Bait / Switch - A years long game of Telephone by Art

At the beginning of this year I signed up to participate in a fun call for art. I describe Bait/Switch as basically the "Telephone" game but with art. Each artist recieves a work of art created by a stranger and is given two weeks to create a piece in response. Then their piece gets sent to the next person in line. I didn't know what to expect, but I knew it would push me out of my boundaries and would at least be a fun experiment. I had no idea that what I would end up creating would become my favorite piece of wall art to date and start a whole new series. 

The work I received was a video graphic of transforming shifting colors, almost like a kaleidoscope. In response, I created a woven wall hanging.

This was a super fun piece to create. I decided to use my rigid heddle loom so that I could weave on the back porch - we were having one of those freak warm weeks that herald the coming of spring. I knew the cold rain would come back, but I wanted to soak up the sun while I could. I started with plain white warp of 8/4 cotton, but painted it on the loom in the rough shape of the colors in the video I was given. I used Dye-Na-Flow to color the warp, it's a paintable dye I've had good expieriences with in the past that is a lot of fun to use. Because I can paint the warp directly when it's already on the loom, I'm able to control where the color ends up a lot more easily. It is not as color-fast of a dye method as more traditional dipping or soaking, but for a wall piece that wont get wear or washed, it's perfect! For weft, I blended colors of 8/2 cotton to try to mimic the motion and shifting of colors that the video captured. To add texture and interest, I also did some inlay with a white slubby textured yarn. I really love how this piece turned out, and I will be doing more work like this.

Photos of my hanging were sent to someone, who created a musical composition. I've never felt like such a rock star as  listening to a piece of music that I inspired. My favorite thing about this story is that I recommended the experience to literally every artist I know, and many of them signed up and also participated! Soon you'll be able to see work by my friends and family in future editions.

You can read the whole interview about my piece here. Bait / Switch: Impatient for Spring.

Impatient for Spring has been purchased and is no longer available for sale.