SOEWN EARTH

The Earth Reliant Artist



Trace Willans All Natural Mixed Media







Tuesday, March 21, 2017

The Reveal


 I am always amazed
at what a difference 
removing the blue tape makes
This time I remembered to take some pictures


Before

after

Before

after

before

after

Though
the conundrum
now is
do I take these home
sell them off at a discount
or destroy them

decisions decisions

x te



Saturday, February 25, 2017

Using up Dye

I had some dye left over from a previous project
soaking in Meths (alcohol)
that I wanted to use up
before we leave
How the fabrics looked in the beginning
The white is cotton and the beige a linen
Both are a knitted fabric

Fresh out of the jars
cochineal, annato, lac and madder
So I put in the cloth and filled the jars up 
with hot tap water
and then left the out in the sun
for a couple of weeks


They are much paler after washing
possibly they would have been brighter if
I had left them longer



My plan is to use them on this skirt

much as I am using the indigo dyed fabric
on this skirt
the fabric is wearing thin so holes develop 
every time it is washed
The holes dictate 
where I patch this week
The original fabric is a knitted hemp

These will be part of my 
working 
in the studio clothes
I already love the weight of my indigo skirt
it is a double layer 
and then the patches all that stitch
gives it a lovely weight
x te

Thursday, February 23, 2017

Boro Style Art

More Studio Clearing


A set of 3 pieces


Recycled Cotton paint Rags


with a wool backing

all handstitched
each approx 21 x 25 cm
 8 1/4 x 9 3/4 in
$25 each
or $60 the set
$5 postage in Oz
$10 overseas

x te


Tuesday, February 7, 2017

Paintings For Sale

Studio Clearing continues
Now it is some of the larger art pieces that 
I cannot take with me
But I am not giving them away either
There is talk of a bonfire
of whatever is left
Palm Vessel
20 x 25 cm
Oil cold wax and palm material 
on cradled board
$75 


Xanthorrhoea Land
Canvas 45 x 60 cm
xanthorrhoea resin on gessoed cloth
handstiched to canvas
$150



The Land Remembers
50 x 50 cm
oil and cold wax on cradled board
$200

Seeds
50 x 50 cm
oil and cold wax on cradled board
$200

Bird on a Fence
75 x 75 cm
oil and cold wax on canvas

$400

detail of above showing the Bird
This one the Judges Choice award 
at the Mission Beach Art Awards 2016

I will cover the cost for postage 
in Australia

x te

Sunday, February 5, 2017

Pigment for Sale


It would appear that we will be heading home
in the not to distant future
and I am under strict instructions to
down size my studio


So as a beginning 
I have some natural pigment to sell
The perfect size to start experimenting
without having to make a big commitment

They are all 25 gm packs
at $2 each + postage 
or a full set of 10 for $18
plus $5 postage
Australia Only
Please let me know if you are interested
I have 
Two full sets have now been sold 
so I can't do any more
but I will do the same price if you order 10
Whats left

Yellow Ochre    2 

Burnt Sienna      2
Copper Oxide   2

Titanium Dioxide 2

Red Oxide          2

x te



Friday, February 3, 2017

Indigo Sugar Experiments

After reading about the experiments of Catharine Ellis here
I was inspired to do some playing of my own
But I was reluctant to use food I could eat
so I found my source in the scrap/compost bin
I used
Banana Skins
Orange peel
Carrot Peel 
& Sweet Potato Peel
All were treated the same way
Brought to boil and simmered 30 mins
Then plant matter removed 
 liquid reduced by half
Removed from heat
 allowed to cool a little
1 teaspoon indigo and a little meths in a jar
Swirl to dissolve
Add cooled juice
(it still wants to be quite warm)
And 2 teaspoons lime
Shake jar vigorously and place in the sun


Jars in the Sun


The fabrics used
1. knitted linen, beige
2. Knitted cotton, white
3. Silk Cotton Blend, pale green

Banana Skins
while they worked they were not wildly successful


Carrot Peel
Much Better

Orange Peel
on a par with the carrot 

Orange Sweet Potato Peel

This dropped right off in the last test
I don't know if this is inherent to the material
or whether it was a slightly cooler day 
and this was the largest jar
and just didn't get warm enough
or possibly there wasn't as much peel to begin with

Maybe it needs to be repeated 
with exactly the same weight 
of plant material to begin with
But someone else can do that

I will definitely find a place in my freezer
for a few peelings 
of carrot, orange and sweet potato
to feed future indigo pots
and forego trying to find 
the fructose

I also hope to continue the experiments
once I have a vegie garden happening
with a glut

But I do wonder how capsicum cores would go
and would purple carrot skins make a difference?

More indigo play here 

x te

Thursday, February 2, 2017

Intuitive Art Journal

I have been playing over with Erin Faith Allen 
since early December doing her
  Metamorph online workshop 
I thought I might share some of the Journal spreads with you
Bearing in mind I am very much out of my comfort zone

So it is all about working with your intuition 
and just seeing what turns up

This one started because of a bleed through

all the pages have been prepped with traditional
rabbitskin glue gesso



and using natural materials 



and home made paints, 
e.g.milk paints and watercolour

I am also using 
Indian inks
as well as natural dye pigment
dissolved in meths (a type of alcohol)
and natural earth pigments
and natural indigo 


These last 3 are very much
works in progress

some collage



and some paint rag glued in

Each month has a theme
and I have just completed month 4 FIRE
and there are still 8 months to go

I am hoping for improvements
along the way
or at least more confidence

x te





Thursday, January 12, 2017

Stacking Blocks

So I waxed up some blocks

These are pine

coated in traditional gesso
made from rabbitskin glue and 
whiting (calcium carbonate)

I wrote words on them
added a little milk paint


then clear beeswax medium
a little yellow ochre and red iron oxide pigments
plus I brushed on some bixa orellana seeds(annato/achiote)
soaked in meths

then some more wax
5 I left like that
the rest I added
natural indigo powder
and some titanium white
before heating
These are now for sale so let me know if you are interested
prices below
the edges can be left raw
or a thin coating of clear cold wax medium applied
they can also be stained with a little red first


or I can apply a nice coating of Xanthorrhoea Resin

Prices
1 = $35
2 = $65
4 = $125
8 = $240
16 = $450

If you buy 4, 8, or 16 I will pay the postage
Australia only

x te