D is for dragonfly

I made another monogram yesterday: d is for dragonfly. I had been thinking maybe I should do a dragon - after all, I already have a mermaid and a unicorn, so this collection isn't strictly natural history, but then again, I could make a kimodo dragon. Then, it hit me that a dragonfly would be just the thing. Since my ulterior motive is the baby quilt, I like to include things which quietly allude to the parents, and RJH has long used one of his macro shots of a dragonfly as his laptop background image. Plus, I'm gathering insect prints at the moment, so it works for that project too.



I also made a wee baby kimono, cause now I have an excuse to buy the cutest fabric (though, I seemed to have other excuses previously and have a bit of a fabric hoarding habit). I used this somewhat too succinct tutorial, which I thought would be easier, but it was deceptive. The kimono was more challenging than the coat, which seems backwards. I think I'll make some easier things next. I gather from seeing what is truly useful for my nephew, that what parents really need is a whole bunch of fabric rectangles (receiving blankets, burp cloths, changing mats, play mats and so forth) and rectangles are about as easy as sewing gets. I bought terry cloth and I have the aforementioned cute fabrics, and figure that one cannot have too many burp cloths, so rectangles it is.

for the bees

If you're in the Toronto-Hamilton-Buffalo area this spring, I'd like to suggest making a day trip to the lovely Ball's Falls Conservation Area. Until Canada Day (July 1), along with the beautiful scenery and heritage areas, they will be hosting an exhibit about the biodiversity of bees, including artwork and 7 of my prints. The exhibit also has the wonderful multimedia sound and visual art of installation artist and composer Sarah Pebbles. Her "Audio Bee Booth for Ball's Falls" allows you to not only see, and learn about our beautiful pollinators (and their alarming decline), but to hear them too. There are many artifacts, and scientific photos curtesy of York University, also included. I set up my art early, so I myself have yet to see it all. Check out Resonating Bodies for more of Sarah's work on bees, and my set of images of bees here.

The Leafcutter Bee Megachile relativa

This is an important local leafcutter bee, Megachile relativa, in a lino block print on Japanese kozo (mulberry) paper with yellow and translucent washi chine collé (collaged fine Japanese paper). Each print is 15.2 cm (6 inches) square. The print is one of only 16.

Because the Megachile bees do not make honey, people are often unaware of them, though it is one of the largest genera of bees, with well over 500 species in over 50 subgenera, and they play an important role in pollinisation. We think of bees in hives and making honey; these bees are solitary and make no honey. They are known as leafcutter bees since the build their nests with tidy little pieces which they cut from leaves. They build these nests in cavities in the ground or hollow twigs or similar tunnels. These bees are cosmopolitan, spanning most world habitats. Here in Canada they are common up to subarctic zones.

The latest bee: Melissodes

This is a linocut with two sorts of (collaged) chine collé papers (pale yellow body and translucent paper with foil inclusions for the wings) on Japanese kozo (or mulberry), 8.25" by 6.125" or 21 cm by 15.6 cm. There are 18 prints in the edition. I used the two coloured papers to try to replicate the insect's lovely pale yellow body and translucent wings.

Meet another bee which is native to this part of the world (the new world, or western hemisphere). This is the Melissodes, or Long-horned bee. These are small to medium sized bees, ranging from 7.5 to 18 mm long (0.3 to 0.71 inches). They are robust with fuzzy yellow hairs and conspicuous hairy legs. When you look at an enlarged photo of a Melissodes their hairy legs remind me of a sheepdog. The front part of the female's face is usually yellow. Like most bees in the tribe Eucerini, males have long antennae. Males are long-bodied, while females have short antennae and are round-bodied. This print shows a female. These are solitary bees and live in individual nests rather than hives.

I'm planning to make a total of 6 bees, all of which can be found here in Ontario.

bees are different than you think...

Meet a bee which is native to this part of the world (the new world, or western hemisphere). This is the Agapostemon Sericeus or sweat bee.

It is metallic, iridescent, blue-green (though males have black and white or yellow stripes on their abdomens), and doesn't live in a hive. These are solitary bees. It generally lives in the ground, like most bees, or makes a nest in rotted wood. Though these are not like the familiar (but entirely non-native, introduced) honeybee, in appearance or behaviour, Agapostemon are also important pollinators.

This is a linocut with two sorts of chine collé papers (green saiko-shi with laminated threads, like the bee hairs, and non-woven metallic silver-blue paper) on Japanese kozo (or mulberry), 9.25" by 8.25" or 23.5 cm by 21 cm. There are 12 prints in the edition. I used the two coloured papers to try to replicate the insect's lovely iridescent blue-green sheen.

I have a longer term project in mind, with a collection of different sort of bees we find locally in Ontario, inspired by a conversation with artist-composer-musician Sarah Peebles, who explained to me the difference between solitary and communal bees and the importance of solitary bees in our own environment.

They are called sweat bees, apparently, because they are attracted to perspiration, so this seems an apt fellow for such a hot summer day.

one small step...

RJH sent me an email with that title, containing this snapshot of a housefly on my vintage moon globe*. I think this is a sign that he's at least as crazy as I am. I told him, when he took the photo that it was very Ed Wood.

*As opposed to my contemporary moon globe, which I keep in my office at work, 'cause a girl needs two moon globes. In fact, I really must start making some planetary globes.

Bumblebee Best of 2010!

I'm a Craftster Best of 2010 Winner! My bumblebee linocut was awarded one of the 'Best of 2010' awards from craftster in the "Other Image Reproduction Techniques: Completed Projects" category! I don't spend as much time on the site as I once did, but craftster is a great site, and being a member really helped me hone my skills and learn how to create things and send them off into the unknown. I'm very flattered they've awarded me a 'best of' once again! The funny thing is that I created the bee with a view to entering it in a printmaking competition (for prints with a print area no larger than 10 cm, or 4 inches, squared) - but I never submitted it. Perhaps this is my cue to submit more art to competitions. Hmmmm....

I is for iguana, and insect, and indigo

This is the latest panel in my alphabet quilt-in-progress. It is a hand-block printed iguana in green ink on an old (though high thread count) cotton shirt in gray. The 'I' is printed with a vintage letterpress block. The insects were screenprinted by Smoking Lily - they sell scraps of fabric with prints they don't use in their clothing line. The insects in blue (on tee shirt material) are reverse appliqued onto the black fabric with one white fly.

What do you think? Maybe 2009 will be the year and I will actually finish this quilt.

I need to finish the 'N' and 'O' panels, which are in progress. I have to start 'Q', 'U', 'V', 'X', 'Y' and 'Z'. Then the actual quilting process can begin.