Tag Archives: textiles

Textile Artist, Irish Memories

16 Wednesday Apr 2014

Posted by in Exhibitions, Inspirations, stitched textiles, Textile Art

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Those familiar with my work will know that much of my inspiration comes from the contrasting landscapes of the South Downs in England, the Spanish sierras, and visits to France and Italy.This post is really for a fellow blogger Wildsherkin who takes wonderful photos of Sherkin off the coast of Ireland. I promised to show images of work I made following a trip there nearly three years ago. Sometimes it can take me quite awhile to decide how I’m going to translate what I’ve seen, felt and drawn. Curiously a Textiles Centre where I’ll be exhibiting later this year has chosen my favourite Irish piece to put on their facebook page, so I’ve had some lovely comments from friends as well.

Here then are some of the pieces I made. So here are the Mountains of Mourne in the rain

Ireland

and now the one chosen by the gallery, Mountains of Mourne in Sun

C Naylor, Mountains of Mourne

This one shows the Mourne’s highest peak Slieve Donard which I hope I’ve spelt correctly

Mountains of Mourne in May

What this trip gave me was a completely different palette. My usual blues, golds, lilacs gave way to the richness of an Irish spring.

And finally here’s a stitch detail from Mountains of Mourne in sun

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Drawing for Textiles, Carol Naylor

31 Monday Mar 2014

Posted by in Drawings, Inspirations, Processes, Textile Art

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Drawing has always been a vital part of my life. Sketchbooks go with me when I travel,  I record things I see and they act as a visual diary. I don’t always draw with stitching in mind, but often when I see a particular landscape for example, I find myself selecting forms, colours, textures and so on that link to my passion for threads. My way of drawing has changed over the years, often quite free and bold some years ago it is now quite tightly controlled.

My mantra is ” I look, I draw, I select and I translate” It’s often what you leave out rather than what you put in that makes starting a textile easier. I use pencil, colours applied with watercolour, ink tense pens or gouache, then frequently add pastels, and final lines in pen, biro, or pencil.

Some sketchbook drawings follow for you to look at.

This drawing is from Goodwood in the South Downs UK and links directly to the small works I’ve been making since the beginning of the year

Goodwood sketch001

“Strata 2” looks at the landscape around Covarrubias in Central Spain, an area that has influenced my work greatly in recent years

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“Near Cepeda” is taken from the landscape in the Sierra Salmantina in Spain, distant mountains are patchworked with fields and vines

Near Cepeda001

This sketch detail in particular shows my use of pastels over wash.

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We are off to France shortly so maybe other ideas will start to infiltrate what I make, you never know.

For me, being there, where-ever I am is vital. I can’t stitch what I haven’t seen!

Textile Artist.org

06 Thursday Mar 2014

Posted by in Inspirations, stitched textiles, Textile Art, UK textile artists

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Textile artists, ideas and processes and where to resource these are important for us all. If you don’t know the website http://www.textileartist.org then do have a look. This excellent site has regular articles by practising textile artists, as well as articles offering advice about all sorts of textile matters. I’ve written three articles now for them and have been delighted by the response from visitors to the site from all over the globe.

I’ve spent the last few weeks making a series of small works that I’ll be showing at exhibitions in the coming months, a couple follow for you as does a full image of a larger piece, Downs in Winter. I did put a detail of these on an earlier post but now I have a good image of the whole piece which also shows the framing process, attached to canvas in a box frame, unglazed.

Downs in Winter

and here are the two small images from my new series, the first is called “Silver Lining” and the second is “Spring Light” part of my Spring sequence, maybe if I stitch it Spring will get here!

Silver lining 1

Spring Light001

Art in Action 2014 July 17th to 20th

12 Wednesday Feb 2014

Posted by in Exhibitions, Inspirations, stitched textiles, Textile Art, UK textile artists

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I am delighted to say that I have been invited to demonstrate in the textiles marquee at Art in Action, Waterperry, Oxfordshire this year. For those who don’t know about it, its simply the best Art Show of its kind in the UK. There are artists demonstrating in numerous disciplines, painting, printing, jewellery and so much more, as well as live music, peformances, workshops for children and adults, food, gardens-it has everything! I’ll be posting more nearer the time but I wanted to flag it up now. I last demonstrated there in 2003 so I feel my work has moved on quite a lot. You can also look at the official Art in Action website which will have more info in some weeks time. Artists aren’t all listed as yet.

In the meantime I’ve been tidying my computer room as I’m getting an upgrade tomorrow and I suspect I’ll be tearing my hair out with the jump from XP to Windows 8! I’ve also been working on the smaller pieces like the one I posted last week and another follows. “May Afternoon” For those followers who are not UK based, we are suffering horrendous weather, with parts of the country literally drowning, and although where we live its currently luckily just nastily wet and windy, it does rather preclude going out to look at the land! So, the following textile looks back at a May afternoon when a trip to the downs was viable!

May Afternoon for blog

February News

06 Thursday Feb 2014

Posted by in Commissions, Inspirations, Processes, Textile Art

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A busy few weeks since the January London exhibition Designer Crafts, making new works as well as completing a small commission that will soon be going to its new home in France. As the commissioner follows this blog I’m not showing an image if this until it’s in its new home. I think the owner should see it first!

It did inspire me to start on a new series of small canvases, so “The Scent of Autumn” is a follow up piece and I hope to make more.

It’s also so encouraging and reaffirming when a new visitor to the studio finds an earlier piece to their liking. “Estuary” is one of my favourite hangings inspired by maps, aerial photography and flying so that is also going to a new home. Both pieces follow here.

