DENIM

Vogue Living

2012-02-22T04:16:00.004-08:00

Renilde's work features (on it's side!) in this month's Vogue Living Magazine. If you click on the images you'll be able to read it them.

Afternoon tea

2011-10-24T01:20:00.000-07:00

Some photo's from Mr Kitly, 'The Blue Path' by Renilde De Peuter. Also some from the afternoon tea reception, I made Persian Mint tea (It was a very hot day) and Gingerbread, Pene made delicious Marshmallows and Bree and Julian made tea. All delicious! Thanks to everyone who came to look.

A slow boat

2011-10-07T19:18:00.000-07:00

The great news is that Renilde's work has arrived intact, only 2 and a half months late. The series is titled 'The Blue Path' and it has been on a rather mysterious adventure through the postal system and across the seas. Rather poetic, now that it has arrived!

The other good news is that there is a little room in the Mr Kitly calender to exhibit the work alongside Bree's Spring garden, so if you are in Melbourne you have an opportunity to see it! We will be having a little afternoon tea reception on the 15th. Details are below. The work is in the gallery from today, the 8th of October til Sunday 23th of October. We'd love to see you there!

The Blues

2011-09-11T18:27:00.000-07:00

This is the blue August of coated arms. A blog devoted to a year of colour. A nice discovery for today. Featuring some Woodstock blue denim.

Renilde De Peuter

2011-09-03T18:02:00.000-07:00

As an artist it's kind of a nightmare to imagine, an artwork sent to be exhibited and being lost on the way. I still feel a little ill when I think about this, even more worrying is the idea that it is permanently lost. I am hoping that it will turn up after a long, slow journey across the blue ocean, it should with this title and story!

The Blue Path.

I called this series The Blue Path because it is a work in progress and can be seen as a sort of journey to imaginary worlds and landscapes, similar to the Bildungsroman in which the protagonist is searching for meaning and harmony.
During this project I worked very intuitively, I've changed course many times, and removed parts or reinterpreted meanings to integrate them in the story, like for example the Three Golden Fleeces that finally constitute the pivot of this quest, this eternal search for the unknown.
This series of works is mainly made of recycled materials, the base being my own worn-out jeans, which in itself is already a landscape. My own personal landscape even, which gives the series a certain sense of continuity.
The most worn-out, and thus the most interesting parts, the knees, form the base for the eclipse and the ship in the middle of the ocean surrounded by St Elmo's Fire.
This motive of St. Elmo's Fire returns in almost every tile. It evolves from something narrative, something pictural to something more abstract, to ultimately even result in a simple woven pattern.

Bon Voyage to all :^)

Such beautiful work from Renilde. I am so glad there are photos to show at least. Here are some, and some more on her blog.

Mr Kitly (3)

2011-08-17T04:59:00.000-07:00

Max Olijnyk. 'Jeans for Woody' Custom denim jeans.

John Brooks. 'Double Denim Scarf' Cotton and reclaimed denim.

Mona Electric. 'Crystal hearts' Denim, cotton, wooden beads, cotton cord, crystal.

Dell Stewart. Knitted denim yarn, paint and stick.

In other news I have listed the catalogue online here in case anyone wants to buy one and can't make it to the gallery.

Farmyard Denim

2011-08-16T19:10:00.000-07:00

Via an ambitious project collapsing.

Mr Kitly (2)

2011-08-15T18:04:00.000-07:00

Installation View. Lyn Balzer and Tony Perkins. 'Mask – Red tears' Recycled Denim, Papier Mache, Kid Leather, Silver-lined Czech Glass Beads, Silk Thread. 'Skull' Recycled denim and silk thread. 'Denim and leather neckpiece' Recycled denim, Kangaroo leather lacing.

Dell Stewart 'Denim scarf' and 'X marks the spot'. John Brooks, 'Engineered Cape' Cotton and reclaimed denim. Brett Day Windham 'Mined Denim' Recycled denim, denim home insulation, bamboo, sinew, string, plastic, glue, spray paint, foam.

Installation View, Jennifer Bartholomew, ‘The Powerful Percheron’s of Nimes’
Terrracotta, recycled denim, linen thread, cork. John Brooks 'Double Denim Vest'
and 'Takahiro' (the black loosely woven scarf) Cotton and reclaimed denim.

Jennifer Bartholomew. ‘Boro’ Terracotta, recycled denim, wool, found branch, wood ’frog’ from the Gabo Island pier.

