Glenwood South's 'Scarf Tree'

 

Downtown Living Glenwood South Published December 3, 2014 at 3:23 pm No Comments

On Wednesday, December 3 at 9:30 knitters from Glenwood South gathered to finish wrapping more than a hundred scarves around one of the oldest and largest trees on the block at 201 Glenwood Avenue.  This year it took two lifts to allow artists to reach branches that loom high over the two story Duncan-Parnell building, whose history on the street dates back to 1978, (when they were located at 400 Glenwood Ave.)

More than sixty knitters have participated in Glenwood South’s second annual tree sweater project, this time attracting knitters from as far away as Hawaii, Texas and even Ontario.

“Sweaters have been flowing in, sometimes made by mothers of Glenwood South residents, who have heard about the project,” comments Donna Belt, project organizer, “I was really surprised to find a box at my door this week, sent by one of last year’s knitters, who has since moved out of the country.”

But most of the scarves were made by community knitters who met at St. Saviour’s Center to stitch with seniors who were recipients of last year’s tree sweater blankets.  Inspired by the colorful statement of community shared with them, knitters at St. Saviors and Glenwood Towers determined that this year they would host the knitting and pass the scarves on to Love Wins, a ministry to the homeless led by Hugh Hollowell in the Glenwood South neighborhood.

Other additions this year include three large fiber sculptures created by Amanda Snavely, a 1996 graduate of NC State University College of Design.

The project was organized by the Glenwood South Neighborhood Collaborative, and in addition to all the knitters, was made possible by artist Amanda Snavely, St. Saviour’s Center, Duncan-Parnell, United Arts Council, (whose volunteer Julia Mastropaolo helped at every step).  Sponsorship for hanging the scarves provided byDowntown Raleigh Alliance, Hampton Inn & Suites and Hibernian, Cornerstone Tavern; and finally Brueggers for  hosting the knitters on December 3.                                          -As Published by Raleigh Downtown Living Advocates

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What We Leave Behind

I recently heard the question, "What will archaeologist uncover from our generation?"  Grecian urns, Mayan carved bowls, Russian samovars...........No!  Sadly, we will leave behind Styrofoam take out containers, GladWare, and other atrocities.

With this thought circling my mind, I began my first outdoor sculpture for a local public art project. The sculptures will hang for a month from a tree in the Glenwood South District of Raleigh, NC. The largest challenge in the project is how to convert fiber art into an outdoor sculpture that can withstand the elements.  I will be creating three or more sculptures using various multimedia materials that are then hardened with a textile hardener, Paverpol.  In a future blog, I will discuss the materials and process in more detail as well as detail the complete public art project happening in Glenwood South.

Shattered, the first sculpture for this project, is based on the question of "What will we leave behind?"  Using cotton, felt, and silk I created my vision of an Urban Vessel.  I wanted to illustrate a shattered relic of our time using graffiti coloring as an alternative to the depressing thought of unearthed plastic ware.

My Rainbow of Thread Colors

One of my favorite gifts from my husband is my Gutermann 100% Natural Cotton Thread Set. Being able to quickly glance at thread color options and audition different colors without having to scramble through a box of thread is a huge time saver.

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I currently use glass jars to contain my other threads.  However, I hope to eventually find a way to display them as well.  Shelf space is precious in my studio.  I will be searching for a solution that can be mounted on the wall.

I have tried various thread brands and prefer the 100% Natural Cotton Gutermann thread for most of my projects.  I prefer cotton as it can be over-dyed if needed.  The cotton thread works well for both machine and hand stitching.  There are many more expensive brands, but Gutermann is a good quality thread in an average price range.  In my experience, Coats & Clark brand threads break easily regardless of the type.  

I have used several of Gutermann's other thread types for both machine and hand stitching.  I use Gutermann 100% Viscose thread when I want to emphasize an area by adding shine.  For pieces needing added strength I use Gutermann's 100% Polyester thread for both machine and hand stitching.  To add a minimal shine, I use Gutermann's 100% Silk Thread.  I have currently only used the silk thread for hand stitching.  The most impressive thread is the Gutermann Invisible Thread.  Anyone that has ever experienced a rat's nest bobbin using invisible thread knows the importance of a good invisible thread.  I have used both the clear and the smoke invisible thread numerous times without any problems for both the top thread and the bobbin.  

Over the course of my experiments I will try other brands.  Currently, I am trying out the different types of thread while keeping the brand a constant.  Keeping the brand variable the same allows me to get a feel for the difference of type of thread without having to consider brand differences.

Please comment on either thread storage options or thread choices that you have a fondness for using.

Inspired by Plywood

Every day we walk through life seeing ordinary objects.  But only occasionally do we stop and enjoy their beauty.  

While walking around my dad's barn, I was lucky to see this weathered grey piece of plywood glistening in the sun.  The varied greys and organic lines of the wood pieces contrasted with the stamped symbols.  Weathering had warped the individual splinters of wood creating a dynamic texture.

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I wanted to translate the individuality of the splinters into a harmonious collage in fabrics.

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I started dyeing various colors of grey fabrics.  In my quest to obtain greys, I created a range of greys from green to blue.  Once I had my symbolic plywood base from dyed fabrics, I started thinking of ways to maintain some aspects of the plywood that I liked. I chose to represent the weathered look of the plywood by layering hand-dyed organza on top of my symbolic plywood base.  This softened the sharp lines in the collage.  I was surprised by the map-like quality the collage had taken on unexpectedly.

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 The grain of the wood is interpreted in machine stitching.  Several strong lines from the photo are hand-stitched as well as my representation of the stamped symbols.

Though hard to photograph, my plywood shapes are encased in black organza so the light comes through the panels to mimic the way the sun glistened on the plywood that day.