Haystacks of Giverny: Satin Stitched Color Map

After completing my Haystacks of Giverny piece, I thought it would be interesting to make a "Color Map" of all the different color combinations that I utilized in the piece.  I thought it would be interesting to show the different color combinations in equal 1/2" satin stitched squares.  This way all the variables would be somewhat controlled to allow for the color combinations to be the main focus.  I also stitched the squares of color in the order that I used the color combination on the final piece.  The first color used is the top left square and the last color stitched is the bottom right. 

All but two of the color combinations that are the plain satin stitch use 3 strands of the variegated Valdani embroidery floss.  The two that do not are a single strand of the variegated Valdani floss and were the colors used for the seed stitching in the background of the image.  For the combinations using stretched gilt purl, I stitched a 3-stranded split stitch around the edge of the square and then worked the stretched cutwork like a satin stitch with the 2 strands of Valdani plus the stretch gilt purl.  

A few important things to keep in mind when viewing this.  I purposely used the 3 strands in the same needle and purposely allowed the strands to twist as they wanted to as I worked the square.  For the squares with stretched purl, I did not use pieces of cut purl that were uniformly stretched and I allowed the pieces of cut purl to nestle together as they wished.  Now, why would I do this you may be wondering.  I also wanted to use this Color Map as an experiment to capture the quick brush strokes of the Impressionists and Post Impressionists painters that I have been studying.  They were known for their en plein air painting and speed with which they applied the paint to the canvas--not because they were being sloppy but because they wanted to capture the fleeting movement and experience of light in nature and natural settings. 

Satin stitch is the smoothest stitch you can use as it is supposed to lay nice and flat to the surface of the fabric.  This meant that in order to capture the gestural quality of the brush strokes I had to depend on the color and thread mixing not on the texture or pattern of the stitch.  

 

I really enjoyed stitching this Color Map and it has given me lots more ideas for future stitching.  I think was I was most excited about though was to see the range I could get utilizing only 10-11 different threads. It was also very interesting to me to see the squares with the stretched purl.  Now, just to figure out more time to stitch!

Haystacks of Giverny

We all hear about Monet and his haystacks--unfortunately to the point that we overlook them.  I'll be honest, I overlooked them in books.  Why is it that if an artist uses a repetitive subject matter that we do this?  There is so much to learn (I am learning) from looking at the iterations, the subtle changes from this version to the next version!  Here's just a selection of some of his Haystacks. 

I had never seen a Monet haystack until we went to the Musée d'Orsay.  I was completely overwhelmed with their Impressionists exhibition and the sheer size and amount of amazing pieces on display, and yet the one piece that caught my breath, that made me really pause and wonder was Monet's "Meules, fin de l'été" (Haystacks, Late Summer).  The colors, the mixtures, it GLOWED!!!!  It was the first of many Monet Haystacks I saw that trip and I cannot get enough of looking at them since we returned.

 

 

When we were at Monet's House and Gardens in Giverny, I took a ton of photos and plan on turning these photos into a new series of work integrating the color mixing principles that I am experimenting with and learning into these compositions.  This is my first finished piece.  It utilizes my photograph digitally printed on Kona cotton from Spoonflower layered with the same image digitally printed at home on silk organza with mixtures of Valdani 6-strand embroidery floss, DMC metallic floss and stretched gilt smooth purl.  

I purposely utilized a very limited number of stitch types to really challenge myself on the color mixing aspect of this piece.  Stitch types included are:  seed stitch, detached chain, bullion knot, french knot and herringbone. 

For the haystack, I have layered flat herringbone stitch in just cotton stranded Valdani, then layers of Valdani + DMC metallic floss and finally a top layer of stretched smooth purl.  Part of me wants to put some more cut purl on there but I think I need to live with the piece for a little bit first.  

For the dahilias, I had originally planned to silk shade them.  I had thought that it would be interesting to have just a bit of more realistic stitching in the composition to contrast with the more pixelated quality of the other stitches.  However as I worked the composition, I thought it would actually feel weird and not match.  I landed on using bullion knots with French knots to capture the energy of the petals in the dahilias and also to build up the texture more as the bullion knots and French knots sit higher on the piece than the detached chain stitches. 

