SEPTEMBER 4TH

Articulation Textile Group, of which I am a member, have been working on our most recent body of work for exhibition.  Instead of focusing on a landscape theme, this time we each, as individuals, reflected on how war has personally affected us.  For me, I focused on my father's father.  He died when my father was only an infant, and he subsequently grew up without the love and direction of his father.He did well for himself, he was bright and got a good education and became the managing director of the company he worked for, for years. We had a good life.

When my parents died, within eight months of each other, I came across the letters my grandfather had sent my grandmother during the War, together with other memorabilia, and the letter informing my grandmother of his death. After getting on line and doing some research, I gradually learned more about this young man  who had left such a hole in his family.  My husband and I went to Belgium, to see his grave and then went to Ypres to the Flanders Field Museum.  It was a profound experience, the entire trip.  My work,has been greatly influenced by it.

Our work will be exhibited at the Sidney Museum on Vancouver Island.

This piece is called A Blanket for my Grandfather and the poppies reflect the number of children, grandchildren and great grandchildren who are direct descendants of my grandfather. It was made to lie on his grave in Spierre churchyard.  Instead of leaving it there, I instead made one felt poppy and left it on his grave. I hope it is still there.

This is A Message of Peace.  It is in Morse Code, a universal language, of a passage from the Old Testament.  Isaiah is a revered Prophet in the Christian, Jewish and Islamic tradition. This passage he wrote of Peace has been written in many different languages, Maybe translating it into Morse Code will reach even more people.

News from the Front: I found the letter informing my grandmother of my grandfather's death. This is a copy of  a huge photograph of my grandfather that hung in my grandmother's tiny living room, until the day she died.  The twenty poppies denote his age when he was killed. 

So Many Crosses is an interactive piece, where the audience is invited to add a few more stitches in the knitting to remember a loved one killed in the many wars since and including the First World War. I was involved in a project in Calgary, knitting poppies to be added to thousands of others that will be hung from the Cathedral's spire this Remembrance Day.  I was on a roll, knitting poppies when I realized they were the perfect embellishment for the stool where people can sit and knit.

I have one more piece, which has been giving me trouble finishing it off.  It is completely made apart for an illumination device which I have been fiddling with for ages.  I have to come to a decision and get this done so it is ready to take with me to the exhibition. Why is it some pieces just come out fully formed and easy to make, while others feel like birthing an elephant!