I blogged earlier about my café inspired pattern design in the process of being created – https://sueclancy.com/2017/04/25/cafe-art-you-and-me/
The rest of that story is that I’ve turned the “café you and me” design into a scarf and a clutch bag for my signature art apparel collection on VIDA https://shopvida.com/collections/sue-clancy
Now I need more coffee…
Early one morning I was standing outside waiting on Rusty, my dachshund, to “do his business” and saw several song birds singing in my blooming Camilla bush. I doodled an idea in my sketchbook using a ball-point pen. (Yes, I keep a pen and sketchbook in the pocket of my bathrobe) By the time Rusty had finished up “business” I’d finished my sketchbook work. A few days later I began creating a finished surface design inspired by those song birds. Here is my artwork in progress:
To create this design I’m using my cut paper mixed media collage technique – the same one that I use to create my fine art.
Then after several more days of “short burst” work on my design I declared it “finished” and submitted it to VIDA for addition to my signature collection: http://www.shopvida.com/collections/sue-clancy
Here are the two newest “signature collection” apparel pieces with my “Songbirds On Blooms” design:
And of course I’ve a few more plans for this design but more about that later.
Here are images of my newly finished scarf and bag designs intended for the amusement of teachers (and students and people who enjoy language and numbers) – and both designs were inspired by teachers. My most recent blog post on my website tells “how and why I made this” details. https://sueclancy.com/2017/02/06/art-messes-math-mistakes-and-teachers/
scarf design by Clancy – the original pattern is created by hand-drawing letters in ink. That pattern is custom printed on modal fabric https://www.shopvida.com/collections/sue-clancy
bag design by Clancy – the original pattern is created by hand-drawing numbers in ink. That pattern is custom printed https://www.shopvida.com/collections/sue-clancy
You can see my full pattern design collection here: https://www.shopvida.com/collections/sue-clancy
I’ve had the cold/flu/crud for the last week. I’m feeling better now and wanted to “do something creative”. Trouble is I still suddenly sneeze and cough so using sharp xacto knives, loaded ink brushes and glue laden papers is more hazardous and messy than usual. What to do?
Then I thought – I know several teachers who have this cold/flu/crud too. What could I make that might amuse teachers? Perhaps make them feel a wee bit better? After some further thought I grabbed my felt-tip pens and have been creating pattern designs that will end up on a scarf and or a tote bag.
Here’s a photo of my pattern design work in progress.
After I snapped the above photo I saw my math mistake. Do you see it?
I did! And fixed it. Hugs and thanks to math teachers everywhere!
Now I’ll do need to do the digital hocus pocus needed to submit my designs to the apparel company I work with in San Francisco California.
But I’ll try to get some rest first.
You can see my full studio pattern design collection via this link: http://www.shopvida.com/collections/sue-clancy
A problem I’ve had as a professional artist who does fine art commissions – is that often the project is a secret. Which means even though my day (and mind) is filled with drawings, paper patterns and colors related to my commission I can’t talk about it online. No posting “in progress” photos because it’d spoil the surprise for somebody.
But still the Social Media Beast must be fed.
I’ve solved this problem – in hopefully an amusing way – by posting my short-narrative work (see my last post as an example), or something about one of my artist books…Here’s a page I particularly like today from my book Dr. Bob’s Emotional Repair Program First Aid Kit:
page from “Dr. Bob’s Emotional Repair Program First Aid Kit” https://store.bookbaby.com/book/dr-bobs-emotional-repair-program-first-aid-kit
Or posting a page from my sketchbook – like this one – which also happens to be an ebook page from my Coffee Table Book – (by the way, it is also a very good recipe for lunch):
page from “Coffee, Table, Book” https://store.bookbaby.com/book/coffee-table-book
Or posting something about one of my pattern designs: The art apparel with my pattern designs that I do for VIDA really do have my signature on them! You can see my entire signature collection here: http://shopvida.com/collections/sue-clancy
Sue Clancy’s “signature collection” of art apparel really does have a signature! See the whole collection here: http://shopvida.com/collections/sue-clancy
And now that I’ve told you my secret – and fed the Beast a bit – I’ll get back to work on my art commission.
Recently, end of September or early October my wife and I went on one of our wander-walks – I had my sketchbook in hand. On Officer’s Row in Vancouver WA I walked through a field full of blue-purple flowers… here are some of the sketches I did that day.
Sue Clancy’s sketchbook page of the overall view of the field on Officers Row.
Sue Clancy’s sketchbook page – details of flowers seen on Officers Row
The field was full of flowers; a patch here was full of blue ones, a patch there was white, another one there was magenta….it reminded me of curling up under/on a color-block quilt having a hot chocolate and reading a good book with a comforting lap cat/dog.
Then my work and life in general went on at a very busy pace and all the while in the back of my mind I was remembering that cozy quilt-like pattern of flowers seen on our walk…and thinking of how best to re-create that comfy feeling within pattern design and how that could be used in my fine art, or as a scarf or…???
