FIBER FEST at the Sharon Exhibition Gallery

Please join Wen Redmond at the Fiber Fest located at 30 Grove Street, Peterborough, NH

Wen will presenting a slide show, trunk show and talk about her journey with the digital fiber processes at the Sharon Art Center on OCT 3rd 1-2pm. Q&A too!

http://www.nhia.edu/about/news-and-events/news/fiber-fest

Artist of the Month at Exeter Fine Crafts

 August 2015 was a hot day to be in a cool gallery!

 I was there Saturday afternoon. It was wonderful to be able to share my love of fiber, photography and collage with the folks who visited.

 Hope you can get to 61 Water St,  Exeter NH to see it. Lots of work and some excellent prices!

Exeter Fine Crafts Artist of the Month

I hope you’re having a most relaxing summer! Just a short post about 2 events I’m proud to share!

I’m featured at Exeter Fine Crafts, Exeter NH as Augusts’ Artist of Month. Come by to see new works and some great discounts on other work! 

Reception on August 15th with more goodies, Q&A and more. Stop by anytime 1-4!!

http://www.exeterfinecrafts.com/aotm.html

And 2 of my works are in Living with Craft at the League of NH Craftsmen’s Sunapee Fair August 1-9 in Newberry NH.
https://www.nhcrafts.org/craftsmens-fair-exhibitions.php

Morning Window Reflections

very often, on awakening I have this grateful sense of the possibilities of the brand new day.
I may have a brief meditation, write a short poem or take a picture of a spectacular sunrise.
Here's a couple snippets to cheer you on...
unfurl the new day! sing the song of unwritten melodies!

the lake twinkles outside my morning window, glinting and winking it's serene call. a new day begins laden with promises...

'Full mOOn reflections'

'Full mOOn reflections', circa 2008, is an experiment with transparent fiber. It has several layers, with a circle was cut directly in the main piece.

 I re-used the circle, the mOON, elsewhere in the piece, repeating the design motif. The collage is done with mono-printed transparent silk organza, encouraging interaction between layers.

Each layer influences the whole picture, albeit metaphysically speaking, to see deeply. To go beyond what one sees in front of our faces, to see the innocent child beneath the tired store clerk, to wave a stressed driver to pass, to give each other some slack. The full moon has been blamed for negative reactions among humanity. However, in the matriarchal times, the full moon was a time of inner reflection, to go within and encourage an interaction. A time when the veil between worlds was thin. Thin as silk organza.

from my craft booth days...

 never thought a black booth would work but it really popped the work!

always crowded my booth 

lighting is so important!

Intuitive Pieced Jackets

used to make wonderful hand-dyed wool jackets in the early 90's.

Blast Out!

working on a very special project that combines all of my techniques, in one place, to share with folks in a most wonderful way!

Announcement- Retirement from Teaching! Thanks for the Years!

at Pro Chem, MA 2011

NH Mixed Media artist, Wen Redmond has made the bittersweet decision to retire from teaching workshops- unless inspired by mad impulse! 
Many of her techniques can be found in magazines or DVD's in links on her workshop page on her blog.
http://fiberartgoddess.blogspot.com/p/workshops.html

at the SDA Conference 2011

So she's not dropping off the map! It's just life has offered other opportunities both in her art and in her family that requires her devotion and energy.

Peters Valley NJ 2013

Here's what happened though-

2010 Northern Lights Quilt Guild

The NE guilds, MA/RI and NH/VT/ME hosted Leni Weiner at the recent SAQA meeting held during the MQX Festival in Manchester, earlier this month. Her talk was about listening to your voice, which I thought I've been doing.
However, listening also means not doing everything like you always have, it means eliminating parts of your art that aren't working for you anymore- etc- go listen to her lecture- Fantastic!

Milford NH Souhegan Valley Quilters' Guild 2011

Anyway, I realized that I don't want or need to teach anymore. I enjoy it but I have another focus both in art and family that helped me decide I can't spend the time on garnering, publicizing, gathering supplies, review, revision, travel, dealing with cancellations and keeping ALL the supplies in my studio for the next time. I will let it go! And never say never- there may be an odd workshop here and there.
sigh, thank you Leni!!

Quilters Connections 2010 

just a few photos from over the years. Many are before the digital revolution! 
Thanks for the Years!

Machine Quilters Exposition

Just Finished teaching
a 1/2 day workshop- Thermal Facts
and
a full day workshop- Holographic Memories
Where we had a wonderful class with lots of enthusiasm!

 Busy working!
Some of the participants took both classes and had personalized fabric for their frame borders!

 Never has hammering sounds been so sweet!

Adele with her awesome finished work! A Winter Fairy Land!

 Donna created the fabric just for this photograph. Very contemplative!

Diane choose a fabric from my stash for a finished Holographic Image that repeats the lines in her photograph for a harmonized result!

Great job Everyone! It was my pleasure to be your teacher!

