Meet one of my new favourite artworks!
Surprise, surprise, it’s another ginkgo circle arrangement.
You know I love these kinds of designs and I am not going to stop making them any time soon. But I am really excited about this one in particular because I have managed to capture something that I have been trying to depict for years. More on that in just a little while.
First, I thought I would take you through the process of creation for this piece.
To start with, the design was sketched up one afternoon in the studio while my baby daughter was taking a nap. I have been drawing these leaves for so long now and I am so familiar with their structure that I don’t require reference images to work from. I could probably draw Ginkgo leaves in my sleep by now (coral fan’s too).
You can watch a short (sped up) video of me sketching this Ginkgo circle design here. It’s 20 minutes of drawing condensed into one minute.
As many of you know I have been stitching ginkgo leaves for years now. They are one of my favourite subjects. But my ginkgo artworks are usually just one colour. Most of the time I stitch them in a vibrant buttery yellow, the colour the leaves turn in autumn. Occasionally I switch to a fresh green colour, the colour of summer ginkgo leaves. I have never used both colours in the same ginkgo artwork - but I have always wanted to.
I think ginkgo leaves are at their prettiest when they are part way through changing colours. When they are fading from green to yellow.
Unfortunately, the technique I use to stitch my individual leaves doesn’t allow me to achieve this colour fade (not to my satisfaction anyway) but I was determined to capture this beautiful colour transition in this latest ginkgo circle. I may not be able to capture the colour fade in the individual leaves but I was confident I could pull the colour transition off across an arrangement of 30 leaves.
So I picked my colours, two yellows and two green’s, traced the design onto water-soluble fabric and set about stitching the design. I stitch my embroideries using a freehand machine embroidery method, which is pretty much drawing with a sewing machine. The water-soluble fabric is washed away once the embroidery is complete leaving my stitched leaves behind.
You can watch a little video of me stitching this piece here.
Normally when I’m stitching a piece it feels a bit like I am colouring in. I won’t say it’s a mindless act but I’m relaxed and it isn’t very mentally draining. I usually listen to podcasts and audiobooks while I stitch and I can easily juggle listening to something while my hands are busy sewing. But this piece was a bit different and I had to be much more switched on to my stitching than usual. Correct colour placement and blending were crucial to the success of this piece so I had to constantly stop and reflect upon where I was stitching and when I needed to change thread colours. I lost track of my audiobook constantly while making this piece but I really enjoyed the challenge this colour fade presented.
After dissolving this piece I pressed it flat for a few days before pinning it to Its final mount board ready for framing.
And here is the final finished, professionally photographed piece.
Below you will find a front view, a slightly angled view and a few detail shots taken in the morning studio sunlight (with great shadows).
I just love it . It’s been a while since I have been so satisfied with a piece so this is a great way to start off my 2021 collection.
Gold to Green Ginkgo Circle (2021), embroidery thread and pins on paper, 63 x 63cm (framed size) by Meredith Woolnough - front view
Gold to Green Ginkgo Circle (2021), embroidery thread and pins on paper, 63 x 63cm (framed size) by Meredith Woolnough - angled view
Gold to Green Ginkgo Circle (2021), embroidery thread and pins on paper, 63 x 63cm (framed size) by Meredith Woolnough - Detail
Gold to Green Ginkgo Circle (2021), embroidery thread and pins on paper, 63 x 63cm (framed size) by Meredith Woolnough - Detail
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