Probably after the last chicory flower had faded from the real-life field I finally found time to create a pattern. In my studio I played around, designing several patterns using the chicory flower as a motif. As I worked I thought of several of our friends who garden, who like to go for walks/hikes and the upcoming winter season so I decided to make my pattern design into a scarf. I’m thinking it might be cozy to be able wear “end of summer” flowers during winter.
I used some paper I’d previously dyed and cut out the flower shape with an Xacto knife and glued it together. Then I cut up that just-created flower and re-glued it together in such a way that my finished design will digitally replicate as an overall pattern on fabric. The last step is to do a bit of detail here and there on the flower petals with my color pencils. Here are photos of two of my multi-step process of pattern design creation:
Here’s what the finished scarf design looks like -and it is available via this link http://www.shopvida.com/collections/sue-clancy :
Scarf pattern design “Chic Chicory” by Sue Clancy http://www.shopvida.com/collections/sue-clancy
The pattern seems a bit lighter on the fabric – but that is because it is on a white/sheer type of fabric and the fabric type affects the “look” of the design. I do my best to keep in mind that this will happen when I’m creating my pattern design.
My Chic Chicory pattern turned out nicely … what do you think?
A road trip to the Oregon Coast took my wife and I through the Oregon wine country. Hills flow up and down along the road giving me a view of vineyards from different angles – including a near “birds eye” view from above. The view inspired a pattern design and I made lots of notes in my sketchbook.
Back at my studio I use a number of techniques to make my patterns on paper: marbling, paste paper, stenciling… and more.. then when the paper is dry I make fine art with it, or an artist book, or art apparel or all of the above if the paper is large enough. Anyway, here’s a picture my wife took of me creating that “vineyard inspired” pattern on paper using my stencil-past-paper combo technique:
Sue Clancy creating a pattern on paper using a stencil-paste paper technique on hand dyed paper
When I think of a pattern design concept the pattern itself “tells a small story” – so I like to apply that “story” in several different ways. But how I use the “story pattern” depends on the larger story I want to tell. For example: one of my favorite things to do is sit with a glass of wine and read a book while wearing my pajamas – so I used parts of this vineyard inspired patterned paper when I created one of my fine art pieces that is about books/education. The art piece is titled “The Read Hat” and is specifically about how we tenaciously (like little dogs gather toys) collect information into our heads but I’m sure you’ll note the vineyard patterned “pajama’s” the dog is wearing. “The Read Hat” is currently at the Caplan Art Designs gallery in Portland Oregon.
Also I have friends who like scarves – and wine – so, while thinking the fun thought that someone could “wear” a vineyard – like the dog in my fine art piece – I did a scarf design with the same green dot pattern (titled “Vineyard Aerial View) that is now available via VIDA http://www.shopvida.com/collections/sue-clancy
Here is a picture of both projects:
The left image shows a fine art piece by Sue Clancy titled “The Read Hat” which uses the pattern design inspired by an aerial view of a vineyard. The image on the right is of a scarf designed with the same green-dot pattern design titled “Vineyard Aerial View”.
Recently I took a wonderful road trip to Boise Idaho to visit family there. Drove through the Columbia River Gorge on the Oregon side… saw waterfalls on the way to Idaho, saw the sunlight on the Boise foothills, then on the way home – again through the Columbia River Gorge – there was a spectacular sunset, sun shining on the rocky cliffs above the water. Needless to say I jotted pattern notes in my sketchbook. (I stopped at a rest stop to do that – don’t worry I did not draw and drive!) When I got back to the studio I created my patterns on handmade paper and then, after the papers were dry, photographed and uploaded the patterns to my signature collection at VIDA. http://shopvida.com/collections/voices/sue-clancy I’m imagining how fun it will be in the middle of winter to wear a waterfall, a summer sunset or the sunlit Boise foothills!
A pattern design I did based on a waterfall I saw on a road trip. http://shopvida.com/collections/voices/sue-clancy
A pattern design I did based on a summer sunset I saw on a road trip. http://shopvida.com/collections/voices/sue-clancy
A pattern design I did based on seeing the sunlit Boise foothills on a road trip. http://shopvida.com/collections/voices/sue-clancy
As readers of my blog and facebook posts know I recently had an art exhibit opening at Burnt Bridge Cellars http://www.burntbridgecellars.com/ a winery in Vancouver Washington. The wine inspired some new art… You see, during the opening party the sunlight streamed in through the large windows opposite the tasting room bar. In between talking with people I enjoyed watching the sunlight play on the wine as it poured from the bottle into the glasses. So over the next day or so I experimented with paper marbling techniques in an attempt to “catch” my memory of the light on pouring red wine. Eventually I had a pleasing-enough pattern design. Here is my pattern – and here’s a photo of a scarf I made with it that I’ve titled “Red Wine Pouring”. You can get that scarf – or view my entire art-apparel collection here: http://shopvida.com/collections/voices/sue-clancy
A pattern design by Sue Clancy inspired by red Wine being poured at Brunt Bridge Cellars.
Scarf with a pattern design by Sue Clancy titled “Red Wine Pouring” http://shopvida.com/collections/voices/sue-clancy
