A Fiber Journey with Merridee Joan Smith
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SilkwormThe Magazine of Silk Painters International Volume 20, Issue 4, Winter 2013 IN THIS ISSUE: The Mysterious, Wild Silks of Madagascar Tsujimura Jusaburo: Japan’s Living National Treasure A Fiber Journey with Merridee Joan Smith Fine Art Clothing with Liena Dieck Ursula Schroter: Fine Art and the Art of Silk Paint Quarterly Messages from SPIN and The Silkworm appy New Year, Your best days are before you!!! his is my last issue serving the I pray that your - Christmas, Hanukkah or however you the volunteer position of Editor believe - holidays were spent in love and peace. Hopefully of the Silkworm. My partner Hyou did not eat too much or spend too much but had wonderful time Tin this adventure has been a journal- with your family and friends. ism student intern from Florida State SPIN is experiencing Growing Pains - this can be viewed two ways. University - Ms. Keely Dorsey. One is to concentrate solely on the pain and get nowhere. Another Keely has been working as our is to work through the pain and move on, sometimes limping but copywriter and layout designer for the always forward. Here’s what’s happening to SPIN at an organizational Summer, Fall and Winter issues. She is level. superb and we are negotiating for more The 2014 Festival. The Festival team is on target on the timeline of her time as a contract worker (lets -- 24 faculty contracts have been sent to returning & new to SPIN cross our fingers). She says that she has teachers. We will be able to offer 12 2-day workshops for Monday- no firm plans for after graduation but Tuesday as well as Wednesday-Thursday classes. There are evening my crystal ball has revealed that she events planned all throughout the week including a lot of new ideas will be seen in text all over the world. and a new venue for the Fashion show. Be sure to submit your work I hope that you will enjoy this issue for the Art Show and the Fashion Show. Registration will open in that has a somewhat international fla- January with information about workshops, instructors and supply vor. Silk and silk art is versatile and still lists. Classes will fill quickly -- so make your difficult decisions and highly prized in cultures world wide. your reservations soon. So, we have included articles on silk SPIN on the Web. The SPIN Website is up and running. Remember production in Madagascar, a Japanese new endeavors often begin with starts and stops and patience is usu- master of silk dolls as well as silk artists ally best. in the US who have roots in Russia and SPIN on Facebook. I am always amazed and excited that our Germany. So much to learn and so little Facebook site is full of new members. Our FB moderator, Jean-Louis time. Mireault, does a great job in welcoming all of the new members to Best Wishes for your New Year. the site and makes them feel welcome. Mary Umlauf, Editor-in-Chief The SILKWORM. Mary Umlauf is to be applauded for three beau- tiful issues where she served as Editor, and we wish her well. There- fore, within our talented membership, is there a member or aspiring journalist who is interested in becoming the Editor of our Silkworm Magazine? The SPIN Board. Mary Umlauf and Tunizia have resigned from the board. I accept both with regrets. They have been valuable resources for our organization. Tunizia will continue to work with the website. Membership. We are approaching 450 members. We are growing! FYI. About our counterpart in the UK – the Guild of Silk Painters. I attended their biennial Silk Festival on the Isle of Man. The trip was awesome; I was treated like a queen. Their newsletter has just come out and focused entirely on the Festival. SPIN and GSP have a lot in common and we can benefit from an international perspective. I encourage you to join their organization too. I look forward to visiting with the San Diego Chapter in January. I wish that I could visit every chapter; it helps me to see the need and the wonders of our organization. Keely Dorsey Thanks to everyone who helped to make SPIN a success in 2013! Joyce Estes, President 2 Silkworm - Volume 20, Issue 4 Notices In This Issue: FESTIVAL 2014: THREADS OF SILK Volume 20, Issue 4, Winter 2013 July 26 - August 1, 2014 Features SILK PAINTERS INTERNATIONAL A Fiber Journey with Merridee Joan Santa Fe, New Mexico Smith - 4 Ursula Schroter: Fine Art and the Art of CALL for ENTRIES ! Silk Paint - 8 Mysterious, Wild Silk - 12 VENDORS EXPO: Japan’s Living National Treasure: Tsu- July 26 & 27, 2014 jimura Jusaburo - 14 Fine Art Clothing by Liena Dieck - 17 ART EXHIBIT: Seasons of Silk July 26 - August 