P is for Patchworked Painting

When I was in Barcelona last month my sister, her girlfriend and I went to the Joan Miro Museum where a Sean Scully exhibition was showing. I'd bought a print of the painting below for David's birthday last year and was really delighted to see it in 'real' life!

Wall of Light Light by Sean Scully

The painting is huge (108 x 120 inches) and although I'd admired the print I wasn't prepared for the hypnotic, absorbing presence the painting would have.

I'd been thinking about making a patchwork inspired by the painting for a while and I've finally made a preliminary sketch. I wanted to learn from Scully's use of light and colour, but I doubt he's thought of giving patchwork workshops(!), so examining the painting by copying it is the next best thing.

This is what I've learned so far:

Within the painting there are tiny changes in the size and scale of each segment that I didn't even notice until I came to draw a pattern up, which are essential to the creation of movement. For ease I made my piece more uniform but it's lost a sense of flow in the process, for example, the slightly taller cream and brown segment on the bottom left in the original pushes into the space above and the blue and orange pieces in the top left corner flow across into the next segment.

Although the painting has a uniform feel, there's a huge range of tones and shades within each band. There's a depth that's absent from my version; the light is not bright enough, the dark not deep enough; my tones are too similar. His really does glow like a stained glass window but there's a flatness about mine which deadens the design, takes the life away. So I think I need each colour made up of lots of smaller pieces, each slightly varying in texture and tone. Or maybe working onto the top of the patchwork with embroidery and embellishments.

These aren't colours I would usually choose to work with, they're far more muted and neutral. I am pretty far out of my comfort zone with these shades but I find his piece is bright and glows without using the bright, highly saturated colours I usually rely on. 

Because of the obvious brush strokes in Scully's work his piece seems full of energy and life. I'd like to add much more texture to mine, I feel it should be more heavy and gnarled; it's too uniformly smooth.

And I want to scale it up massively, the huge scale lends Scully's work an impact. If its small it's somehow just a nice, pretty picture. The immense scale gives it a presence and power and fills your field of vision so you become totally absorbed.  I want mine to be bigger, not by using more pieces but bigger pieces made up of lots of subtly varying colours and textures.

In the long term I don't want a pale imitation of Scully's work and if I follow it too precisely it can only ever be this. But if I study this piece I can use the knowledge I've gained to create something new.

I would love to tell you more about Sean Scully but when I got home I found out that the English exhibition catalogue I bought is in fact written in Spanish. You can find out more about him here and here

Comments

[Ali]

Fascinating to hear you talking about that with such thought.

Would the quilting of the piece not add some of the texture/depth/shading you mentioned? Especially if you choose your thread carefully.

[Sarah]

I think part of the problem, and something you are laying too much blame upon yourself for, is the inherent difference between paint and fabric. You can do things with paint that you can't with fabric, because of the nature of the way the eye interacts with it. Our minds are much more likely to be fooled by a painted surface -- therefore seeing light and depth where there is none -- than it is by fabric.

I, in fact, like your piece better. I like the subtle play of textures and color. I like the way it looks like aerial photography of fields. I like that there is a crispness and order to it.

Perhaps you have learned and found more than you know.

[nicolette]

Like Sarah said, the structure of painting cannot so easily be achieved by fabric. I love your quilt very much though, because of the variety in fabrics and it has your own ‘handwriting’. You have been inspired by a painting, and I think you should forget about that piece of art now. Just look at your wonderful quilt. Like Ali said, you can achieve some more structure by the quilting itself and the choise of the threads. I love the picture of the 45 degree angle. I have had lots of painting lessons and when I wasn’t satisfied I once was told to hold the painting upside down! The result can be amazing sometimes! Lots of success finishing the quilt. You should be really proud!!

[Sonya]

Having a love affair with art history, I think this is such great stuff. Love to see the process and where you will take this.

[A Fanciful Twist]

Well, I speak spanich fluently, so, here's your translator.. hee hee.... I LOVE it. Oh, it is marvelous. I am so impressed by you!! Branching outside our color realm is tough, but, wow!!!

[Charlotte]

Turning a painting into a quilt is a great idea -you've certainly done it justice and have obviously enjoyed the whole process. All those colours together give it a very elegant feel. I hope you do more quilt-art!

p.s. you are VERY lucky to have Sew Simple as your local!

[Mikki]

Wow. I have greatly underestimated fabric art! Amazing work. I can't imagine the patience it takes to make such intricate work.

[sosser]

i'm loving your beautiful work and thoughtful, inspiring essay about the process. i found you when we were featured together on pip's blog. i wanted to say hi! your blog is lovely. i can't wait to read more!