weaving my way to a flag

Hello again from Spain. I am delighted to announce that Autumn seems to be finally here. After four consecutive heat waves in a month and a half - and two previous ones starting in June - the temperatures have gone down, we had some delightful and much needed rain, and I was able to start working on my flag.

After hazily considering and discarding different projects and ideas - a rope ladder included - I decided to use fabrics for my flag. And I started out be weaving a small piece on a toy loom I've had since I was a child. This small piece of fabric only measures 18 x 22 cms (7.2 x 8.8 inches) and it was my first attempt at weaving in decades! I used a three-strand macramé cord, separating the strands and weaving them one by one. My toy loom can weave up to a length of 1,5 mts though (about 5 feet) and my next piece will be quite longer.

I will sew the woven pieces to cotton fabrics and work on the whole. The flag will reveal itself to me in the process, so I don't have the definitive idea in my head yet. That's my usual way of creating, I start a project and let it guide me along. I follow its wishes.

My flag must be finished by 10 September, along with the flags of the other ten participants from the Group 'Roots', so I will soon show you more work. My own and that of the other artists.

Have a lovely week and enjoy the change of season, whatever it may be!

open your heart....

Thank you for the reminder, Mary Jane.

You nudged me to work on the peace flags...

September 21 will be here soon!

I'm recycling windbreaker jackets from a second hand store....such nice, light fabric.

"The most valuable possession you can own is an open heart. 

The most powerful weapon you can be is an instrument of peace."

-Carlos Santana

-Lela

21 days!

fair trade recycled muslin pillow

in just 3 fridays, international peace day will be here!

i am finishing up my 'big' set for outdoors...

how are you doing?

and remember, if you would like to be able to show your flags (and you really want you to), please email me or leave a comment - you will be added as an author on the blog...

thanks so much - 

mary jane

A little glimpse of peace...

I have finished my indoor peace flags, now onto my outdoor ones!

Here is how the indoor ones hang in our house - I will move them over to the studio when we are having Open Studios so more people can share them.

They are a rainbow of peace from red, orange, yellow, green, blue, indigo,  purple...

first flag from Spain

I have been posting from Spain as a member of a group of artists called 'Roots'. However, the first Flag I can show you here was not made by a member of our group at all but by Montse Romagosa, a jewelry designer gone sculptor from Barcelona (230 kms from here). The beautiful photographs were taken by Àlvar Caixal.

Montse visits the area regularly, she has a house here in Beceite, and she liked the idea of the 2012 Project from the very beginning. She is a member of another group of artists called Land Art Associació Catalunya.

So her first contribution to the Flags for Peace Project is placed on the ground, on a piece of land. This piece of sculpture is not very large or heavy and she means to hang it in a public place for 21 September. I'd love it to be near the ten flags of our Group.

The piece is titled 'Peace and Freedom' and it is made with recycled materials, mainly iron and rope. The iron grid represents Freedom.

The same figure placed in a different location. I'm not sure where (I forgot to ask!) but the surroundings look a lot like anywhere around here.

'Peace and Freedom' resting on rows of roof tiles made of clay. I think it's a 'she'. What do you think?

P.S. Mary Jane, I thought this work would appeal to you, I hope it does!

Hand painted peace flags for International Peace Day

First of all, thank you Mary Jane for the opportunity to post to the blog.  I loved the idea of peace flags when I first heard Mary Jane mention the project over at the Love My Art Jewelry Blog.  I did a little research about peace/prayer flags and really loved what I found out about Tibetan prayer flags.  I learned that it was traditional for them to be hung in the wind and that it was thought the wind would carry the prayers and wishes to the whole world.  I also loved that it was not only OK, but expected for them to sort of fade away due to exposure to the elements and become part of a greater cycle.  I loosely based my flags on the Tibetan concept without the more denominational aspects.  I wanted my flags to have meaning for any and everyone.  I went down to a local yardage store and got 2 yards of fabric which I then cut into rectangles.   I melted a candle and used the wax as a resist to write my wishes of peace, love, health, joy and freedom for everyone in the world.  I used Setasilk paint by Pebeo to color the flags, and affixed the flags to 1/4"bias tape with double sided fusible webbing.  They may fall apart with the first rain...and that's totally OK, because for once it is totally true that "it's the thought that counts".  Peace everyone.

peace one day

(shared with me by izzy... )

here is a link to the website


thank you, izzy -

and to all of those people who are taking action to make peace a way of living, not just a concept... by taking what it is they know and do and choosing to direct it in a meaningful way -