweave (Scotland) taught a class on Scotweave software as an introduction to the program for industry and interested artists.

What a great week. There were 9 participantes including 3 RMIT staff ( opps having problems with cat who likes to walk and sleep on key board) the week gave me a chance to try a new program (always a challange). The program is easy if I may say that any computer program is easy to use. After a week I felt that I could scan or draw an image and work it in Scotweave and weave it. Although there is so much for me to learn I think I can cope with the basics'. Although I am sure I will need to do pleanty of refreshing with the software before I could start again. in the future.

During the week we learnt to design yarns on the program, this makes it easier to view your design as a simulated image thats would look more like your finished work. Next was dobby weave and then artwork and finally jacquard just what we had all been waiting for.

I must say I became a bit of a circle/spot girl. They were easy to draw and quick to get a result.

I need to do more work with double cloth to understand the full benefits of the program I think.

It was interesting to see all the equipment that RMIT has, so many wonderful hand looms and industrial looms I have never seen. I find the complete loom of interest. All the threads and working parts of a loom so of course I took photos of these as well.

Over the next few days I will write some more about the trip and add more photos'.

I am now hoping to get back to Melbourne to play again. I have a few ideas for exhibition work but will need to plan, work in photoshop, plan, plan save some money, plan, hope Pat lets me come to Melbourne and I will be away!

Belinda