photo of an antique glass bottle in my kitchen, late afternoon light

I’ve begun a new knitted artwork that tracks the passing of time and the amount of time invested in creating the work. It has the very original title of How Long Did It Take You to Make That?, No. 2.

This time I’ve cast on 130 sts and am again using a laceweight wool. I’m not limiting myself to any particular amount of time per day or session. I will work on the piece whenever I have the time, or feel like it, and will knit one bead into the fabric for each five minutes of work. It will be done when it’s done.

How Long Did It Take You to Make That?, which I began on February 21, 2009, is finished. I stopped working on it in October, and can’t remember when exactly I bound off. The fabric measures about 6 1/2 inches by 64 inches, spread out.

This artwork addressed the question I’ve been asked so often about my artwork and/or knitting: How long did it take you to make that?

I worked on this piece for five minutes a day, a total of 194 days, or 970 minutes, or a little over 16 hours.

Once a week I changed the needle size, which altered the tension and width of the fabric. Thus, the piece contains within it a visual indication of the passing of time.

I threaded the fabric on a dowel rod and hung it above my bed, along with a grey cotton crochet motif. I’m not sure if the crochet motif is part of the piece or not. (If it is, then add more time to the total, a half hour or so.)

Here’s the progress as of today on How Long Did It Take You to Make That?, which I began on February 21, 2009. This is an ongoing artwork addressing the question I’ve been asked so often about my artwork and/or knitting: How long did it take you to make that?

I work on this piece for five minutes a day, except when I am away from home. I usually work on it in the morning, as part of my meditation practice. As of today, I have spent a little over 15 hours on it.

Once a week I change the needle size, which affects the tension and width of the fabric. In this way, the piece contains within it a visual indication of the passing of time.

It has no practical value and I’m not sure when it will be finished.

As we transition from summer into fall, I am pondering the fate of Quotidiart. I’m realizing I don’t really have the time to maintain two blogs, make art, knit, write knitting patterns, and photograph my work, all while holding down a full-time job.

I’ll figure things out eventually.  In the meantime, here is a picture I took the other morning of a spider web outside my home.

Thank you for visiting Quotidiart. I hope you have a beautiful fall, wherever you are.

Pink Lemonade

2009

mohair/silk yarn, repurposed mixed-media collage

9 1/4″ h x 9 3/4″ w

not for sale

This piece is my first effort at making use of the collage fragments that I posted about here. I wanted it to have a kind of homemade calendar look, very low-tech. I think it succeeds in that respect, but I think that grid composition is perhaps too static. I may make a second one, not using a grid, but instead have the collage fragments appear to “spill” downwards from the top and collect in a mass at the bottom. I’ll probably use this fine silk/mohair yarn again, but with larger needles so that the fabric is even looser and more delicate/fragile looking.

The opening reception takes place tomorrow, July 10, from 5 to 7 pm. It’s part of Arts Night Out, Northampton’s monthly gallery walk. One of the other shows you can see tomorrow evening is “I Heard a Voice: The Art of Lesley Dill,” at the Smith College Art Museum.

If you’re in the area, please stop by and say hello!  Works on Paper continues through August 8.  Summer gallery hours are Thursday through Saturday, 4 to 7 pm.

Cloud Frock

2009

wool yarn and repurposed cloud drawing (pencil, colored pencil, and white ink on paper)

8 1/2 inches h x 7 inches w

not for sale

I’ve never known what to do with unsold, failed, unfinished, or never-shown artworks. Pieces I like I hang around my home or I give to friends.  And every now and then I have a studio sale. But as I age, more and more “failed” artworks are taking up space in closets and portfolios. Pieces I never finished, for one reason or another. Pieces I deemed not quite good enough to include in a show. Pieces that I did show, but don’t like anymore.

My current solution for these kinds of artworks is to tear them up and repurpose. For this knitted drawing, Cloud Frock, I tore and cut up an old drawing of a cloud. I think it dates from 2002 and was one of the drawings I decided not to include in a solo show that year at the Center for the Arts in Northampton.

I pierced the drawing fragments with an awl, then worked them into the knitted fabric as if they were beads.

]]> http://quotidiart.wordpress.com/2009/06/14/cloud-frock/feed/ 3 bluepeninsula http://quotidiart.wordpress.com/2009/05/29/thrifty-ponderings/ http://quotidiart.wordpress.com/2009/05/29/thrifty-ponderings/#comments Fri, 29 May 2009 16:56:56 +0000 bluepeninsula http://quotidiart.wordpress.com/?p=122 ]]>

I’ve been thinking about ways to reuse works from the “back catalog” – drawings and paintings that were rejected, or were never finished, or were shown but not sold, or were deemed (by me) not good enough to show. Might they be resurrected, given new life?

These are fragments of a mixed-media collage that I made a year ago and entered, along with a second collage, in a local show. Both were rejected. Looking at this one a year later, I can see why. It was not one of my best works–it had too many muddy/murky/overworked areas and the overall composition was clunky. It just didn’t sing.

I have an idea for bringing these fragments together in a new configuration, which I’ll get started on as soon as I finish another piece that’s in progress. For the moment, I’ve arranged them on an old drawing board, the better to ponder them.