Process Information

My environment inspires my work or often, by issues, which have meaning for me. Feltmaking is a labor intensive process but one which allows me to develop my ideas as I work from my sketchbook. The piece often reaches its own identity during the process of dyeing, carding and felting the prepared wool into a patterned whole or abstraction. I become absorbed in the play of detail and color variations I can achieve by adding or subtracting fleece during the intuitive stage. The work evolves through the stages of research and visual images.

The process of dyeing, carding, and felting the prepared wool into a patterned whole or abstraction is a unique process. Felt can best be described as an anti-fabric that has its own characteristics. There is no warp and weft like fabric, but an entanglement of fibres I would describe as a melding of color and texture as in a watercolor painting. I often manipulate the surface of my work with various mixed media, stitching or shibori to create unexpected textures.