08. A Tic Tac Box With Needles
In the studio
A full day in the studio can be many things. I’ve begun to mentally prepare for that. It is an exciting amalgamation of little inventions and large goals, of swollen expectations and hard lessons taught to you by your own work. Most often, you never really know what will happen.
This morning, I came into the studio bathed in sunlight. I knew I had to re-do an entire embroidery section from the night before, so the studio’s charm made that pill a little easier to swallow. Back at square one, I began by winding white cotton thread in preparation of finally achieving a vibrant red colour.
The spinning shadows on the winding machine danced on the floor. Little mundane views like that are sweet reminders of the present. For me, who’s often caught up in a vision that does not yet exist, it is nice to see movement and life dancing its way through the making process.
The wound thread needs to be treated carefully to avoid any tangles in the liquid dye, making it much easier to use later on. Best resources to learn about this? Haircare tutorials.
As the afternoon came around, the dyeing process was complete. I was so relieved! The colour was vibrant, thrumming with life - and as an extra perk, it was an exact match to my utility jumpsuit ;)
The day was all about slight glances and rearrangements on the largest piece I’m making in this studio to date. It looks over my shoulder as I make its joined parts. When it flutters from the air vents, I like to think it’s as a nod of approval.
After four hours of prep-work, the thread was complete. I was finally able to re-start an embroidered chest-piece, with the proper, vibrant colours. These thread marks are meant to invoke life and motion to an otherwise flat, shadowy figure. I can already see so much of improvement from the first iteration.
So… what am I making?
Motivated to extend fabric into sculpture, I am constructing a hanging, three-dimensional embroidered creature inspired by contemporary Ukrainian mythology. For several weeks now, we saw snippets and fragments dotingly brought in and arranged for this work. Today’s fruits of labour includes the most recent feathered chest-piece that will later be folded and brought out into three-dimensions. I hope to share more updates soon!
What I’m sitting with -
The most suprising moments in the studio consist of small yet profound improvements to the artist’s rhythm. I always lose my favourite embroidery needles. It is an emotional event and it stings everytime. I had an empty tic tac box that was bouncing around in my backpack, and I decided to begin collecting the needles in it. Never had I had such a consistent needle roll call each morning! As small as this gesture was, it sometimes feels more impactful than the large projects I delve into.
Art takes time, but creativity can quickly show itself in the smallest of things. It doesn’t take much to inspire confidence and make a studio day feel complete, sometimes it can simply be a tic tac box with needles.
Talk soon!
Sasha
So inspiring... Thank you!