Collage Series 2: Three Fates

Collage 2.7- Three Fates, copyright 2020 Linda Farrelly

Rummaging through the family pictures again. I found some pictures of (L to R) my aunt Tina, grandmother Sandra, and my mother Nancy. Not sure of the year, but I think it must be the mid to late 1960s. They were the universe from which I emerged, running through the woods in my red coat and hat.

I really did get to grow up running through the woods in Bald Hill Ski Bowl, something for which I am eternally grateful. We played in hollow trees, sledded down the service roads, rode bikes on the paths, took the shortcut under the fence that the neighborhood dogs had dug. In the winter, they flooded a basketball court for ice skating, renting out skates and selling hot chocolate. Sometimes I came across treasures in the woods. I once found a tiny bible, about 1.5" tall, and the pages pivoted out of the metal cover. I don't know what happened to that, but I do have the silver ring with a man's face on it that I found when I was about 7.

According to Wikipedia, the Three Fates "were the white-robed incarnations of destiny...Clotho ("spinner"), Lachesis ("allotter") and Atropos ("the unturnable", a metaphor for death). They controlled the mother thread of life of every mortal from birth to death. They were independent, at the helm of necessity, directed fate, and watched that the fate assigned to every being by eternal laws might take its course without obstruction. Both gods and men had to submit to them..."* Sounds about right, sounds like the women in my family. 

I like how their bodies sort of rise up and grow out of the picture of the nebula in the middle. Also, I enjoy how the trees at the top look like birds wings or feathered cloaks wrapped around the sisters, enclosing them, and protecting my world.

The nebula pic and the starry background came from Scientific American, and the trees came from Spark, put out by the most awesome Anythink Libraries.

*https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Moirai

Collage Series 2: Caution Cuidado

Collage 2.6: Caution Cuidado, copyright 2020 Linda Farrelly

For about a week, the maintenance crew kept adding more caution tape every day, wrapping each piece of play equipment several times. I guess people didn't think they meant it? One day the basketball hoop was normal, then the net was gone but the hoop was there. Next, there was caution tape strung from the hoop in big sweeping swags (gorgeous blowing in the wind, but that day I had forgotten my phone so no pictures). Then the hoop disappeared entirely, and they cordoned off the whole area using equipment, posts, and benches to anchor the tape.

This playground has, for me, become a symbol of life during the pandemic. Devoid of children, cordoned off, declared a danger zone. But the bright yellow always cheers me, reminds me that there is a good reason, that this will be over (hopefully) soon, and children will run and climb and shout here once again.

The daffodils were still in bloom, but the dandelions had begun to join them. Except for the daffs, all of these pics are from the park in the center of our community.

Collage Series 2: Spring 2020

Collage 2.5: Spring 2020, copyright 2020 Linda Farrelly

On my daily walks during this time of social distancing, I began to take pictures to use in collage. Flowers, trees, the textures of a rock, the shadow of a tree. Sometime during the second week the daffodils started to bloom bright yellow, and so did the playground. Daffodil yellow caution tape encircled each play piece. It was a startling sight. I had wondered when, and if, and how that was going to happen. A swarm of children on playground equipment could spread covid 19 from one house to dozens of them in no time. Sad to see the playground out of bounds, but happy everyone else now had a better chance of making it through. A strange spring, 2020.

The playground is in the park at the center of our community, and the daffodils are from my yard. They live under the apple tree, enjoying the warm spring sun.

What surprises have you discovered lately?

Collage Series 2: Earthly Remains

Collage 2.4: Earthly Remains, copyright 2020 Linda Farrelly

My dad again, as a child, and myself as a child. He seems such a mystery to me, yet in some ways I knew him intimately. I knew him when I was a child, but once I was a self-sufficient adult he was long gone. I often wonder how my life might have been different if he was around more when I was a teenager and young adult. I wish he could have met my kids, and I wish my kids could have seen the mischievous glint in his eye, experienced his warmth and wit.

Not that he didn't have his issues. He and my mom had some fights that were worthy of the silver screen. The family he grew up in basically disintegrated at some point, leaving him and a couple of his sisters to be raised by the nuns in an orphanage (long story). The bitterness he felt towards his own father never lessened, never left him.

 But I knew he loved me, appreciated me for who I was. I feel like he and I shared the same basic temperament, quiet mostly, drawn towards physical labor and tasks involved in making things. Drawing. Writing. Taking pictures. Building things. Bad puns and sarcasm.

Mom- What do you want for breakfast?

Me- Make me oatmeal!

Dad- Poof! You're oatmeal!

Collage Series 2: Inner Light

After I cut out all those pictures for Playing Ball, I realized the backgrounds were every bit as interesting as the figures I removed. What to do, what to do...

Collage 2.3: Inner Light, copyright 2020 Linda Farrelly

Using the negative space is a fun way to talk about internal vs. external reality. I look at that little girl and see all this sweetness and joy, and just a bit of mischief. When you take away the physical form, what lies beneath?

