Saturday, April 14, 2018

“Banksia”
 Collection
My New Hand Dyed and Hand Printed Fabric Design

ArtCloth



Marie-Therese Wisniowski


Preamble
On this blog spot there are posts that center on my “Wearable Art” (e.g. scarves, digital or analogue created fabric lengths etc.) For your convenience I have listed these posts below.
A Selection of My Scarves
Leaves Transformed: A New Collection of My Digitally Designed Fabrics
My New Silk Rayon Velvet Scarves@Purple Noon Art And Sculpture Gallery
My Fabric Lengths@QSDS
My Fabric Collection:"Oh, Oh Marilyn and Mona!"@Spoonflower
2013 Australian Craft Awards – Finalist
My Scarves@2014 Scarf Festival: "Urban Artscape" Pashminas
My New Scarves and Fabric Lengths
New Range of Silk Neckties - Karma and Akash
AIVA: My New Hand Dyed and Hand Printed Fabric Design
New Colorways For My 'Cultural Graffiti' Fabrics
Byzantine Glow: A New Collection of My Digitally Designed Fabrics
Wall Flower: A New Collection of My Digitally Designed Fabrics
Ink Fern - A New Collection of My Digitally Designed Fabrics
Celebratory Fireworks
My New Silk ArtCloth Scarves
New ‘Unique State’ Silk ArtCloth Scarves
UBIRR - My New Hand Dyed & Printed Fabric Design
Renaissance Man - My New Hand Dyed & Printed Fabric Design
Banksia - My New Hand Dyed and Hand Printed Fabric Design
Ginkgo Love - My New Hand Dyed and Hand Printed Fabric Design
Garden Delights I & II - My New Hand Dyed and Hand Printed Fabric Design
Wallflower III - My New Hand Dyed and Hand Printed Fabric Design
Rainforest Beauty - Collection My New Hand Dyed and Hand Printed Fabric Design
Spring & Autumn Flurry Collection - My New Hand Dyed and Hand Printed Fabric Design
La Volute Collection - My New Hand Dyed and Hand Printed Fabric Design
Urban Butterfly - My New Hand Printed Fabric Design
Acanthus Dream - My New Hand Printed Fabric Design
“Cascading Acanthus” - My New Hand Dyed and Hand Printed Fabric Design
My New Hand Dyed and Hand Printed 'Rainforest Beauty' Pashmina Wraps Collection
My ArtCloth Tea Towels: A New Collection of Digitally Designed Products
Through the Land it Roared . . . ArtCloth Shawl
My New Hand Dyed and Hand Printed ‘Urban Codes - Series 1’ Collection
Urban Moonlight - My Post Graffiti Doily
My New Hand Printed Fabric Design - "Morocco" ArtCloth
‘Vine Glow’
“Bush Banksia’s” Collection"
Releasing My New - ‘Unique State’ ArtCloth Scarves

If you like any of my artworks in the above links, please email me at - Marie-Therese - for pricing and for any other enquiries.


“Banksia” Collection - Introduction
The genus Banksia
There are 173 Banksia species, and all but one occurs naturally only in Australia. Banksias were named after Sir Joseph Banks (1743-1820 ) who in 1770 was the first European to collect specimens of these plants.

Where do they Occur?
South-Western Australia contains the greatest diversity of banksias, with 60 species recorded. They are also an important part of the flora of Australia's Eastern coast. Few banksias are found in the arid regions of Australia or in the rainforests of the Eastern coast.

There are no species that are common to Eastern and Western Australia except Tropical Banksia, Banksia dentata, which occurs across northern Australia, in Papua New Guinea, Irian Jaya and the Aru Islands.

Banksia Flowers and Fruits
The flower heads are made up of hundreds (sometimes thousands) of tiny individual flowers grouped together in pairs. The color of the flower heads usually ranges from yellow to red. Many species flower during autumn and winter. 
The fruit of a banksia (called follicles) is hard and woody and are often grouped together to resemble cones (which they are not, since ­"true" cones are produced only by conifers). 
The fruits protect the seeds from foraging animals and from fire. In many species the fruits will not open until they have been burnt or completely dried out[1].

Heavy producers of nectar, the banksia is a vital part of the food chain in the Australian bush. They are an important food source for all sorts of nectarivorous animals, including birds, bats, rats, possums, stingless bees and a host of invertebrates. Furthermore, they are of economic importance to Australia's nursery and cut flower industries. However these plants are threatened by a number of processes including land clearing, frequent burning and disease, and a number of species are now rare and endangered[2].


