Tangled Garden Revisited
Tangled Garden Revisited – My portion of a group project of ‘Frayed Edges, Almonte, ON 2007
Name
Tangled Garden Revisited
Medium
Quilt / Fibre Art
Description (from proposal to our first show)
‘Frayed Edges’ is a community of artists who share a passion for creating with fibre which I helped to establish. These contemporary artists live within a 100 km radius of Almonte, ON and meet monthly to share new ideas and techniques, to encourage and support each other and to seek opportunities to exhibit their work as a group. The techniques and interpretations of each artist are uniquely personal, but are often inspired by the knowledge and experiences shared within the group. Support and encouragement from within the group are important elements in the evolution of each individual’s work.
To maximize opportunities for sharing, a group project was undertaken in the initial year. The project focused on the reproduction, in fibre, of a well known piece of art ‘The Tangled Garden’, a well know and loved work of James Edward Hervey (J.E.H.) MacDonald (1873-1932). The original work by this member of the Group of Seven was produced in oil on beaver board in 1916. 2007 marked 75 years since the death of the artist.
Each member of Frayed Edges was assigned a portion of the painting for reproduction in a technique of their own choosing. This piece of art provides an opportunity for the viewer to explore the myriad of techniques now used by fibre artists. The finished piece, while based on the size of the original painting (approximately 60” by 48”), measures slightly larger than the original as a result of framing and assembly techniques that are used.
Each section, completed without knowledge of what the adjacent sections would look like, were mounted on one of three depths of stretcher frames, creating a mulit-level surface.
Section 11: Diane Duncan
For my portion of the work I chose a slightly patterned background and layered a sheer ‘curtain material’ with shades of grey-green leaves over the background fabric and added cut pieces of cotton fabric in the shapes of major color-areas. Using a clear plastic ‘map’ I placed these on the foundation fabrics and then thread painted using a variety of threads. Once the main shapes were 90% completed, I added additional thread painting between pieces. Areas that were darkest in the painting were left unworked and, using scissors, I removed the sheer fabric to reveal the background fabric, producing the shading required.
Circa 2007.
Status
In the permanent collection of the Mississippi Valley Textile Museum (MVTM), Almonte, ON, Canada.
Tangled Garden Revisited – A Group Project of ‘Frayed Edges’, Almonte, ON 2007