wordplay: gossamer

so there you have it. gossamer. my first contribution to wordplay.

and can i confess something? i love it. and i feel awfully proud of myself about it. (though i do wish you could see it in person, because it looses a bit of its impact in the photos.)

it was a journey, this gossamer creation. starting with lots and lots of brainstorming - notes and notes and pages of notes in my moleskine. i imagined a painting. or a series of paintings. and then a collage. and then i got fixated on the definition of gossamer, the one from the dictionary. like, the actual words out of the dictionary. merriam-webster, page 312. and that fixation, with the collage, an idea started to form.

in the meantime, i was also fixated on finding gossamer-weight fabric. i knew it existed. but what i didn't realize was that it's really (according to my research. if you know something more about it, please let me know!) a synthetic gauzy fabric that's used for prom decorations and bridal veils. not what i had in mind; i was hoping for a gossamer weight linen, or something else with natural fibers. in the end, i settled for a very fine handkerchief weight linen. and i'm so glad i did.

so as i was fixating on the collage and buying the linen, i spent some time with my friend pam (who is an amazing textile artist and one of the most lovely human beings you could ever be lucky enough to know. and who really ought to have a blog. or at least a shop. really. are you reading this, pam?), and i shared my ideas with her. and she encouraged me to develop the notion of the collage further, to incorporate the fabric, to expand on my idea of the stitching. all of that, and she let me use her bernina.

really, my conversations with pam were integral to the development of this piece. and i'm so grateful to her for that. it's a gift, to have a creative person in my actual life. it's a new gift for me, and one that i'm so happy about. more on that subject another day.

so there were the notes. and then there were the photocopies; lots and lots of photocopies at staples, enlarging and adjusting and trying for just the right combination of lightness and darkness and grain-i-ness to suggest gossamer. and there was the linen. and then there an earlier version of the project (which you can see here), it's the one i shared a peek at last week. i really liked that one, but i knew there was more to do.

so last weekend i used my big stack of photocopies to burn myself some screens and print with my gocco onto the linen. i incorporated all of the lessons i learned printing on fabric in the gocco swap - about how much ink to use, and about how to burn a screen that will (or won't, which is what i wanted in this case) print crisp images. and i was really pleased with the results.

and then this week, the whole thing came together. these pieces cut and stitched and hanging from threads that remind me, just a bit, of a web. the float-y nature of the whole thing dangling together.

i had always thought that i would mount this project on paper. that's what i had imagined from the beginning (well, from some point after the beginning, really. but i had imagined it for a good while.). but pam (again, pam) pointed out how delicate and floating-in-the-air the whole thing is when it is suspended. and so i built a frame (i'm almost as excited about that as i am about the actual project!) with some canvas stretchers, brass tacks, 2 pieces of foam core, some super adhesive, a large piece of my favorite mid-weight linen, a staple gun, some encouragement, and a bit of courage.

and then i pinned the piece to the board with three red pushpins, suspending the fabric away from the board to create dimension. to let the piece float. to enhance its gossamer-ness. it's an installation, really. and it does lose something in the photographs. but i hope that you can get a sense of how delicate and float-y it is from the photos i've taken.

so there you have it. my interpretation of gossamer. something delicate, tenuous, gauzy, flimsy, floating in the air. gossamer.

(word #2 arrived in the mail yesterday from an amazing artist. i haven't opened the envelope yet, wanting to post this first. i'll open it in a bit, and share the word here tomorrow.)

Comments

[Tracy]

Wow. Totally unexpected. But at the same time, it makes so much more sense. I can't wait to show you mine. Tonight!

[TD wool design]

very well done. from one who works with gossamer weight wool - i think you presented beautifully. one can tell you loved the project!

[jen j-m]

so lovely + perfect! i love how you did this.

[erin]

emily!
this is stunning. and perfect. and so unlike what i did (going to post later today). i love it.

[molly]

wow, it's beautiful, emily. I feel like that last picture of it really captures the "weight" of it. so delicate and beautiful.

[shari]

oh emily. i love it. it is so perfect. and your photos capture it well. glad you enjoyed the word. xoxo

[leslie]

gossamer. i absolutely love your representation of it. and i loved hearing the process as well. pure goodness. all of it.

[Mama Urchin]

stunning, really

[Vanessa]

stunning emily. YOu are truly a talented artist.

[Alicia A.]

Oh, Emily! It's breathtaking. Are you going to hang it in your new studio?

[Amy]

Hey it looks lovely. And my first thought reaction: sexy.

[ani]

this is what i think of when i think of 'gossamer'. you've captured it beautifully. i just wish i could see it in person!

[Tonya]

I have been watching wordplay from the get-go and love your interpretation of gossamer.

I am really looking forward to the next project.

[Megan]

No wonder you are proud of it - you absolutely should be. It's beautiful.

[erin]

i'm coming back to say more. i need to tell you how inspiring i find this, emily. it really evokes the wispy, windblown feeling i associate with gossamer. and the way you mounted it is very cool. i like the tiny punch of red (funny how we all used our signature colors in some way!). both you and tracy were able to translate this word so well. i just love this.

[leslie]

love it so much emily.
and like erin, i love the pop of red.
the photos really depict gossamer. really. they do.

[kirsten]

gossamer.
something so lovely about the sound of that word.
[and i love your interpretation into a tangible form.]

[cloth.paper.string]

oh my, emily. truly magical.

[Pina]

Wonderful!

[muralimanohar]

That is an *amazing* interpretation of the word. Brilliant!

[charlotte]

wow. i can't think of anything you could have possibly done differently to convey the word gossamer. it's absolutely and wonderfully beautiful. :)

[melissa]

i agree with charlotte- it's perfectly 'gossamer'. i loved reading about your process most of all. and i also loved that you built the frame yourself.

[amisha]

emily, i love it all! it is so so good. the textures, the layers, the etherealness of it all (that does come through so much in your photos!) and the frame is just perfect. xox