Penelope Durston 'Stockings for an Indigo dyer's wife' Hand knitted in denim yarn (ingosol dye, cotton). Maricor/Maricar, 'Echo'. Denim and cotton thread.

Dell Stewart. 'X marks the spot' Bleached denim, eyelets, string.

Mr Kitly (1)

2011-08-15T11:11:00.000-07:00

Installation view at Mr Kitly. Some more photos soon.

Jen Bartholomew, ‘Broke back’ Terracotta, white raku, earthenware glaze, Japanese tissue decals, recycled denim, machine embroidery, plastic saddle, found driftwood.
and 'The powerful Percherons of Nimes' Terrracotta, recycled denim, linen thread, cork.

Lyn Balzer and Tony Perkins, 'Mask' (detail)
Recycled Denim, Papier Mache, Kid Leather, Silver-lined Czech Glass Beads, Silk Thread.

Penelope Durston 'Stockings for an Indigo dyer's wife'
Hand knitted in denim yarn (ingosol dye, cotton).

Brett Day Windham, 'Mined Denim' Recycled denim, denim home insulation, bamboo,
sinew, string, plastic, glue, spray paint, foam.

Sweets

2011-08-15T00:22:00.000-07:00

The day after the exhibition, I got to work only to find these blue cupcakes on the desk. Anna is really very sweet. Denim cupcakes with frayed coconut edges.

They also reminded me of these, denim doughnuts from Krispy Kreme. Mona sent me through a tip off about them a few days before I flew to Brisbane, so I was trapped in the confines of an airport, and had an excuse to try one. Confusing, but apparently they were for a fundraiser for jeans for genes day, which weirdly enough happened to fall on the very same day as the exhibition opening. Coincidence! Anyway, it tasted just like the other doughnuts.

The Sartorialist

2011-08-14T19:08:00.000-07:00

All images from The Sartorialist.

Lyn and Tony

2011-08-09T15:43:00.000-07:00

Lyn Balzer and Tony Perkins are photographers and jewelers based between Sydney and Byron Bay. Each piece is laboriously handmade by the two of them in the studio: including these extraordinary masks. They have an unusual strength to them, they are made from frayed and worn cloth, but feel surprisingly sturdy in their tightly woven construction.

There is an interview with Lyn and Tony over here. I have been coveting these jewels for some time, so it is wonderful to have some of them in the show. If you can't get to the gallery, they are available here. There is also a sneaky peak at their home and studio here.

Press!

2011-08-07T23:56:00.000-07:00

Firstly, some lovely pictures from the opening night over at the thousands...
Three Thousand Street

And all this may be some of the reason we had such a fullsome and fine looking crowd. Thanks everybody for coming and listing! It was fun. I will post some photos of the exhibition later this week.

The Design Files
Three Thousand
I got the blues: Michi
Broadsheet
Poepke
Broadsheet: Craft Cubed Festival
Hand Made Life

Damn the post

2011-08-04T17:22:00.000-07:00

I have been waiting in earnest for a parcel from Renilde, but to my utter despair, it hasn't arrived. After getting the run around from Australia Post, and being brushed off with 'it'll arrive in a few days' a few days ago, I am now told it isn't even logged as entering the country, despite it being sent by registered international express almost three weeks ago. ARGH!

I'm sorry to all who will be disappointed at not seeing Renilde's work in the flesh this weeekend, I only hope it arrives next week, so I can install it as planned.

:(

Max Olijnyk

2011-07-31T22:03:00.000-07:00

Note to self. There is an interview with Max over on The Blackmail today. With some pictures quite similar to these ones I took in his studio a couple of weeks ago. Tess modeling her denim and shearling jacket. Best in Park!

Edit: Max (nah strike that, Tess) is famous and is also on The Design Files today.

Links

2011-07-30T17:06:00.000-07:00

Blog love from Renilde ATSWIM - TWO - BIRDS, Maricor/Maricar, Max, Miss Mona and Bree at ii-ne-kore.

Thanks everybody. The pressure is on. I hope it comes together well this week!

Jenny Norbury

2011-07-30T11:42:00.000-07:00

Jenny is a family friend from Far North Queensland, and I grew up around her work. When I started on this project she was in the back of my mind. Luckily I visited last year when I was staying with my parents on the Tablelands and she showed me some of her work. I asked her to contribute to this show too, but she couldn't this time.

