A couple of weeks ago I discovered the Textile Blog, which has this to say about itself
This blog concentrates on the history of textiles, but does include contemporary work. Among the subjects covered are printed, woven and knitted textiles, as well as rug, tapestry, quilting, embroidery, lace, and basketry design.
One of the posts that caught my eye in the past week was this one about Mariska Karasz. The first image of the Calla Lily embroidery from 1951 is one of the most interesting pieces of embroidery that I have ever seen. It is quite abstract yet still is instantly recognisable as a lily. The choice of stitches is masterful. Each stitch chosen is the perfect choice for the part of the design where it is used. It is the only piece of embroidery that has ever really made me feel I would like to explore the craft more than the small amount I have up to now. The other pieces shown in the post are interesting, but for me the Calla Lily stands head and shoulders above the rest.
Another website I stumbled across this week was that of the artist Mark Ashworth. I found him via a google image search. I first thought it was an image of a quilt and intrigued, I clicked on the thumbnail and landed on his gallery page. I was instantly reminded as I always am when seeing an artist with an obviously recognisable style that I still haven’t found mine yet. And that I need create, create, create and practise, practise, practise.
Is that a cue to get back into the studio?