These two works required very contrasting approaches. The constant  building up and layering of fine threads over a heavier thread base features in “The Scent of Autumn”, whilst the larger hanging uses rich, bold lines, strong colours and merino wools embedded and overlaid with thread. These techniques all result in a more abstract end product exploring shapes and patterns observed rather than an identifiable image.

Scent of Autumn

Scent of Autumn merged

 Estuary

Estuary 2004 (Website)

Designer Crafts at the Mall 2014

02 Thursday Jan 2014

Posted by in Exhibitions, Inspirations, Processes, Textile Art

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Firstly Happy New Year to my followers!

I mentioned this exhibition in my final posting in 2013, so starting the New Year with more information seems like a good idea. The exhibition takes place from January 10th -19th, open from 10-5pm daily, closing at 4pm on the final Sunday.

The Mall Galleries, London SW1 (near Admiralty Arch off Trafalgar Square)

As well as a wide range of textile media on show, quilting, stitching, felting, mixed media and weaving to mention just some of the areas covered, you’ll see wonderful furniture, ceramics and glass, metal and jewellery. You can get a good coffee and scrummy cake there as well! Details on the following website:-www.societyofdesignercraftsmen.org.uk

I’ve already posted some of the images I’ll be showing there as I’ve made them over the past few months-a record of seasonal changes seen on the South Downs.

Here are a couple more for you, looking at stitch detail that I’ve magnified in some cases as they show the way I draw with threads. Enjoy!

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December update

15 Sunday Dec 2013

Posted by in Commissions, Exhibitions, Inspirations

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It’s a while  since my last post. An amazing trip to Dubai has taken a lot of time and energy, and as well as Christmas preparations I have work to complete and frame for exhibitions. Designer Crafts at London’s Mall Galleries is my next outing from January 10th-19th. This is a splendid exhibition with not only textiles, but a whole range of applied arts and crafts by established and new makers. If you don’t know it and are near London then its well worth a visit.  Designer Crafts is the annual showcase of the Society of Designer Craftsmen, the oldest and largest multi- craft society in the UK. It was founded in 1887 as the Arts and Crafts Exhibition Society and William Morris was one of the first exhibitors and the second president. I am honoured to have followed in his footsteps and was chairman from 2006-2010.

The following pieces are new ones that I’ve made for the exhibition, although ” A quiet summers evening” has already found a new home and so will not be there

“A Quiet Summer’s Evening”

A Quiet summers evening

This next piece is part of my Skyfall series, “Midsummer” I posted a detail of it earlier this year

Midsummer

and finally “A touch of Frost”. I’m looking at this colour scheme for a commission that I will be making in the New Year, so I’ve been working out colours and ideas here

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Making work for exhibitions

30 Monday Sep 2013

Posted by in Exhibitions, Inspirations, Textile Art

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With the Knitting and Stitching Show in London next week and other gallery commitments to fulfil I am very busy stitching. I’m going on with my series based on the South Downs. For non British readers of this blog, the Downs are gently rolling hills that run along just inland from the south coast of England and I live a five minute drive from them. They have influenced my work for many years. The forms and colours change dramatically throughout the year, and it’s this that I’m currently exploring. Light, shadow, crops and pathways are recurring features for me.

I put up a couple of images earlier this summer but here are sections from two recently completed works. They will be on show for the first time at the Mall Galleries in London in January along with other pieces from the series.

EPSON scanner imageEPSON scanner imageAnyone likely to visit AlexandraPalace next week for the K&S show do come and see me!  You can also find out more about this show on

http://www.theknittingandstitchingshow.com/london/

So here are the two central sections from the Downs, one based on summer, with hints of poppies in the fields, and the second looks at days in early autumn with the Isle Of Wight in the distance.

I’ll be posting later again this month with more exhibition news.

September update

03 Tuesday Sep 2013

Posted by in Inspirations, Textile Art

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Early September and time for an update after a wonderful time in Spain, revisiting old haunts and friends and gathering new ideas for future works.

Those who read my posts about the Silver Award I received from Craft and Design Selected Awards might like to know that this month’s magazine features all the award winners including myself. I’ve uploaded a copy of my page for you to look at. This is a really good publication for those interested in the broader world of the applied arts. You can find out more from www.craftanddesign.net

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I am now looking to continue the series of pieces I began this summer based on observations of the South Downs, so new Spanish works will have to wait awhile!

EPSON scanner imageHere’s a little more pictorial piece I made based on a field observed not far from where we live. I often use these as “stitch sketches” so that I can work on larger more abstracted works, so watch this space later this year!

Featured Artist at Primavera Gallery Cambridge

08 Monday Jul 2013

Posted by in Exhibitions, Textile Art

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Carol Naylor, Featured Artist, Primavera Gallery, Cambridge

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My work is currently being exhibited by Primavera Gallery in Cambridge, and the link below will take you to the gallery’s blogsite. This large and prestigious gallery is right in the heart of the city opposite Kings College, so it’s a great place to visit if you are in the vicinity. The gallery always has an eclectic mix of Fine and Applied Arts, from paintings and textiles to ceramics, glass and jewellery.

Here is a quote from the gallery publicity and a link to their blog site-

We have a great new exhibition of Carol Naylor’s textile work on show downstairs at Primavera . We have teamed new pieces with some of her earlier works for you to get a good idea of her progression. 

For more info on Carol Naylor check our blog: http://primaveragallery.blogspot.co.uk/

I’ve had a busy few days, visiting Cambridge and then on up to another lovely city, Lincoln, where I worked with the Embroiderers Guild there over the weekend. Once more the results were great, and show what can be done in a short time. I’m now back home thinking about the new pieces I’ll be making for Autumn and Winter exhibitions. The image featured here is one of my earlier translations of poppy fields currently on view in Cambridge