Jenny has worked with recycled denim for as long as I can remember, and before; making bags, rugs, blankets, and clothing. She also has an amazing timber house full of treasures and an incredible garden, complete with rainforest plants, nesting bowerbirds and a flintstones picnic table.

These are photos from my visit, in September last year.

Denim shagpile rug.

Ropes plaited up from the seams of recycled jeans.

Not denim, but an amazing bedspread using the embroidered doily collection of an old friend.

Julie Floersch

2011-07-28T02:02:00.000-07:00

Julie Floersch. Denim on denim.

Julie Floersch was one of the first people I contacted for this exhibition. I instantly fell in love with the insane detail and subtlety of these geometric pieces, with their awe-inspiring amounts of work and stunning origami-like patterns. The various shades of indigo repeated across the surface, fading in and out like the recycled jeans they are pieced from. SO, It is with sorrow that I announce she will no longer have work in the exhibition due to difficulties with international shipping. Her work will however still feature in the catalogue which is available from the gallery during the exhibition, and online SOON.

Julie Floersch. Denim Interwoven.

'This was the first quilt I ever made. It’s a 5,000+ piece quilt of insanity that I decided to entirely hand sew and hand quilt together. I thought it would only take me a few months to make from start to finish, but the pattern alone took me a month. I ended up taking it with me almost everywhere I went. It traveled with me on a West Coast road trip, on a plane for my first vacation overseas (turns out sewing needles & snippers aren’t a problem to get through security even in a post 9/11 world…), to the park, the beach (bad idea) and through three different apartments. I even made a little map of all the different places certain blocks were sewn. In case you were wondering, I loved every minute of making this quilt'.

Julie Floersch. Indigo Pillows.

Julie Floersch. Indigo curtains (front and back). 2008 / 60” x 96” / Madewell Commission.

All images courtesy of Julie Floersch.

Bookish

2011-07-25T00:16:00.001-07:00

Adam and I just sent the book off to print. Fingers crossed it comes back as the lovely publication we hope it is. The first book from True Belief Press.

The image above is 'Golden Fleece 3' by Renilde De Peuter from a series entitled 'The Blue Path'.

Blue Gold

2011-07-19T14:04:00.000-07:00

Denim was traditionally colored blue with indigo dye to make blue jeans. Historically, indigo was a natural dye extracted from plants, and this process was important - blue dyes were once rare. Nearly all indigo dye produced today — several thousand tons each year — is synthetic.

Indigo is among the oldest dyes to be used for textile dyeing and printing. Many Asian countries, such as India, China, Japan and South East Asian nations have used indigo as a dye for centuries. The dye was also known to ancient civilizations in Mesopotamia, Egypt, Greece, Rome, Britain, Mesoamerica, Peru, Iran, and Africa.

Agbada is the Yoruba name for a type of flowing wide sleeved robe, usually decorated with embroidery, which is worn throughout much of Nigeria by important men, such as kings and chiefs, and on ceremonial occasions like weddings and funerals.

Classic hand tailored and hand embroidered robe with the two knives pattern on a background of hand spun cotton indigo dyed cloth called "Etu" or Guineafowl." Along with madder dyed magenta silk and beige local wild silk sanyan, this dark indigo etu formed a triumvirate of highly prestige cloths in C19th and C20th Nigeria.

Indigo was the foundation of centuries-old textile traditions throughout West Africa. From the Tuareg nomads of the Sahara to Cameroon, clothes dyed with indigo signified wealth. Women dyed the cloth in most areas, with the Yoruba of Nigeria and the Manding of Mali particularly well known for their expertise. Among the Hausa male dyers, working at communal dye pits was the basis of the wealth of the ancient city of Kano, and they can still be seen plying their trade today at the same pits. More info and incredible pictures at Adire African Textiles, including some indigo resist dyed Adire cloths from Nigeria.'Olokun' or 'Sea goddess' adire cloth. Nigeria.

Superb version of the classic hand-painted adire eleko design known as "Sun bebe."

In Japan, indigo became especially important in the Edo period when it was forbidden to use silk, so the Japanese began to import and plant cotton. It was difficult to dye the cotton fiber except with indigo. Even today indigo is very much appreciated as a color for the summer Kimono Yukata, as this traditional clothing recalls Nature and the blue sea.

Because of its high value as a trading commodity, indigo was often referred to as Blue Gold.

Indigo Dye, Wikipedia.

