Developing an idea

I thought I’d write today about developing an idea, specifically the idea I started with last year that was inspired by my visits to the Paul Klee exhibition at Tate Modern. If you’ve been following this blog for a while you may remember this image; this is of work in progress on a sample using blocks of satin stitch to appliqué various ground layers in different fabrics. I’ve taken this idea up again recently and have worked a sample in white, antique white and cream, adding in a bit of lace to the ground work:

As well as exploring the idea in stitch I’ve also been working on it in a sketchbook. This book is around A3 in size, and is filled with Khadi paper. I bought it at the Royal Academy shop where they sell a few artists materials. I’m very much taken with Khadi paper and I thought the large A3 format was very inspiring. So far I’ve mostly used Derwent Inktense pencils, which I have in a very limited range of colours (bought a few in a shop in Northumberland that I happened to come across). NB – have linked to Amazon as there are lots of customer reviews of the product on there. I’ve also used the Inktense blocks – my son bought me a set of 12 for my birthday last year – but on this project so far the pencils have been more useful. I just love the Inktense products. You can use them dry to draw on paper, then add varying amounts of water for different effects. Or wet the paper and then draw, to get an even more intense colour.

I’ve filled several pages so far. Below are a couple of shots of one of the pages I’ve completed. I’ll let you know more about this project as it develops.