The Turner prize winners 2015 have nothing whatsoever to do with this blog..but it is my ‘turn’, well the last seven years have been..been thinking a lot recently about what I’ve been doing with regard to art and embroidery in the last seven years… the reason this train of thought started was that i needed to give a presentation to the Embroiderers’ Guild AGM last weekend about my scholar year …more of which later..anyway thinking about what I’ve done in the last seven years and I really do believe that getting the EG scholarship was my Turner so hey…..my golden ticket …(see my very first blog!)
and what a fab time I’ve had since Brock…… bit pooped tho. Arrived home in the evening to find a house full of people around celebrating the now teenager going on thirty year olds’ 13th birthday, him in doors hadn’t really thought much past ‘ sausages and chips for the kids’ (ooh we’re classy!) so needed to whizz to Tesco express to buy nibbles and drinks,ho hum good job I’m creative! Just would rather not be that sort of creative too often! Went to the Shard the following week and sat and did some drawing up there ..and more when back on the ground…
these are really easy..go on google views of london and see what you come up with. Kids love this and so do I!
The view is fab made me think of great work by ‘paint the town’…lovely skylines..Ann is coming to do a workshop at Liss in StitcheS week after next and I’m her slave for the day.
Anyway back to the shard…. most proud of the fact that I got past the heavy security with my trainers on..evidently there’s a’ dress code’… being foolish enough to pay a tenner for a g and t should be the perfect criteria for admittance in my book but there you go…. i reckon my dangly earrings, lairy coat and too many rings swung it for me….well that along with the mad artist ethereal smile..some nice art work upthere too..cut outs…..last time I was turned away from some where for wearing trainers was the Fridge in Brixton circa 1987.. oh and Tiger Tiger, Leicester Square in the 90’s but hey who wants to go there anyway! Any hoo the reason I’m prattling on about this stuff is because I’m hoping it’s all fodder for future art works… ‘the stuff that is around you influences you on a daily basis and I think its interesting how one incident sparks a memory that sparks another and so on’..all part of the creative process..well that’s what you hope anyway.. need to stay focused enough to make something now..and not keep wandering off at a tangent as is my want….got another meeting for the Heath project coming up that’s one thing to keep me focused…and open studios….more of which later….
Anyway I digress, after the shard went to the O2 which I found to be a bit like a sociology experiment….. sorry big arenas just don’t do it for me..surely you’re supposed to connect with an artist? It’s too big for me to do any connecting…. could have seen a band on the telly… but!!! its interesting how distance changes the artist’s connection (see there was a point to this ramble too) and this helps illustrate why I feel it’s important to connect with the viewer in some way…anyway I did really enjoy the lines of the building and the sheer vastness of the space..lines and light were amazing..more sketching!!! ..not many people do that at a concert now do they …..and so to the Embroiderers’ Guild AGM in Manchester last Saturday….
Gave my out going speech as education scholar…along with the other scholars – Georgina Bellamy and Lou Baker.. nerve wracking but I did it
.and once i got started it was a little hard to stop. oops! Really interesting to hear first hand fantastic things the EG is doing.. it’s really important that it survive as an institution .an amazing educational charity that deserves to go on and get stronger..Magna Carta, Game of Thrones and Capability Brown Festival are huge!looking forward to the next project what ever that may be
Went up to the City of London on Monday night to the Beryl Dean award . Some truly inspiring teachers of adults were commended. Hannah Maughan, lecturer from Falmouth University won the award…look forward to see where this g
oes next. Great church for venue rebuilt by Mr Wren after the great fire. Bought the amazing book of Miss Dean’s work that was brought out in 2011 on the centenary of her birth and talked to her archivist. Read it on the train ride home. goodness she was a power house!!! Apart from all the fabulous photos of her work I really liked the ten commandments for the Deanery created by some of her students including gems like ‘ In the beginning of thy work thou shalt ask thy teacher. Thus shalt thou save thyself many problems.’ I remembered be blown away by her work at the knit and stitch in 2011.! Saving up for my goldwork course at the RSN…just need to fix some dates!! My fine stitch skills …still need much work but I love to learn
..there is always so much to do and too little time to do it in..
And finally I end this blog on a total high. Just been with the lovely Ruth Smith doing amazing Chinese stitch workshop with a wonderful tutor, Len Rappolt. Here are my efforts..trust me this took ages!!!
THINKING about my version and how to bring into my work …really looking forward to that..watch this space…. will be experimenting !!!
PS Fine Art Degree show on at Chichester..some fab work go and see
PPS went to see this at Pallant House…especially loved the Radical Craft by outsider artists…I think its just great art tho and not outside
PPS Are you coming to mine on the 20th Sarah…have got the cereal in!
..right off to stitch…
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Also Ralph AKA The GOM. has gone to a good home!
Good luck to Worthing Young Embroiderers’ …Happy book making and email me your results will be great to see what you come up with! Been making more books this week …..