MQX is a Rock Star Show. I hope you get to see it!

www.mqxshow.com

The Machine- Created for SAQA Silver Anniversary

Digital Fiber

A photograph of a reflection in a store window filled with antique sewing machines of all varieties

detail

Printed on Textured Molding Paste, stitched, and cut into segments. Each segment is hand-tied together.

molding paste drying

inkAid applied

Digital Broadcloth, paint, medium, pearl cotton & thread

34.5x45 

on table with backing and getting ready to cut into segments

Created for SAQA Silver Anniversary

A photographic reflection of a storefront window filled with sewing machines. This piece is dedicated to SAQA and the Machine that made modern fiber art possible!

The Machine

While walking on a street in Boston with my son, we passed a storefront window filled with antique sewing machines of all brands. What a delight! I took several photographs because I found it so interesting. The glass of the window captured the machines and the street we were standing on in a hazy reflection.

 The combination of the old sewing machines with the urban scene strike me as juxtaposition, representing the lengths that art quilting has traveled.

I chose to present this image printed on a molding paste substrate. I prepared interfacing as the substrate, spread on the paste & coated with an ink jet preparation. The image was divided accordingly, printed and quilted.

Some of the machines in the photograph are distorted and hazy so I quilted the machines in black at first, but they needed some additional highlighting. I choose a variegated black & silver to continue the theme of SAQA’s Silver Anniversary.

Each section was then reassembled viva hand stitching and tying. This technique resembles how SAQA holds all of the great variety in the art quilt world together.

Who else would appreciate the sewing machine as much! This piece, The Machine, is dedicated to SAQA and the Machine that made modern fiber art possible!

original photograph- can you see my son & me? 

National Fiber Directions

Pleased that two of my works have been selected for National Fiber Directions, in Wichita, KS

Whispers of the Positive

Collage

Hand pulled print, collaged, and sewn watercolor paper, cloth, painted with acrylics, layered with digital images, monoprinting.

Inkjet prints, cyanotype, silk organza, cheesecloth, watercolor paper, ink drawings and mediums.

23x30 

Edge of Winter

Molding Paste, inkAid, photograph, fabric, acrylic, glass bead medium, hand painted fabrics and stitched with pearl cotton.

19x27 

This work was an experiment, what I love to do best. The photograph was taken on a foggy day so there was little detail. I use my textured photograph technique that was published and still available- here. I used pearl inkaid to bring out the glow one finds on those magical days of fog. 

Designed to Inspire so you'll be Inspired to Design! Collagraphs!

Collagraph's are easy to make!
Use a stiff base like cardboard, foam board etc. Glue low relief items to it.
You can even use a hot glue gun to make marks on the base.

the inked plate

Apply thicker fabric paints, screen printing inks or acrylic paint to the base with a brush. A foam brush will shred so I use a inexpensive bristle brush found at a local mart. These are called 'chip' brushes. Note- I always use washable paints.

rolling out ink with a brayer

Sometimes I just brayer the top of the collagraph to catch the design. Experiment with all techniques to find the one you like the best. 

on Painted Fabric from my Fabric Transformations Workshop

collagraph on a T-Shirt

detail

Painting Fabrics- Sunprinting

Sunprinting is a great excuse to do some plain air painting! Gather your paints on a sunny warm day and go outside. I generally paint on a plastic surface, so I can just spread out on any table.

Most washable paints will work with this technique. The best results will come when the paint dries the quickest and the item you use is in good contact with the wet paint. That said, you can do this inside overnight until the fabric dries but the result will be more hazy and less defined.

 All of the fabrics used are pima cotton and PDF. But you can use any washed non-textured fabric. Texture interferes with the printing results. The fabric above uses cheesecloth for it's print.

This fabric has a print using a section of rug mat. I over-sprayed with 2 different metallics while it was drying resulting in a slight diffused metallic spread. Metallics must be diluted when sprayed or they will clog your spray bottle. There are spray metallic paints available.

A simple toothpick print evokes a fence, bare trees in winter, or playful pick up sticks. Who remembers those?

Natural materials of all sorts can create wonderful prints and you're already outside after all!!
Sunprinting is part of my Fab Fabric Painting Workshop.

Fabric Painting- On A Roll! Brayer Printing

I use inexpensive brayers, found at any hardware or dollar store, to create textured printing. Use inexpensive sponge, foam and textured brayers. 

Paint a sponge brayer with a textured medium to create unique textural mark. Do you still have your old glue gun? Fire it up and decorate a cheap sponge brayer for a very personal mark-making tool.

You can also use any recycled cardboard tubes, toilet paper, corks, even old thread spools to make your own brayers.
Add designs using foam stickies, string, elastic, cloth scraps and you’re on a roll! Try carving an old candle!

Print on a padded surface for the best detail. I have a print/ironing table in my studio. It can be made with firm batting or acrylic wool covered with duck or some sturdy fabric. I staple it directly to the underside of the table. It can be removed when it starts to turn multicolored and re0worked into delightful painted fabric for your art projects.

Hint- I keep my paints upside down when stored. This way I can see the colors readily, the paint is ready to squirt out of the container and it helps seal the paint container for less evaporation.

 simple thread tangled on a brayer