Cyanometer

2011-07-02T17:26:00.000-07:00

A cyanometer is an instrument for measuring 'blueness', specifically the colour intensity of blue sky. It is attributed to Horace-Bénédict de Saussure and Alexander von Humboldt. It consists of squares of paper dyed in graduated shades of blue and arranged in a color circle or square that can be held up and compared to the color of the sky.
Or perhaps for measuring the age or era of your denim.

Denim Yarn

2011-06-28T03:23:00.000-07:00

Pen has been knitting with some denim yarn. It's denim - yet knit - an improbable combination. I love it and can't wait to see how it washes.

Denim knitting

2011-06-16T08:22:00.000-07:00

I have been playing around with lots of denim, bleaching, patching, quilting and knitting. The knitting is appealing as I can do a little at work. Some of which is knitted on these amazing 25 mm needles via Cottage Industry and Nikki Gabriel. The scale of this kind of knitting is a little clownish. I was dressed appropriately.

The Quilts of Gee's Bend

2011-06-12T11:02:00.000-07:00

It would be very hard not to mention these stunning quilts when compiling an exhibition of denim. While the quilters of Gee’s Bend in Southern Alabama have made many beautiful patterns and quilts, using whatever fabrics were available, the denim work-clothes quilts resonate with both a communal, historical moment and a local, specific story. Many of these women worked the cotton fields in the day, and gathered together to quilt in the evenings, using recycled clothing from the family and community, piecing together a means of surviving cold winters.

The town’s women developed a distinctive, bold and sophisticated quilting style based on traditional American (and African American) quilts, but with a geometric simplicity reminiscent of Modern art. The women of Gee’s Bend have passed their skills and aesthetic down through at least six generations to the present.

Loretta Pettway, born 1942. "Lazy Gal" -- "Bars," ca. 1965, denim and cotton, 80 x 69 inches.

Loretta Pettway, born 1942. "Logcabin" -- single-block "Courthouse Steps" variation (local name: "Bricklayer"), ca. 1970, denim.

Loretta Pettway, born 1942. String-pieced quilt 1963, cotton twill and synthetic material (men's clothing), 80 x 74 inches. In the early 1960s, Loretta Pettway fashioned three quilts from the same batch of men's clothing scraps.

Annie Mae Young, born 1928. Work-clothes quilt with centre medallion of corduroy strips, 1976. Denim, corduroy, synthetic blend, 108 x 77 inches.

Lucy Mooney, ca. 1880-1969. Blocks and strips work-clothes quilt, ca 1935, cotton, denim, wool.

Stella Pettway. Work Clothes Quilt.

'Reflections on the art of Gee's Bend' Jane Livingston, Tinwood Books, 2002.

These and more images can be viewed here. All images courtesy of Tinwood Media.

Chanel Quilted Denim Sneaker

2011-06-11T01:25:00.001-07:00

Boro

2011-06-09T14:42:00.000-07:00

Boro is a Japanese word meaning “tattered rags” and it’s the term frequently used to describe lovingly patched and repaired cotton bedding and clothing, used much longer than the normal expected life cycle. Like early North American patchwork quilts, boro textiles revealed much about the Japanese family's living standards and the nature of the economy of their time.

19th c. Japanese cotton futon cover made from recycled indigo dyed cloth in patches joined together.

19th century Boro textiles.

Farmer's Boro Yogi. Early 1900s , From Kyushu, Western Japan.
The Japanese Yogi is a sleeping garment used like a blanket for warmth.
The typical yogi had several layers of fabric for the purpose of keeping the person warm during cold winter nights. The fabrics are Indigo cotton, Home Spun and Hand Loomed and feature many different kinds of indigo fabrics - checks, solids, katazome.

Images and short history from here. A beautiful book about it "Boro: Rags and Tatters from the Far North of Japan." here, but sadly no longer available.

Ashish

2011-06-02T05:35:00.000-07:00

Ashish.

Sneakers

2011-06-02T05:27:00.000-07:00

Denim

2011-06-01T16:21:00.000-07:00

Denim is a rugged cotton twill textile, in which the weft passes under two or more warp threads. This produces the familiar diagonal ribbing identifiable on the reverse of the fabric, which distinguishes denim from cotton duck. The word comes from the name of a sturdy fabric called serge, originally made in Nîmes, France, by the André family. Originally called serge de Nîmes, the name was soon shortened to denim.

Denim was traditionally colored blue with indigo dye to make blue "jeans", the contemporary use of jean comes from the French word for Genoa, Italy (Gênes), where the first denim trousers were made.

Via Wikipedia.