String Art? A few months ago only memories of 70s mathematical shapes sprung to mind. That was until an Instagram friend from the Netherlands took a very cool shot of some string art on a cafe wall. It was a simple line drawing based on Vermeer's "Girl with a Pearl Earring", and I was smitten. String art ideas constantly bounced around in my head for the next month.
Following a few online tutorials I managed to create a bear portrait for my sons wall but found it difficult to get contrast and texture with filling in the gaps.
So it seemed best as a beginner at this to try again but with just straight lines. Referencing one of my little homes photos of a row of terrace houses in Kirribilli, I created the picture above.
I will tell you it is a noisy, headachey and frustrating process in comparison to an hour of painting watercolours. But I do like the result. And since making it this far, I have seen some really inspiring works to push me onto creating another piece!
Beautiful portraits by Pamela Campagna
and Kumi Yamashita (thanks Suzette for showing me this one!)
This post has been shared on the Weekend Wrap Up.
Lovely! How fun to try something entirely new. Where in your home did you choose to create your piece? I would be nervous to pound nails into my walls. I've seen Kumi Yamashita's work before, but it's so intricate I never thought about pulling it back to something simple and possible to attempt myself. I look forward to seeing more of your string art. :)
ReplyDeleteThanks so much for stopping by Kimi! I too am nervous about pounding nails into wall so I sourced an old wooden table top from a recycling centre, took the legs off, painted it and then created my design to fit the table top. My only problem now is that it is very heavy - so will still require me to nail some decent size holes in the wall to hang it! Kumi's work is such an inspiration - I would love to see it in person one day. I think for my next piece I will take more time and add more details.
DeleteLove it that you keep on experimenting, Chantal. This could be an amazing process, figuring out nice patterns! I already like the simplicity of the house image.
ReplyDeleteAnd thank you Suzette AND Chatal for showing us Jummy Yumi!
Thank you Ellen! The experimenting is a large part of the fun for me - seeing where the design starts to take itself through trial and error. After going through the discovery process of printmaking I've learnt to let go of having to follow a distinct vision in my head and just let myself be guided by what I learn. If only other parts of life were so forgiving about taking ones time to create, pottering about, not minding mistakes just using them as the next step! Glad you like Yumi's work too!
DeleteWow! Who knew a humble bit of string could create such amazing effects. That last portrait is especially amazing - the patterns, and the way it both obscures and highlights the face beneath it...
ReplyDeleteFabulous aren't they! So much work! I can't imagine how many hours they would take to get such beautiful results.
DeleteThat Last piece is astounding. I love your row of houses, you've really captured them.
ReplyDeleteThanks so much! I agree - Kumi's work is absolutely astounding. Mind boggling when I stop to think of how she might have completed it.
DeleteWow! Those samples are amazing. I have been wanting to do a tree on an awkward wall in our living room, but may rethink it to do something more geometrical. Thanks for sharing your experience.
ReplyDeleteThat sounds cool Jenni - would love to see the results! C x
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