In Dreams I Drifted Away - New Work in Progress

I really do dream about these pieces in The River series. I look at and think about the river a lot, I always have, so themes and ideas about it float up from my unconscious when I'm just about to wake. If I'm lucky, I catch them. This title, and the general sense of it, came to me last summer and I got to work immediately on it. I pulled a vibrant piece of turquoise felt for the centerpiece, and auditioned fabrics to accompany it. Not all of them made the final cut, but they helped to set the tone.

 I laid out the riverbank/border fabrics, a variety of silks with different patterns and textures, and needlefelted them onto the felt base. Next I laid slivers of wool and silk on the river and arranged them to show movement.

 A layer of wool roving and lots of sparkly mylar fibers came next, and were also needlefelted into place.

 I was happy with the work so far, and the title and general direction, but was still not entirely clear on the conceptual underpinnings. To give me more opportunity to reflect, I began hand stitching on the piece. Embroidery, like beadwork, is a very meditative process.  I worked on it, off and on in the odd spare hour, just enjoy the feel of the textiles and the repetitive motion of the needle.

With the embroidery complete, I added a layer of batting and a backing and quilted it improvisationally.  

 I hate forcing a work, and I'm OK with having a variety of works in progress, so I pinned this one up on a design board where I could look it over and ruminate on it from time to time.

Up next, the fog begins to lift!

As always, thanks for reading and commenting.