As I sit here listening to the wind howl I am reminded of what a Gothic county we live in, just think Whitby Abbey or the North Yorkshire Moors. With the lashing rain and hovering storm clouds it brings out my inner darkness, I think we all have some in there somewhere. I have just joined a forum site called Smeared and Smudged, it has some amazing pieces of art on there, all rubber stamp based and all just a little bit twisted. I love it, or should I say the girl inside me who used to wear crosses and leather bracelets does (it was the 80's). I like using dark and supernatural objects in my art, I find it fun. That might sound odd, but making a beautiful 1950's style dress with material that has something subversive on it, something that you wouldn't expect on that style of dress is what makes it more interesting.
There has always been a juxtaposition of light and dark in art, you cannot portray light without shadows. Surrealist art is one of my favourites as it seems to encompass these ideas and I just like plain weird sometimes! The idea of a field of beautiful flowers, with insects drifting in and out and stitched across the sky a message, 'Life's a Bitch and then you Die'. That's the sketch for a cushion cover I have in my notebook and it just makes me chuckle. My notebook is where I sketch my ideas for cards, canvases and fabric pieces, they don't all make it to a physical reality, but sometimes a bit of the idea makes it into something else. I also keep an art journal, although mine is more of an art diary as I write in it as well.
I not a great artist or even a good one but I enjoy what I do and I do it for me. Look up art journalling on Google or YouTube and see if it's something you might be interested in. I have kept a diary on and off for years, but this is the form I have enjoyed the most, think of it as an illustrated diary. So tomorrow there may be a Yorkshire inspired Gothic themed page, putting down on paper what has passed over the weekend (not much actually) but even the minutiae of life may be interesting to future generations. What you did on a wet day in September can fill a page, you'll be surprised. Or maybe make a dress, bag or cushion with a twist. When you visit Carolyn's shop look at the fabric in a different way, envisage it in dimensional form as a soft furnishing or item of clothing, embellishments can make a difference as well. Who doesn't love a few sequins or a pompom trim and look at those Halloween or Christmas fabrics with a fresh eye. Christmas fabric would make a nice skirt or dress for a child (or even an adventurous adult). Carolyn's shop (Make Me Fabrics) seems ready to burst at the seams and she has more to come in stock yet, she really does need bigger premises!
So on this dark autumn night contemplate starting an art journal yourself, you don't have to show anyone else and it can contain what you want. Think as well of what you could do with that favourite piece of fabric or that stash of buttons and trim, all of these can crossover into mixed media pieces. I am in truth a jack of all trades and master of none, but learning all these new skills has opened up a whole new world to me. I have found an interest in art I never knew was there and rediscovered a love of sewing and textiles. I like the fact I can connect with someone half way around the world and find something in common. So let out your inner darkness and find the fun in the macabre, make a skirt from some Halloween fabric. If Christmas is the time to be jolly then this time of year should surely be the time for a darker merriment.
Encouraging you all to try something new and make time to rediscover your inner self,
all my love
Louise xx.
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