Ace Jet 170

Threads in space

 

 

September witnessed the second public outing for my ThreadForms. Accompanied by a large and surprising slice of success! You just never know do you? I love making these things. If I had space, would hang every last one of them on my own enclosed walls and spend my days gazing adoringly at me own creations. Poor, starving, filthy…but happy.

But I don't expect anyone else to like them.

Thankfully, for my family, they are liked by more than I could ever have expected and some people are even prepared to part with their hard earned money to own a little piece of me.

To those encouraging and generous people I say thank you.

I'd made three space exploration pieces, which were the first to go and here are the next three in that series: Kepler-22b above and Mars then Jupiter below. 

Next outing is on Saturday 14 December at the Black Santa Bazaar in St Anne's Cathedral Belfast (same place as last time). It's a spectacular venue so worth coming along just to check out the space and avoid the usual entrance fee. But you might just pick up a piece of something surprising to fill someone's stocking.

In 2020, I'm going to put ThreadForms on some kind of online market place. Haven't decided which yet. So there's another unknown ahead.

 

Coast Stories

 

 

On Saturday 6 July, 2—10pm, I'll be selling my weird wares at the Seaside Revival Festival in nearby Bangor (Northern Ireland, for readers from other lands). I'm in the throes of creating a special coastal series of ThreadForms, using photos taken from around the coastline over the past 15 or so years (I knew I'd find a use for them!). Threaded lines, typed titles, found materials and original photos meet in 30 x 40cm frames.

The Wrong Ways: A—E

 

 

 

 

 

 

A few weeks ago I posted a set of map key extracts along with a suggestion that they were the beginnings of something. Here is that something else. Sewn weirdness that keeps my itchy fingers busy during idle moments. I've put them on the Ace Jet spin off ThreadForms.

ThreadForms

 

 

I've put most of the thread art pieces I've made so far here on threadforms.com…and I've given them all names. Some make sense, some…well…make your own mind up.

 

Peter Saville meets Alfred Wainwright

 

 

Extracted from Ordnance Survey map keys, actually from a 1975 metric edition of B. Lockey's The interpretation of Ordnance Survey maps and geographical pictures. I've got plans for them. Isolated like this, 'Saville vs. Wainwright' sprang to mind.

Threads & Photos

 

 

Prints of Instagrammed images of Northern Ireland's north coast with intersecting thread lines of black and red. I've been working on thread compositions for a few years now. It's an on-going project that's seen long periods of inactivity and short, frenzied bursts of needlework.

I feel that it could be my most original pastime. I'm not sure what the precedent is…Maybe the string pictures of the seventies; precisely spaced tacks on felt-wrapped boards, intertwined with cotton or string to create analogue moiré patterns, as in Barbara Hepworth's Orpheus (Maquette 2) (Version II), from 1956, edition 1959…

Perhaps it's the influence of my wife's craft activities – the presence of cotton thread was a constant in our house before she had her own studio space. Then again, I can see the influence of El Lissitsky's Suprematist work that I used to be obsessed with. Add to that the slightest hint – a mere pinch – of collage (another obsession) and I can begin to see how my brain brought these into existence.

Loose Threads

I'm just putting these here. I've sold a couple, without trying but one day I'd like to get them out there and see if anyone's interested. Personally, I love them, which is the best place to start. Watercolour with cotton threads.