Module 1 - Chapter 9 (Page 14)

Chapter 9 - Playing with Primaries

Sample 1

I find these colours quite 'jarring' together and I found that the red dominated the sample, with the yellow almost 'disappearing' into the background. I wouldn't normally use these colours together as although they are dynamic and energetic together, they are also quite harsh as a colour combination.

Sample 2

For the second sample with automatic patterns, I chose a stitch that had lots of open space to see how this affected the overall result. This was almost like making a tint with white paint, as the overall effect is much softer and less dramatic than using satin stitch. I found this much more pleasing and would possible use this as a technique in the future.

Sample 3

I enjoyed experimenting with secondary colours and  found that although using satin stitch produced a dramatic and dynamic effect like the primary colours, that the result was slightly less harsh, although probably still not one that I would use if choosing my own colour scheme. I found that the purple would start to dominate easily, if not carefully used.

Sample 4

When trying the same secondary colours with an automatic stitch, I chose a slightly more closed, flower shape to see how this differed from the automatic pattern in Sample 2. Using an open stitch again had the effect of producing a lighter tint than the original shade and I could see possibilities for further use in the future.

Sample 5

For sample 5, I layered yellow stitching with its complimentary purple. Bearing in mind that the purple had a tendency to dominate the colour scheme in sample 3, I was careful to use enough yellow for this not to happen. I didn't really like the final result, as the yellow doesn't 'blend' into the purple, even though they are stitched over each other.

Sample 6

For sample 6, I used red and its complimentary colour, green. I was more pleased with the effect I achieved with this experiment, as the colours seem to blend together in some areas and almost create brown where the stitching is dense. Perhaps this was because the flower stitch that I chose was more 'closed' than the stitch I used for sample 5?

Sample 7

For this sample, I chose a very 'open' tulip shaped stitch (No. 66), used in reverse directions across calico. I was really pleased with the scribbly, random effect that this produced, and the way that the colours seemed to blend together where the stitching was layered. This is a stitch and used of colours that I would definitely choose to use in the future if trying to mix colours through stitch.


Sample 8

For sample 8, I used the tulip shaped automatic stitch (No.66) that I  used for sample 7. I wanted the colours to blend together, rather than oppose each other, so used secondary colours next to the primary colours that made them. The darker tonal colours, like purple, blue and red blended together more successfully than the lighter ones (e.g. yellow), but I was pleased with the  effect that using yellow under green and next to blue created. This was less jarring than layering only the yellow over blue.

Colour Grading - Sample 9

For this sample, I chose to create different shades of yellow, using a mixture of threads. I used two different coloured threads through the needle for every other shade and went over the single colours twice, to achieve the same thickness and texture. I was particularly pleased with the lighter colours that I created and the gradual change in shades, but did find that the heavy stitching pulled the fabric quite alot.

Stitch width = 5.1
Stitch length = 0.4

Colours used (Madeira threads, unless stated):
Brown 1145
Light brown 1126
Mustard yellow 1025
Golden yellow 1024
Light golden yellow No. 20 (Coats)
Acid yellow 1223
Lemon 1023
White

Monet and Colour

Monet started out as a tonalist. He later chose the impressionist approach because he wanted to study the effects of light on the objects around him. Monet painted on canvas which was a light color, such as white, very pale gray or very light yellow and used opaque colors. A close-up study of one of Monet's paintings will show that colors were often used straight from the tube or mixed on the canvas, but that he also scumbled colours (using thin, broken layers of paint that allows the lower layers of color to shine through).

Monet build up texture through his brushstrokes, which vary from thick to thin, with tiny dabs of light, adding contours for definition and color harmonies, working from dark to light.

He used quite a limited range of colours in his palette:

lead white, chrome yellow, cadmium yellow, viridian green, emerald green, French ultramarine, cobalt blue, madder red, and vermilion.

You will see some ivory black in his paintings before 1886, but he abandoned it for his later work and used more vibrant colours to mix his greys.

How to Paint like Monet- Use Broken Colours: Visual Colour Mixing

To paint like Monet, you will need to use a technique called “visual mixing.”

Monet did this by, for example, putting a stroke of pure red right next to a stroke of pure yellow. Side by side, the two spots of colour produce a rich and vibrant orange.

He also laid in large masses of vibrant colour first. Then he would apply strokes of pure colours over them to enrich the original colour masses.

As an example, see the chart below for mixing orange.

The first spot on the far left is orange colour straight from the

tube. The second is a juxtaposition of pure yellow and pure

red side by side. The middle spot uses the same yellow laid

on top of a wet spot of red.

The fourth is the result of yellow mixed into red using a wet

 into dry technique (scumbling—painting opaque or semi-

opaque colours over dried darker colours). It is almost the

same as the third, but more vibrant. The last patch on the far

right is the result of directly mixing the red and yellow paint.

You can see that the second, the fourth and the fifth

 spots seem more vibrant and interesting. The colours are not

 only mixed but seem to vibrate.

Monet mixed his colours using either a wet into wet

 technique or scumbling (wet colour spots on dried layers).

 He would mix a series of secondary colours on the

 palette, and placed them side by side or, dabbed them

 all over keeping the colour spots separate.

