History in Landscape

While exploring shapes and layers in landscape, this time I’ve used photos taken during a visit to the ruins of the beautiful Dunnottar Castle in Aberdeenshire, Scotland, in July …

... and have been enjoying the miniature views of the modern agricultural landscape that I saw through the medieval window frames of the castle. 

I am fascinated by these little ‘look throughs’ and their layered glimpses of  history set against the present day and have been exploring them through small drawings in pencil, graphite and Koh-i-noor paint. 

Margaret Robbie

Linda's going round in circles

Hand stitching circular patterns

 and preparing to build Moroccan doorways

Stitching fish

Trying out shape and colour …

… then using scraps of silk, I started to embroider fishes on the red list from my drawings.

Carla Mines

Researching endangered fish

 Carla has been drawing and researching endangered fish ready for stitching.

Carla Mines

Referencing ancient history

As I develop some new work, I’ve been exploring in photography the archaeological evidence left in landscape - particularly the shapes left behind - the circles (especially) in all their forms, the straight lines and grids, random piles of stones and upright forms. 

These photos among many, many others were taken recently in Aberdeenshire and at the amazing Roman fort of Vindolanda in Northumberland. 

Margaret Robbie

Threatened species

Looking at The International Union for Conservation of Nature Red List of Threatened Species I started embroidering some of the endangered species. 

I came across poems from ‘The Gorgeous Nothings’ by Emily Dickinson that were written on scraps of envelopes and thought that I too would embroider on scraps. I decided that I would not buy any more fabric but use what I have. 

Carla Mines

In Retrospect

 Liz has been looking through cupboards and under beds, as well as work on the wall and has put together an exhibition that covers her forty years of textile practice. It is fascinating the way the same themes keep re-occurring and the importance of hand stitch in her practice, but most of all the love of colour.

 Here's an exciting exhibition to visit at the Lansdown Gallery in Stroud where Quinary are showing  their new work 

Work in The Lansdown Gallery

 At last I'm finding the time to sit down at my computer and post photos of some of my work in  Inhabit, our exhibition in Stoud. 

All the work I am showing this time stems from my liking of modern architectural forms, and especially of high rise office blocks with mirror glass walls that catch and send reflections back and forth to one another. 

There is also reference in each piece to the destruction of ancient ways of life when modern development proceeds with limited control. A circle stitched or printed into the work suggests this darker social history. 

Three Towers - a small installation on glass 
Printed and cut card hand stitched together with thread 

Three Strips 

Pieced from painted and printed fabric and hand stitched

High Rise Artist's Book 

Digital print on card - soaring shapes of steel, modern living in a box

This work has stemmed from play in Photoshop with a single photo of a building taken in Darling Harbour in Sydney, Australia. I generated an enormous number of digital images by repeated cycles of manipulating, fading and intensifying, enlarging, cropping and changing colours. Only a small number of the resulting images found their way into my work for this exhibition ...

... but it was a good way to spend lockdown!

Margaret Robbie

Inhabit in Stroud

 Our Inhabit exhibition is now open for viewing in the Lansdown Gallery in Stroud. 

Visitors numbers so far have been encouraging and there have been some sales. We look forward to seeing you if you are close enough to visit. 

Dates and opening hours can be found in the poster in the side bar of this blog.  

Further Thoughts

Machining into the night to be ready for our exhibition from 8th September at Lansdown Gallery, Stroud, Gloucestershire. 

For details of the exhibition, see the poster in the side bar of this blog. 

Carla Mines

Doorways

Linda has been working further on her Moroccan doorways series for our Inhabit exhibition in September. 

Included here is a small selection of stitched examples from her archive of designs. 

Further details are given here and in the poster on the side bar of this blog. 

Linda Babb