And yesterday well it was fab! I taught a workshop at the Ashcroft Centre in Fareham at their fabric day. It was great….my class was fully booked and we did my version of crazy patchwork ….think the ladies were a bit worried when my opening gambit to my ‘textures of quilting workshop’ was’ hi my name is Helen and I am not a quilter’… But think I pulled it back! There is something about the randomness and ‘more is more’ with crazy patchwork/quilts that I love. …. anyone who knows me, knows I am far from an exact person…and I am definitely not a quilter. There is nothing more satisfy thing than bringing together lots of old bits of material cutting them up joining them back together to make something new and beautiful that just sings!… Fitted with the theme of CAROL PARKER’s VISIBLE MENDING project – which was also at the Ashcroft …REPAIR – A participative postcard exhibition about visibly mending items when her allotment shed was broken into and she had to patch it up with whatever materials she could find.
Wish me luck!!!!
Before I left I managed to sneak into Jenny Rayment’s talk and let me tell you that lady should be doing stand up… So glad I got to listen to her. Her next book is evidently a hundred ways with a bathroom scrunching thingy!! Loses a lot in translation. Haven’t laughed so much in ages!!NB couldn’t find a photo of her as a bunny girl??
*’ see below’ as I cant manage to insert an EMOJI…Well what a week and it’s only thursday!
yes it really is the man him self…look in the back ground..check out those shoes! Starting with a conflab about room 6 exhibition at Birmingham NEC at the end of the month… to finalise arrangements. Sadly I will only be there on the Sunday but the rest of the group will be there ….come along and say hello if you are visiting the 
Tuesday started badly when I managed to fall over in a posh gallery in Grafton street looking at Tom 
Perhaps it was the post prandial seasonal lull..but I haven’t been totally dormant.. I’ve started an artist’s page and I’ve been making a lot of stuff . So with the glut of blue cheese and gin and too much Xmas cake a distant memory I am back in the blogosphere? (and arent you happy about that!!) Reading Nicky Barfoot’s blogs has made me laugh thru january , well feel happy then get terribly depressed when i realise i should be blogging too and that I need to get back into the saddle…. she’s also managed to provide me with displacement activities…good and not good..as I should be doing other things!!!! Check out her post on the textile challenge 
Anyway the good news is he sold and made lots of dosh for the canine trust..really pleased..it was fun to make …….
I love his work and the exhibition at the discovery centre last month was absolutely amazing!!!
also been finishing off my piece for the Embroiderers’ Guild on the celebration of 300 years of Capability Brown…heres a sneak preview.
Another reason for lack of blog is I have had to take on another paying job to keep me going on the art front but there are lots of nice things in the pipe line and, as a good friend said to me, Jan and Feb are the most miserable months and the best time to work lots. I’m also still in touch with uni and hoping to finish my degree next year, so I delayed the module I was going to do this term so can work to earn money to pay for the module..isnt that a 
?
And finally home and shopping…I went in to the marvellous ‘Stuff’ in Petersfield,..where Lyn has been selling my work for me ..she is rather good at it …. I took also took some of my mini sculptures in ….exhibited in Harrogate for the first time. ..the shop has the most beautiful items. If you are in the Petersfield area check her out..I have got my eye on one of her lovely kantha quilts…they are exquisite!!! ‘Stuff’ sells fab furniture, artwork and stuff for your home, and is at 2 London House, Chapel Street Petersfield. GU32 3DR and is open 10 til 4.30 Monday to Saturday or youican visit stuff on line at 
Definately worth a butchers on the iplayer…
on the front of the Guardian.. so here’s my starter for 10…………………………………………..⇓⇓⇓⇓.
…gutted that missed out on a place on the Opus Anglicanum stitch work shop a the RSN last week as I had to work..now there’s dedication for you…or stupidity!!! That really was a bleurrg…am on a cancellation list for the next one..so fingers crossed …….my spirits were raised by listening a great talk by Kay Ashby at Liss in StitcheS in the evening..very entertaining and lovely work.. I love that group..definitely builds your Wah!
no not me silly…I should have been packing but watched the first episode of super girl on demand with my son instead. He said he wanted to be with me for a bit longer as I’m away for nearly a week..personally I think the fact that we had found super girl and the flash had quite a lot to do with staying up late hmmmmm……
P.P.S MADE in Brighton was great! Really pleased you did so well Sarah!!! I enjoyed a sneaky ice cream on the seafront on the way there too!! Thank you to the mad Canadian for driving!!!
And also versions in larger cushions but can’t mass produce, will leave that to the professionals! thinking about doing commissions???????..marilyn has asked me to make some for her shop…I actually prefer doing the little ones and making them into people…they speak to me more.. I just need to work out why. But working out how to do bigger ones in the first place was fun! (And thanks for you advice Lynn!)
On Wednesday went to uni to have a chat about returning to do my final module for my of my first part of my final year come January. Talked about trying to work out why I do what I do and seeing if there is a similar vein that runs through my work. Also chatted thru marks for my last module…. got a huge list of theory books that I need to brush up on!!!Need to sell some flippin things at Harrogate to pay for it though….600 quid should just about do it!!!! I can dream okay! !Been making fabric bundles.. Not sure they are going to do it for me but every little helps!!! Also made more cushions big and small…. to possibly sell. Decided I would rather mass produce packs of raw materials with which people can create themselves something rather that mass produce a thing to buy(my idea of mass producing is 10 btw!) .. I like one offs!!!!!
helen sill 