A group of internet artists from all over the place who have decided to give each other a challenge every few weeks, on a theme chosen by each in turn. We have different ideas and styles, but share a love of textiles, and want to have some fun.


Sunday 4 March 2012

lumen

here is my piece for 'architexture' ....
 lumen is a three dimensional hand stitched textile piece with layers of sari silk, hand dyed machine stitched cotton and sinemay. it was stitched with cotton and silk thread using sorbello stitch, running stitch and french knots. inside the piece are 'sticks' i made of cotton string soaked in black gesso and paverpol.
i had lots of ideas for this challenge mostly to do with cathedrals, skylines and gargoyles. but none of them fired my imagination until last week when i was surfing around the internet and got into a cross referencing spiral around the theme of liminal space and thresholds (which was another image i was toying with). there was a link to the word 'lumen' which of course, Alice-like, I followed and found the anatomical meaning of the word.

A lumen (Lat. lūmen, an opening or light) (pl. lumina) in biology is the inside space of a tubular structure, such as an artery or intestine.
which made me think of Kind Dog's 'heart event' as the hospital people called it, which happened nearly six months ago. of the inside of his arteries and how they were stitched back together lined with mesh. and how this has certainly saved and extended his life.
so while this is not an orthodox interpretation of the architexture theme it is certainly of a structure, a space, a construction.

it is lumen

3 comments:

Kathryn said...

Wow!! My first impression was of a gorgeous, rich cocoon, from which a butterfly has broken free. But then I read your description, and of course it is absolutely evocative of the "heart event". And maybe the 2 concepts are not that different at all?
This is a fabulous, truly textile art piece!

Julie said...

Kathryn has said it all! A truly innovative piece and a fitting interpretation of the theme.

Sue Krekorian said...

It is certainly evocative of more of your life events than you mention, I think, as well as those you do. It is very beautiful and full of meaning. I love it!