Reflecting on reflections!

Two summers ago, whilst visiting my nephew's farm in Pembrokeshire, I took some photos from inside one of his barns. The plastic sheets that were covering part of an open, slatted wooden wall were reflecting some interesting gashes of light from outside. I am trying out some ideas for a challenge that is coming up later in the year with the title 'Reflections'.  This is just a small A4 mixed media piece, and most of what you see above is stitched onto handmade 100% cotton rag paper. I wetted the paper first, and then scrunched it up a few times to soften it before painting it with acrylic fabric paints. I like the way that the paint has left some interesting marks on the paper surface, probably where the paint has settled into the creases. I cut the pieces up and remounted them onto some white cotton fabric, because I wanted to stabilise the paper, and also leave the white fabric showing through for the reflected areas. I have used a combination of free motion machine stitch, and hand stitch.

Above is the original photo that has inspired this expermental piece, and below is a close-up of part of the same piece showing how the paint has 'patterned' on the paper surface. The last photo is a wider shot of the inside of the barn, showing how the light was reflected through the wooden slats.

That's all for now folks, and thanks for reading!