Progress

My last few blogs have been about my thoughts so I think it is time to share a bit of my process. This blog post will be dedicated to the making process as opposed to the thought process. Since returning from the January residency I have be going through a learning process...again. I purchased an inexpensive small loom and have been working on weaving fabric. It is time consuming and a steep learning curve. I decided to start with my most simple ribbon, the Navy Commendation Ribbon. Here is what I have so far:

The cream colored yarn at the bottom is my header or weft waste.

I have been working this weave in a manner called grosgrain. It is primarily used in ribbon making with satin to create a stiff ribbed appearance. Since I am working with yarn and making a larger fabric it has a softness to it, but at the same time the ribbed affect is coming through nicely. For my first attempt at weaving I think things are going well. I have a book on how to weave as well as a brief history of the loom. I may hang these pieces as individuals or I may decide to cross stitch names onto them. I will make that decision as they progress.

I am also working on painting surfaces. I've had some wood blocks made, and I am testing painting enamel on wood. Here is my first layer attempt.

It's not as glossy as I had hoped it would be. I will also need to tape it off to get the lines perfect. I made the ribbon bigger, but I'm not sure if this is the direction I want to go as far as size. I like the smaller size as a relic, souvenir or memento. This feels a little clunky. I am going to experiment with aging the white layer as well to give a sense of time passing. Right now it feels very sterile and I'm not sure if I want to make that comment in my work. I'm also going to attempt a ribbon with acrylic and possibly a watercolor. I have a lot of directions to work right now and I'm trying to not go too overboard.

On top of that I am fighting with my molding capabilities. I created a two part gel flex silicone mold. Last semester I worked one sided so it was very simple. This semester I want to get both sides of the object as exact as possible. Through a process of trial and error over the last three weeks the below two part mold is finally complete. I decided to pump up the thickness of the ribbons and medals because their actual thickness would have been too fragile to work with in clay or plaster.  I started with a clay slip injection. It has been setting for 24 hours and I'm not sure it is going to dry fast enough for my process. A plaster mold would suck the moisture out of the clay so this mold may have to be for plaster and wax molds. This is still in the baby stage.

It's not a complete failure at this point, but I think it may be heading in that direction. If it isn't dry by the end of the holiday weekend I'm going to attempt plaster injection. If that doesn't work I may have to call an expert :/ (that's my frustrated face).