Examples of Monet's Work

Sunrise

Water Lily Pond

Water Lily Pond Evening (left side panel )

Waterlilies - my version

This version was painted with watercolours, using a mixture of purples, reds, blue, green, yellow and orange. I dabbed the colours next to each other, using the end of a small paintbrush, to recreate the effect that Monet used in his original paintings. I also waited for some layers of paint to dry, before dabbing over the top of them with a different colour.

Stitched Sample 10 - Waterlilies

I used black felt as a background for this sample and used the 'tulip' shaped automatic stitch (No. 66) that I used for my previous 'playing with primaries' samples. I chose this stitch because it gives a very 'free' almost scribbly effect when used in different directions. I started by stitching the purple sections and layered the other colours over each other to give an impression of my own painting. I stitched quite heavily, but let some of the black background show through. This took around 9 hours to complete, and I could have carried on layering the colours over each other, but I felt that this would be overdoing the stitching. I was pleased with the overall sample, particularly  where the darker colours blend together and seem to create new colours.

Colours used:
Purple 1122
Blue 1134
Dark green 1051
Turquoise green 1301
Red 1147
Orange 1278
Lilac 1080
Golden yellow 1024

Module 1 Chapter 8 (page 13)

Collections of lines

Taking a Line for a Walk

This was fun to stitch and it was interesting to try to create the same kinds of lines in the original drawing - the cartwheel shapes were the most challenging to complete.

Taking a Line for a Dance

 

This sample was more interesting to stitch, as I think that the shapes I drew were more interesting. Stitching lacks the same kind of spontaneity that can be achieved with a pen or pencil and curved lines can become quite 'jerky' if you lose concentration!

Mark Making

This sample was created with different parts of a paintbrush and black ink. I quite like the effect created by the dry brush where the hairs has separated into two 'prongs'.

 

This sample was created with black ink and a toothpick. I didn't like the different effects I achieved at first, but looking back at it a few days later could see some potential for lines to stitch, as the toothpick made quite fine lines on the page.

These thicker lines were created with a natural sponge and black ink, used by dragging the sponge across the page and by dabbing the paper. I can't draw much inspiration for stitching from this at the moment - maybe the lines are just too thick?

 

This sample was created with a foam 'wedge' artists' brush. I don't really like any of the thicker lines, but some interesting effects have been created by using the side and end of the brush and dabbing at the paper. These might become interesting patterns to stitch in the future...

 

I used a cotton reel for this sample, which resulted in some interesting patterns when the end was used. I particularly like the effect of overlapping the prints.

The above effects were created with a lolly stick and a pipette - I tried to recreate some of the taking a line for a walk/dance shapes from earlier in the chapter to see how they would differ. Using ink and a pipette meant that some of the lines were thicker or narrower, depending on how much ink escaped from the end of the pipette!

The final sample was created by using a twig that I found in my garden. Using a natural material gave a more dynamic feel to the lines, as the twig wasn't a uniform shape or width, like some of the other instruments used.

Mark Making

The crayon made lots of different types of marks on the page - thinner ones by using the tip and thicker, softer ones by using the side. Being soft, I was able to make quite 'fluid' lines with the crayon that flowed across the page.

I used a soft 6B graphite pencil and a carbon pencil to create the marks in the above picture. The 6B pencil created quite soft, gentle lines, but the carbon pencil was quite 'scratchy' and I was able to achieve more 'spiky' marks, as well as softer, curved lines.

I used charcoal to create the lines in the first picture above. The marks are quite thick and dark, but I was able to achieve different effects by using the edge of the charcoal stick or the sharper edge.
The second set of lines were created by using an 8B pencil. I was able to create thicker, softer lines or thinner ones by using either the side of the lead or the tip.



The lines in the pictures above were created by using black pens. For the first sketch, I used a very fine tipped artists' pen and was able to create very fine lines that would transfer easily into stitching. I quite like the 'scribble' in the lower left hand corner as it is quite dynamic and energetic. I also liked the effects created by the brush felt tip pen. These marks were thicker, but I was able to create different effects by using varying pressures and different parts of the nib. The brush felt tip also felt comfortable to use and I think there is quite a lot of potential for ideas to stitch in this sketch.

I tried stitching some of the marks I had made with the toothpick, sponge brush and felt tip. I used zig zag stitch to create some of the thicker lines, both with the feed dogs up and down on the machine. I preferred the effect created by using free machine embroidery, as this gave a more free 'artistic' feel. Ialso went over some of the stitching two or three times, as this gave the stitched marks more energy and impact. Although I preferred the thinner lines when drawing, I found that I enjoyed stitching the thicker lines more when sewing!

Lines with Emotion

Stitched Lines with Emotion

This is my sample of lines with emotion, using my drawings above as a design. Some of the lines were easier to stitch than others (the  curved or more simple designs). For others, I had to make an interpretation of the original sketch,as the lines were too complicated to follow exactly. I don't think that this really made a difference to the final effect, as long as the emotion I wanted to convey was still present. I think that 'anger' and 'anxiety' were the most effective samples. I sewed over the lines in  'anxiety' a few times, and this gave the stitching a stronger, more effective result.

My least favourite was 'excited' as it was difficult to recreate the sponinaety and flow of the original sketch.