What do you want your future look like?

My bedroom window, the first thing I see in the morning.

Lately, I have been giving a lot of thought to what I want my new version of normal life to look like. I'm sure many of you have been thinking about this too. Although I will need to return to my job for at least a while, I do not want to stay there long-term. Not that I don't like it, I do. But it isn't what I want to do with my life.

This crisis has given me time and space to think about what I really want. That is to be an artist, a full-time, financially stable artist. I have enjoyed taking time every day to create: to draw, collage, weave, write, to think. Working at home on art all day feels right to me, it is comfortable in a way nothing else has been. I feel focused and at peace. I can also see the progress I have made in a few short weeks.

My art studio is almost finished. The last section of floor will be ready for furniture on Thursday. My drafting table arrives on Friday. I hope to have everything organized and in a useful state by Monday. That gives me at least a week to work in there seriously before I have to go back to work. The weaving studio has been up and running, although it still needs some organizing. Moving some of the fine art stuff out of the weaving studio will help. At this point, I have been researching domain names and site hosting options. This summer I will take my last class, website design. My capstone project will be done in the fall semester, then school will be over for the time being. Time to take the plunge!

I do realize I need to do this in stages. I cannot afford right now to just quit my job. But I can start my art business in a real way and scale back my work-for-wages as I am able to. I can build my email list and work on a good website, build a solid body of work and start marketing in earnest. Starting Monday, that's my plan. Starting Monday, I will consider myself to be a working artist who sometimes works for wages, instead of a full-time worker who sometimes makes art.

What have you discovered about yourself during this "downtime"? How do you want to live? What have you been able to do lately that you are not willing to give up? What will your new normal look like?

Series One Scarves 1-8

Series 1 Scarves 1-8

Since January 2019, I have been exploring the design possibilities of my rigid heddle loom. Sounds hifalutin, I know.  But really, it’s simple. Here are the rules. I have a 10” wide rigid heddle loom and a bunch of sock yarn, both full skeins and smaller amounts. Each sock yarn is wound into a 3-yard warp. However many ends I get, that’s it. Some warps have only 5 or 10 ends, others can have more than 100. I can combine different yarns to make a wider scarf, but I must use all the ends. The weft yarn, however, can be anything.

Each warp or combination of warps presents a unique design problem. How to arrange the warp threads? Random? Gradated? Striped? I do enjoy doing the math, figuring out a pattern that fits the number and type of warps. Once the loom is set up, I get to play with weft threads. 3 yards is longer than I need to weave a scarf, so there is plenty of room to experiment. A heavy yarn, maybe? A solid or a pattern? Maybe a fine yarn. And what color? Shall I use a color from the warp, or maybe try a contrasting color? Light or dark? The only way to know for sure is to weave a few inches. Once I find the right weft, I weave to the end, cut it off the loom, wash it, and see what I’ve got.

It’s fascinating to see how the fibers, colors, patterns, and textures interact. Each scarf challenges me and adds to my knowledge and informs the next scarf, gives me ideas for what to try next. As exciting as it is to see the finished project, what I truly love is the process of discovery that brings each scarf into being.

Warp 1.1

 Although I love the colors and the feel of the finished cloth, there were tension problems in the warp. Did not have a long enough mistake-free length to make a scarf, but I will use the good sections for something.

Scarf 1.2

This one was a success! I love how the sky colors came together, very simple and quiet. There was just the right amount of variation in color and tone. And using a strang of KidSilk Haze paired with a very fine wool for the weft made it feather-light and buttery-soft.

Scarf 1.3

I enjoyed this one very much. Using a variegated yarn in warp stripes and a solid color between them made for a bright and lovely combination of early fall colors. Available at lafarrelly.etsy.com.

Scarf 1.4

For this one, I wanted to see what a gradation between a variegated and a solid yarn. I love the effect! Definitely a spring scarf, with flower colors blending into green. Available at lafarrelly.etsy.com

Scarf 1.5

I had 2 colors I really wanted to use together. Smaller stripes worked well, gave it a classic look and showed off the colors without becoming loud. 

Scarf 1.6

Using the narrow stripe idea again, the variegated yarn is the background, undulating just under the surface. This one reminds me of sunflowers! Available at lafarrelly.etsy.com.

Scarf 1.7

A turquoise yarn with black and white flecks serves as a backdrop for narrow variegated stripes in blues and grays.

Scarf 1.8

Pairing a navy solid with a variegated blue, brown, and ivory yarn, the shifting stripes make for a jazzy scarf with colors that go with anything. I did not realize until now that I never got a picture of the finished scarf. 

The next 3 scarves are off the loom, waiting to be wet-finished and hemmed. That's on my list for this week, so it should not be too long before they hit Etsy and the blog.