And now for something completely different.

[Jim Bremer]

And now for something completely different.(more photo's)

Most of my recent creations have steered away from turning bowls and platters, and have focused more on pure form. This wallhanging, the first of five I'll be posting, is a collaboration with by wife, Ruth. The turned and carved disc anchors free-form quilted and beaded hand-dyed fabrics. The inspiration for this piece came from studying the grain pattern in Curly Maple. I did a line drawing of the piece last summer while Ruth was at a week long retreat in upstate New York called Quilting by the Lake. She came home with a radical new approach to her work which lined up perfectly with my concept. Her use of color and texture really impressed me and we have had a blast doing these pieces. The piece is 16x30 inches.

Ruth and I have undertaken many artistic endevours in recent years in a search for a look and style that is unique and something that is truly ours. We think we found it. What do you all think?

 

[Jonathon.C]

Woah... cool idea! Beautiful work! I can never think of something unique and original; I am always copying ideas. Anyway, very nice piece of work. Keep it up

Jonathon

 

[Dudley]

That is absolutly beautiful!

I do have to say your thread title actually made me laugh out loud!

 

[Leslie S]

Hands down the most creative collabaration I've seen in some time. Please keep posting these. Truly impressive.

 

[Vince Welch]

Jim,
Congrads... That is a job well done!!!!

 

[GeeSeaWhy]

Very inspirational! My wife Hazel does lace, beading and weaving. We've done a few things together but nothing really collaborative. This might just give us the push we need to get going. Maybe I could make a turning that could become a loom. But then the weaving would have to flow back into the turning. Hmmm

Thanks for posting,

Graeme

 

[S. Clark]

It's very nice. Makes me think of something that came out of the sea. I do a bit of scube diving and my favorite creatures under the water are the jellies. I've sketched some shapes but I haven't hit on how to produce the flowing edges and tentacles. I think you have achieved something in this direction.

- Scott

 

[Jeff Jilg]

Nice concept Jim. I like the fact of going outside the lines of the bowl, instead of building the entire piece to be surrounded by the bowl or a frame. The contrasting colors between the bowl and the fabric are appealing. It will be interesting to compare the 5 different pieces to see what color scheme becomes the favorite.

 

[dkulze]

Stunning, Jim. Flows very well. Excellent use of each medium, with a multiplying effect when combined. Would love to have it on my wall.

dietrich

 

[-e-]

Jim and Ruth ...

this is absolutely fantastic ... very exciting piece. Ruth's fabric work is wonderful and your integration is very very pleasing. A very successful piece.

however, for me there is something very scary with Ruth's and your concept...in my Metal Arts class, i started designing something very similar to this with casted metal flowing from the convoluted wood disk. the disk has been turned and i just found the drift wood i'm going to use for casting... hope you and ruth won't be alarmed if my work is frightenly close to yours ... that is if i can successfully execute the design.

 

[Walt]

WOW! At first I thought you used Abalone shell. Very cool! I'ld hang it on my wall.

Walt

 

[Jim Bremer]

We're fans

e,
We are fans of your work, so I hope you will share the piece you refer to when it is complete. I guess if you do something really new, and exicute it well, it's bound to influence someone. It's flattering to get this kind of praise from an accomplished artist like you.

 

[-e-]

thanks Jim ... and congratulations to Ruth and you on your innovative work.

so glad you posted another piece ...

 

[Mike S]

Cool

I would love to have some info on the processes you used to create this great wall piece.

 

[Jonathon.C]

That would actually be kinda cool if you did a how-to or at least showed some pix of the process

Jonathon

 

[Jim Bremer]

The process

Thanks everyone for the positive feedback. Regarding the process, I'll see if I can take some photo's this weekend of a piece we are working on and I'll include some drawings. Thanks again for taking interest in what we are doing.

 

[Jim Bremer]

Process photo's

I added some process photo's on another thread call Something Completely Different #4.

 

[Philip Streeting]

Cleaning

Jim, I can see this hanging on my wall but how would I be able to keep it clean?. Can you take the piece apart for dry cleaning the fabric or would the wood/finish be damaged if the whole piece had to be dry cleaned? Most embroidery I've seen like this is protected under glass, would any of the delicate structure or components of the embroidery be damaged by cleaning. Just thinking practical and I feel sure this must have been one of your design considerations.

 

[Jim Bremer]

Patina

Philip,
The fabric in this piece has a distressed quality. As with wood, it will change over time. Baring an unusual accident, it can be dusted and cleaned with a vacuum or dusting brush. Like most fabric, extended exposure to sun light could cause fading. Aging may actually enhance the piece. Maybe in fifty years some critic will comment on it's patina.

 

[Philip Streeting]

Impressed

Jim,
I am becoming increasingly excited by your work and ideas. With this dialogue I am beginning to understand where you are coming from. I can now start to put your passion for woodturning and its design into some kind of context. If your daily work i.e graphic design is rooted in the here and now, subject to the vagaries of fashion and is part of the disposable world we live in, I can see that it must be fantastic for you to be working with the idea of producing heritage pieces.
The most refreshing aspect is contained in what you have said above. It is the first time I have seen on this forum, a woodturner acknowledging that what you see now is not their final vision for their work. That age deterioration, fading of colours etc are a concious component and have been factored in to the initial design process and are part of your predictions for the gradual development of the final appearance. All credit to you a true designer/artist at work.
It is good to see someone reflecting the opinion of Hugh O'Neill in his book 'Woodturning - a guide to advanced technique' p.40 on good design.
'There is something that turners often overlook - we should call it 'honesty' - and it concerns the ageing characteristics of the wood we use. Is it really fair to produce an object intended for decoration that relies upon the delicate pink of pink ivory, the subtle purples of plum, or the bright scarlet of fresh padauk, knowing that they will change to a regular brown within a short time? Anything with pink, purple or red pigmentation will turn brown.' True of most synthetic colours too regardless of medium
You have acknowledged this has been taken into account within your design proceedure and your vision for the final piece which is great. I can see that this subtle colour deterioration occurring over time is an added bonus to your pieces. Your intention for the final appearance to be a combination of subtle browns, greys and maybe cream with accents and colour provided with the beads is very clever.
Any chance of you maybe using Photoshop or similar to change the tones in your pictures to show us all a simulation of your final vision for these pieces?
I think by drawing attention to the changes over time concept is important and merit an article in the 'How to/tips' section of the forum where you could expand this so we could all benefit from your knowledge and experience. It is a relevant consideration for any turner working with dyes, pigments, paint etc as well as fabric.
Thanks again for drawing this to our attention.
Regards
Philip