Journal Day 44

Today I finished off my multi choice project. I found a length of cotton fabric that was long and thin. But just wide enough to stitch the life drawing onto. First I started out with the two figures and text from this design in white. Then I went over the top with black stitch for one of the two figures.

When I finished the figures and looked at it, I flipped it over and saw that the back side of the print was simplistic and that I actually preferred it! The traces of white stitch where much more discreet, and the side of text much less messy. I preferred the clean feel to the reverse side. It felt neater and tidier. And so I tried to stitch "curved" in 3 or 4 places along the length of the fabric, alternating figures. However at each end of the fabric I struggled with this as the fabric was loose when stitching. Even when I used an embroidery hoop I struggled as the text needed to be so close to the edge of the fabric to match the repeating pattern. Plus the stitch itself for the text seemed stretched and I think I probably had the machine on the wrong setting for stitching text.

I like the small progression made towards a more simplistic style for this format, as it is not only different to the first format but also a progression towards the style that prints and repeated patterns such as these tend to follow.

Tomorrow I am excited to learn about photo screening for the packaging project, and think that that style would have worked well to create a print with for another multi choice format, or the same format but without the stitch. Perhaps another time.

Now that the multi choice project is finished I'm pleased with it. I think that the work I have done with life drawing has opened up new avenues and space to combine new techniques. In this project I have combined typography and text as well as a narrative, and a mixed use of mediums. I enjoy the merging of different ideas, mediums and techniques in projects like this, and am glad to have done the project this way as it has become a reminder of why I love mixed media textiles so much.

Having done the two formats and a fair amount of work in my book, I believe I have done enough; even though I kinda want to do more. If I get time tomorrow or Monday then I will add a print (or even after the assessment on Tuesday as I have most of the week free) or two.

In terms of my other projects at the moment, I would like to do some more for illustration, but am trying to do so much for packaging as that is something that I am really enjoying and want to develop as far as possible before the assessment. Again, if I get time I will do more and create a final piece for it.

Abiento x