World of Threads, Part Two

First up, this striking piece by Belle Shafir, called "Samsara"
 
Not apparent in this photo is the slight sense of menace or imminent danger this piece gave off. It was disconcerting to walk in front of it, but worse as you passed it and it was behind you. I thought it was just me, but my companion said the same! I've felt lots of things from fiber art before, positive and negative, but menace was a first!
 
I liked it very much just the same though.


 

Cindi Gaudette of Providence, RI used plaster, horsehair, cheesecloth, latex, wool, coffee and thread to make the pieces above - which go very well with Kath Hampel's piece, below it. I think someone should buy them together. :)

 
 
 
This piece is by Connie Chappel, from Winnipeg, Manitoba. She used paper pulp, paint, glitter, glass shards, ostrich feathers, white glue and enamel paint to created this piece by splattering the paper pulp layers onto board and then embedding found objects into the pulp. and glued into the pulp.



 
When you looked at the piece closely, you could actually see bits of feathers and other things in it, as if it were alive, and consuming the flotsam and jetsum of the earth.  
  
 

 
When I saw this piece from across the hall, I said "I bet that's Eszter Bornemisza"(from Budapest, Hungary). And so it was.  "She always has such interesting ideas!" I exclaimed. My companion said "That's the mark of a true artist, isn't it?"
 
 

 Very interesting indeed! I was very taken by her entry in the last World of Threads, two years ago as well.
T
This piece by Jeanine de Raeymaecker, Mechelen from Belgium is made of handmade paper from old books, coloured fabric, cotton thread, knotted, in a technique developed by the artist.  



 I can't figure out what that technique is as it looked exactly like sticks! But it was one of my favourites in the show.




Lesley Turner, Victoria, British Columbia, eco stained, laundered, and hand machine stitched various fabrics to make this piece.



I thought its mounting was quite incredible! 



Marie Bergstedt from San Francisco CA, made this piece called "Terry" out of buttons.





This was another of my favourites by Maureen Ballagh, Orleans, Ontario, made with nettle yarn with grass, clover and beeswax, knitted and then wax dripped.
 


These pieces by Penny Berens of Nova Scotia Canada, blew me away! (Thank you for catching my error - Judy) All completely hand stitched they were giant pieces (for completely hand stitched work) and inspired me to get back to hand stitching myself.
(My hands are feeling that decision though. lol)


 
 
Although I can't say I loved the aesthetics of this piece by Neha Puri Dhir from Vadodara, Gujarat, India, the method was VERY exciting. This piece was quite large  - maybe 4 feet by 4 and half feet, and she has stitch-resist dyed hand woven Tussar and Munga silk. Stitch resist dyed.
 
I was so taken aback by this and her two other pieces, I wanted to meet her and say "teach me your ways"! There were several other artists in that particular gallery at the time I was who were all equally excited about this method. I think she'll have no trouble booking classes in future!
 
 




And there was something about this ethereal piece by Tammy Ratcliff of Guelph, Ontario that was quite compelling. It and her other piece were very quiet compared to some of the other work in the hall. I've darkened the colours in the photo so you can them more clearly, but the piece was composes of several gauzy layers that hung in front of each other to create the effect you see here.

 
 

 
 
 
 And last, but not least, this piece by Penelope Stewart of Toronto called "Late in the Season". This thing was huge. HUGE. The human (lol) is in the picture for scale - but the piece extended far beyond what I could photograph, even pressed up against the wall 30 feet away. Perhaps another 3 or 4 feet to the left side and even more above, it's all hand carved beeswax.
 


Yes, hand carved.
 
Apparently the curators had this piece purpose made for the show - Gareth Bate says "Dawne  (Rudman) and I wanted to create a show that featured the beauty of decay and seasonal changes as well as organic and natural coloured work that evokes either the body or nature. All these works were found in our call for submissions rather than having the theme in advance."

Charlotte Østergaard, Copenhagen Denmark –  made this piece out of thread, plexiglass and stiffener. I thought it was very pretty so included it here.

And finally, of the Toronto show, these pieces were my very favourite. After a lot of "high art" (and this show was FULL of it - remember, I'm showing you what caught my eye the most - not all of the show!); these were charming and relatable.


Joyce Watkins King.

These two posts have been from the Oakville exhibition of World of Threads. On Monday, I'll show you Mississauga exhibition.

If you're able, its your last weekend to catch it. Closing day is on Sunday.

Cheers,

Kit

Kit Lang

2 comments:

  1. Thank you very much for your coverage of the World of threads exhibition. You noticed different things than I did. Just one thing in this post, the three hand stitched pieces are by Penny Berens of Nova Scotia Canada. Perhaps you can make a quick edit.
    Thanks again. xo

    ReplyDelete
  2. Thanks for this coverage of the World of Threads. One of these years I hope to back to Ontario to see this show. Wish it travelled to the west coast. Mary Ann

    ReplyDelete