July 16, 2013

A New Textile: "Color Circle"


Color Circle, hand dyed wool on linen, 12 in. diameter.


I'd been thinking for a while of doing a round piece, and had done several small sketches with different compositional ideas. I decided on a circle with three arcs crossing it, the arcs being much larger in circumference than the circle itself. I liked how the arcs gave the image an illusionistic quality, and I admit I kept thinking "beach ball". After I'd decided on the drawing, color was next: first I did a subtle sketch, using mixed tertiary colors, but then did one with these bright colors (beach ball!). It's summer, time to go with the vivid and bold. I used the red blue green of Ellsworth Kelly (see the painting below) and added a big swath of yellow, having it overlap the blue and red to make a yellow-green and an orange. When dyeing the wool, I tried to make the colors fairly equal in intensity, so no one color would demand the most attention. 


Color Circle, detail


I cut the strips of black slightly narrower than the colors, using a smaller cutting wheel on my Fraser cutting machine. I also had to decide in which direction to hook the wool, settling on continuing the circular pattern from edges to center; the center here being off center from the lines and color. With the black arcs, the hooking pattern emphasizes round.  I'm now tempted to try other circle designs, maybe next flat


Ellsworth Kelly, Red Blue Green, 1963; oil on canvas, 83 5/8 x 135 7/8 in.



12 comments:

  1. I love this Altoon, and the intensity of the colors is wonderful!

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  2. Being a potter and in love with "round" I am excited to see how your endeavor evolves.

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  3. Thanks, Deborah and Linda. I'm happy that you like this new piece.

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  4. This is a perfect piece for summer. It reminds me of those beach balls we used to play with.

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  5. I love the way you always surprise with your rug hooked works. This is such a happy piece. I can picture it bouncing across the sand. It is not always easy to work in the round with hooking and your technique is excellent.

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  6. it looks happy and makes me feel happy too -- I've always loved beach balls. How funny that they are always beach balls and no other ball is made to look like that!
    Missing you over in FB!

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  7. Thanks, Lori and Ravenna. It's nice that your both see a cheery piece here.

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  8. I love the visual pun of the two centers.

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