Why do we choose to work with specific media?

It’s a question that often crosses my mind when I think longingly of how much more quickly my work would go with the swoop of a brush.
But once I get the needle and thread in hand, I keep coming back to how much I enjoy the process, and the fact that there is something in the finished visual and textural effects of hand-stitching that grabs hold of my imagination and won’t let go.

Hand-stitched silk & cotton thread on dyed/painted raw silk                                       ©2014 Elizabeth Fram

With a  collection of thread that is vast and varied*, it is a joy to be immersed in so much color. As I work, I feel like I am virtually floating through the dyed/painted silk ground, each stitch punctuated by the comfortable rhythm of  “needle-up, needle-down”.  I can become engrossed in the process for hours.

In addition, I have always been most attracted to art where the artist has, in a sense, left a trail. I love what might be considered visual footprints — splashes of paint or the hide and seek of a drawn line as it traces and smudges in and out of the contours of a figure. These unpolished marks give me a chance to follow along with the artist and vicariously share in the process.

Hand-stitched silk & cotton thread on dyed/painted raw silk                              ©2014 Elizabeth Fram

So as I finish a day’s work and look back over the fields of texture and color created by innumerable hand-stitches, I feel like the journey of the piece as it is coming into being, is laid out as clearly as a map.

In essence, process and result are the driving forces behind why I work with needle and thread.  And in that light, I hope the thousands of stitches that capture me as I work, will also pull viewers into my finished pieces, not just through the image alone, but by incurring a feeling of connection with the making of it.

Wishing you all Happy Holidays…

*If you live near Stowe, VT be sure to check out The Wooden Needle for its beautiful and wide selection of silk, wool and cotton thread.