From Idea to Design to Pattern

Morphed drawing

Am I the only one that creates better with a deadline looming?  This spring I got my first invite to the fall fiber invitational at a local gallery.  Now, I've been wanting to be asked into this show forrrrever. So you'd think I would get right after doing the two pieces that were needed.  But Nooooo!  My mind went to town coming up with ideas that would fit the theme, "Seasons".  The rest of me, not so much.

With the September deadline fast approaching and with my renewed dedication to all things creative, I finally got the first idea down.  Summer, with its sunshine filled days and more relaxed feel was of course my first choice.  I'm blessed to live close to the banks of Lake Erie and the I never get over the wonder of the Great Lake.  With that in mind, I wanted to capture that feeling of lazing on the beach with also working on my new subject women.

Composition and Angles changes

So I started out with an image inspired by the work of Mabel Hewit  who worked in these amazing modern woodcuts.  Ever since seeing her exhibited at the Cleveland Art Museum, I thought her representational style would translate to fabric beautifully.

I  started with images morphed from Hewit's "Sun Bathing".  I  then took a couple of days sketching and resketching the Bathing Beauties changing the composition and the curves  - making them more pleasing.  During this whole process, my mind was still working on which direction I wanted to take this piece. 

Final Edit

I think I've figured out a line of action. . . . but I'll leave that for another post.