Waterworks Is Done!

I finally finished a piece I began during the summer. I set out to make deconstructed silk screens that would print with as many variations of the characteristics of water that I could come up with. I had a lot to choose from when time came to assemble them into a piece of art. When I began to put the pieces together, I knew it had to be a sculptural form to express those rolling waves!

For me, the undulating waves of the current and the force of rolling water under the keel of a boat and the spray from head on contact with it under sail – these are the qualities I was after in the printmaking.

Born under a water sign, I’ve always chosen to be near the ocean, be it on the northeast or northwest coasts of this country, always living between 0 to 7 miles of the coastline. So, I feel a deep affinity for the marine environment.  Living right on the water when I first arrived on Cape Cod was a special and memorable time of my life.

Thanks go out to Regina Benson who coached me via email on to use sculpture wire to strengthen the form of this piece so it would hang properly on a wall. After hand sewing all the wire, I decided I needed to add some filling behind the fabric so it would better hold its’ shape. This is my first piece of  sculptural textile art.

I named it before I even made it as I was printing out the cloth. I offered to change the name because it was so close to the title for Regina’s piece, but she gave me her blessing because Waterworks was the name of the exhibit, not her piece.

I entered it into the Art Call for an exhibit at the Brush Gallery in Lowell, MA  with my fingers crossed!  The CURRENTS exhibit will be through the SAQA REGIONAL• Mass & Rhode Island Members. I’ll know if it gets in on May 31, 2016.