I have been taking photographs of flowers for several years to use as reference for my paintings. I choose the photograph that has a unique composition or one in which I find the shapes of the petals and leaves interesting. After I choose the photo I create a drawing of it with pen or pencil. This allows me to get a better sense of the shapes and shadows. Cross-hatching has always been my absolute favorite way to draw shadows - the texture of the cross-hatch lines is powerful. It can be subtle or dramatic. It's these lines that gave me the idea to create the same sketches in embroidery. I thought it would be very intriguing to use thread as the line and stitch the cross-hatching. I'm thoroughly enjoying the process and feel the finished pieces are strong.
Now, I would like to see all the pieces together: the photograph, pencil sketch, painting, and stitched sketch. The evolution of the image of each flower is something I would like to see - how did I change the flower in the first sketch? how about the painting? I often choose colors different from the original photograph. And how is the stitched sketch different? How are all the images the same? With all the different media, how does my style show through? What elements are clearly me?
On display at the Janice Charach Gallery
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