“Banksia” Collection - Concept and Processes
My new, contemporary fabric design collection, “Banksia”, is based on one of Australia’s truly unique flowering native plant species, the Banksia. Inspired by the Australian bush, Australian artists such as Margaret Preston and writers/illustrators such as May Gibbs, brought their own fresh, truly unique aesthetic of the Banksia genus to the world. Here, banksia images have been created to capture modern, timeless and unique design aesthetics.

The “Banksia” Collection comes in a series of design formats and colorways – Banksia Brights, Banksia’s Floating and Banksia’s amidst the Lichen.

As with all of my fabric designs, white fabrics, in this case cotton homespun, were dyed and/or over dyed using time-honored hand dyeing techniques to add visual depth, pattern and contrast to the fabric backgrounds. Using time-honored hand printing processes the fabrics were then screen-printed with images of “Banksia’s” over the entire fabric lengths. Using analogous and/or complementary colors (in each specific colorway), additional layers of complex images were overprinted in transparent, opaque and metallic pigments until a richly hued and multi-layered surface was created.

“Banksia Brights” comes in two colorways: one in lime green hues with red accents, the other in hot pink hues with blue accents. To create visual depth multiple, complex layers of banksia images were printed and overprinted in a random, half-drop pattern over the entire fabric using transparent, opaque and metallic pigments to create a visually high contrast, richly hued and multi-layered surface.

“Banksia’s Floating” comes in two colorways – one in soft, muted sea green and pale lemon hues, the other in soft, muted plum/purple and light blue hues. To create visual depth multiple, complex layers of banksia images were printed and overprinted in a random, floating pattern over the entire fabric using transparent, opaque and metallic pigments to create a visually contrasting, richly hued and multi-layered surface.

“Banksia’s amidst the Lichen” comes in one colorway – a dynamic, richly patterned, shibori dyed background in black and lime green hues. To create visual depth multiple, complex layers of banksia images were printed and overprinted in a random pattern over the entire fabric using metallic pigments to create a visually harmonising, deep, richly hued and textured surface.

The fabric and patterning in the “Banksia” Collection can be designed using variations of the above colorways and patterning techniques to create a truly unique and individual statement. “Banksia” Collection fabric lengths and fat quarters can be used for wearable art, accessories, quilts, furnishing, as framed artworks and interior design projects. Please email me at - Marie-Therese - to discuss further options.

“Banksia Brights”

View of “Banksia Brights” design as fat quarters (close up). The design comes in two colorways - one in lime green hues with red accents (left), the other in hot pink hues with blue accents (right).

“Banksia Brights” in lime green hues with red accents (full view).
Technique and Material: Dyed and screen-printed employing transparent, opaque and metallic pigments on cotton.
Size: 113 cm wide x 100 cm high.

“Banksia Brights” in lime green hues with red accents (detail view).

“Banksia Brights” in hot pink hues with blue accents (full view).
Technique and Material: Dyed and screen-printed employing transparent, opaque and metallic pigments on cotton.
Size: 113 cm wide x 100 cm high.

“Banksia Brights” in hot pink hues with blue accents (detail view).

“Banksia’s Floating”

“Banksia’s Floating” in soft, muted sea green and pale lemon hues (full view).
Technique and Material: Multi-dyed and screen-printed employing transparent, opaque and metallic pigments on cotton.
Size: 113 cm wide x 100 cm high.

“Banksia’s Floating” in soft, muted sea green and pale lemon hues (detail view).

“Banksia’s Floating” in soft, muted plum/purple and light blue hues (full view).
Technique and Material: Multi-dyed and screen-printed employing transparent, opaque and metallic pigments on cotton.
Size: 113 cm wide x 100 cm high.

“Banksia’s Floating” in soft, muted plum/purple and light blue hues (detail view).

“Banksia’s amidst the Lichen”

“Banksia’s amidst the Lichen” in black and lime green dyed background hues (full view).
Technique and Material: Multi-dyed, over-dyed and screen-printed employing metallic pigments on cotton.
Size: 116 cm wide x 158 cm high.

“Banksia’s amidst the Lichen” in black and lime green dyed background hues (detail view).

“Banksia’s amidst the Lichen” in black and lime green dyed background hues (detail view).


References:
[1] Based on an Australian National Botanic Gardens leaflet prepared by Rod Harvey in 1995 - https://www.anbg.gov.au/banksia/index.html.

[2] Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Banksia.

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