 

  There are over 40 different color combinations from 10 different variegated Valdani threads used in this composition, referencing not only my photographs but also the color mixing that Monet used in his Haystacks.  I worked from the shadows up for the most part, though as with any project, there are always exceptions!  There is zero white and black in this piece, and the only time I have used pure color (a single color by itself) is when I have used 1 strand of floss for the seeding.  It is also interesting to note that I have bumped up the saturation of the the floss colors in the highlights and shadows. 

 Finally, I purposely did not use a hoop to allow for the fabrics to twist and bunch in areas and allow the different layers of the digitally printed images to shift.  I'm excited to start the next one!

France: Day 2 Giverny and Monet's Gardens

I love gardens.  I love flowers.  I love the colors, the textures, the fragrance.  I love the relaxed pace that a garden gives me--that I forget time and focus on the tiny details of the buds about to bloom and the bugs crawling around.  So I set out to Giverny to see Monet's actual gardens.  I wanted to see the lighting he saw.  I wanted to immerse myself in his environment.  So, how different were his gardens to his paintings?  As the focus of the Impressionists was to capture the true essence of light, I thought experiencing "Monet's light" was an important part of the process of evaluating the colors in his paintings.   

 

The greatest part of the day in Giverny was the fact that the weather changed.  It started sunny, clouds moved in and it got chilly and overcast, then the sun came out and washed the clouds away bright as could be.  All these changes happened as I made my way through the gardens.  I took my time, leisurely walking through the gardens enjoying the scenery and taking copious amounts of photos, trying to soak in every detail I could and capturing the overall scene, different viewpoints and details. 

I have tried to pick my “favorite” photos from Monet’s Gardens, but trying to do that is like trying to pick just a couple macarons to eat at Laudree or Fortnum and Mason—when looking at your options your automatic answer is “I’ll take them all, thank you!” but your brain knows that you cannot actually eat the whole counter of them (or pay!).  In the same way, I would love to show you all my photos I took but alas I have had to heavily edit down which ones I share!

It was so interesting to watch how the color of the flowers changed as the clouds rolled in.  The highlights disappearing and the overall contrast from highlight to color to shadow mellowing. 

As the sun came back out, you can see the harder highlights that it gave to the flowers.  It was interesting to see which flowers popped during the different weather conditions and when photographing them (whether among other plants, against the sky or water). 

You cannot go to Monet's gardens and not pay attention to the water lilies. 

The water was so still the whole time and it was exciting to see the reflections in the water adapt to the changing weather. 

The sun had just popped out and everything looked like it had a "top coating" of sun just on the top edges of everything.

Clouds moving back in ....

I love taking photos of moss and with the interesting twisting and looping of the branch, I could not resist capturing this moss!

Haystacks (not the actual ones Monet painted)!

France: Day 1 Auvers-sur-Oise

Our first stop (straight off the plane!) was Auvers-sur-Oise, a small town north of Paris where Van Gogh spent his last couple months before he passed away.  It is said that he created over 80 paintings in the 70 days that he spent in Auvers-sur-Oise.  Can you imagine being able to create pieces at that rate and concentration?!?

We saw a digital exhibition on the Impressionists and many painters that came to Auvers to paint at Château d'Auvers sur Oise.  We visited the Auberge Ravoux (where Van Gogh rented a room) and walked around the town.  After lunch, we drove around and took lots of photos of the town and the view down to the river.  I wish we had had more time to walk down near the river but it was off to Vernon by way of the scenic route on our GPS. 

 The Église Notre-Dame d'Auvers that was painted by Van Gogh (now at the Musee d'Orsay).

 I love an old stone walkway with moss and grass growing in the cracks!

 The poster in the bottom right shows a print of Van Gogh's painting. 

 It only felt right to photograph the beautiful sunflowers!

 And some pretty flowers too.... 

 I loved the moss on the tile roofs and the ivy invading the sides.

 The Auberge Ravoux

 Some cows on the way to Giverny and Vernon.