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. Like the image below. Aren’t they beautiful?
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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