Leslie Morgan teaching & class participants. m

LESLIE MORGAN

I have two separate pathways that link and merge and influence each other, and yet can be completely different. This must be a natural result of loving two different processes, and the place I am in when I am occupied with them.

I love creating layered cloth, which tells a story. I love the excitement of starting with white cloth, and building up meaning and texture, atmosphere and mood. I love all the processes along the way, from developing the marks and images, to find the right tool for the effect I want. I love the surprises that occur along the way, that influence the course of the piece. I am faithful to many of the images that I have developed over the years, and the many ways they can be used. They are security and adventure.

My layered cloth is the starting point for all my work. There are two outcomes. One is to keep the piece as a whole cloth, and to support and enhance the design and composition with quilting. The other is to cut the cloth and to piece related fabrics together to achieve the composition. There is a very practical result to these two methods! If the composition of the whole cloth fails I have another chance to find a solution by piecing it.

The stitching of either of these outcomes is an important element to my work. The whole cloth pieces are stitched to support the imagery, and I use either a quilting approach for the texture and directionality quilting gives, or I stitch the pieces without wadding to achieve a more smocked effect, which has a less rigid result, with drape and oodles of wonderful literal and visual texture.

I work in series, which I feel adds momentum and context to my work. The last piece influences the next. There are also time when I will generate ideas by exploring new imagery, or a new process, or by revisiting an old process in a new way.

Color is still a source of joy and wonder, even though my present work does not always use complex color schemes. Whether I use color by layering dye, paint or stitch or by placing one color next to another, I am looking for the next exciting unexpected gasp! My present ongoing “study” is exploring the wonderful complexities that 8 dye colors will give me!

> Leslie's & Claire Benn's Committed to Coth website

Color Studies for Surface Design • Dates: May 5-10, 2013 • Note: this class begins on Sunday, May 5 at 1 pm • Level: Intermediate - some experience of working with Mx dyes and basic surface design techniques are needed. • Zig zag sewing machine: No • Materials fee: $50 • Dye facility usage fee: $25 • Tuition & Meal plan: $855 > Tuition, meal plan, accommodations & additional information > Registration form DESCRIPTION Study color from a personal source. The key aims of this workshop are to: Use a personal color source to develop the colors you like.., and discover colors you could learn to like (or which complement your palette). Learn how to exploit Mx dyes and develop an unlimited palette by working with only eight colors. Build harmonious color and value schemes and develop contrasts to enrichen, energise and/or pop. Create a visual reference of color and value relationships. Ultimately, the workshop will enable you to establish a method to explore any color and value scheme of your choice in the future. We will work with Mx dyes on the bench and in the bucket to enable you to: explore a variety of surface design techniques within your own experience level to create cloth with texture, pattern and imagery in the colors and values you want.  (Please note that this class will not teach specific surface design techniques in a structured manner  - you will decide which techniques to use to explore color). immersion dye to create a family of ‘solids’ in three values for the palette. > Please click for supply list If you have any questions about the supply list or the course in general, please > email Leslie