1, 2014 Departments Silkworm Messages - 2 FASHION SHOW: Notices - 3 Changing Elements Cover by Liena Dieck Backpage by Ursula Schroter Friday, August 1, 2014 Editor: Mary Umlauf For Details: Membership Database: Gloria Lanza-Bajo www.silkpainters.org Art Direction and Layout: Keely Dorsey Image Credit: “With All Due Respect” by Linda Bolhuis Please send Letters to the Editor. Stay in touch. We want you to be involved. If you have comments, complaints or suggestions, please let us know. Please send correspondence or photos to editor@ silkwormmagazine.com. If you have photographs of your art that you would like to have showcased in the Silkworm send photos with your name and the name of the piece. The photo size should be minimum 5”x 7” and 300 dpi for best printing. To become a member of SPIN or renew your membership, visit www.silkpainters.org/member- ship.html. Membership is $50 USD annually and renewable in January of each year. Look for us on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/groups/silkpainters/ All works presented in the magazine are the prop- erty of the artists. Silkworm - Volume 20, Issue 4 3 A Fiber Journey with Merridee Joan Smith By Merridee Joan Smith & Mary Grace Umlauf lthough a chemist by education and profes- sion, I have loved fi- Aber since childhood and have also been inspired by natural surroundings including earth forms, flowers, texture, color and pattern. Approaching retirement from my career as a forensic scientist, my inter- est in pursuing fiber arts was unleashed. And so my jour- ney in fiber began in earnest. It was my good fortune to have Susan Louise Moyer in- troduce me to the joys of silk painting when she taught a many well respected in SPIN, workshop near my home (not a bad as well as Indonesian tjap batik way to start!). I was immediately and shibori classes. The impor- hooked. We all know the wonder tance of study and practice was we feel when dye is brushed onto clear when I earned my Master Silk silk; the movement, color and Painter (MSP) credentials from vibrancy of the dye and silk are SPIN. MSPs are also invited to magical. review MSP applications of aspir- As I began to paint and focus on ing members. The current criteria a representational style, I learned speak to Artistry & Self Expres- that serious work requires a strong sion as well as Craftsmanship; thus foundation in the concepts of art. training and practice are critical at I began taking drawing, water- this advanced level of recognition. color and fine art classes in design, Several years ago, my work in composition and color theory. I fiber branched in a totally new di- also wanted to know more about rection when I discovered felt mak- the techniques and processes in silk ing. I thoroughly enjoy the tactile painting – there are so many and quality of the process. However, I they can add so much to the work. have discovered that I can also ex- I took silk painting and rozome press my artistic ideas in 3-dimen- workshops from expert silk artists, tions and in abstract, graphic and representational forms. Felting on 4 Silkworm - Volume 20, Issue 4 are as important in felt making as in silk painting or any other artistic endeavor. Felt making, in its most ba- sic form, is simple, as it does not require mechanical equipment like a loom or spinning wheel. There are many variations and subtleties to felt making, but the underlying principle is that wool and some other animal fibers (including hu- man hair) are covered with micro- scopic scales that can be manipulat- ed so that the fibers lock together. I use a process called “wet” felting in which thin layers of wool rov- ing (wool fibers carded in a single direction) are laid down in the desired shape, wetted, soaped and - ever so gently at first - rubbed, silk also allows the artist to create caressed and stroked with soapy objects with beautiful textures as hands. well as integrating local plant and As the fibers begin to tangle, the animal fibers or materials in the piece is wrapped in bubble wrap final product. and rolled - with much unrolling Felting is an ancient method and checking - hundreds, some- used to create textiles and function- times thousands, of times. This al items. enables the Since “I realized...to produce fibers to en- ancient twine tightly times, excellent work I had to and fuse yurts study with the most naturally. (tents), Depending blankets, accomplished felt artists.” upon what is boots, being made, hats and other utilitarian objects near the end of the process, the have been fashioned of felt because felt can be kneaded, shaped and/or it was water and wind resistant. thrown forcefully to the table.