Nefertiti Cheung – Seeing Pattern

Crab legs and (similar to) crab claw flower print. [Markers]

Reflection:

For this task we needed to observe colours in order to work on our pattern creations. After collecting several sketches through West and South London, I recalled the funky atmosphere of Brixton Road as well as being exposed to delicacies from many parts of the world at Borough Market. I wanted to work on doing a close-up of woven textiles and fabric, as shown by the shoelaces gif. Although, could be a great way to incorporate appliqué techniques,  I felt that heavily concentrating on making the pieces fit together doesn’t allow freedom of unique shapes in one pattern sheet. I achieved a similar fluffy effect with a moldable material, such as the pipe cleaner, to provide a more efficient way of recreating knit patterns that could look well with North American smocking or a patchwork series. I visited the Cornelia Parker’s exhibition at Tate Britain which made me consider distinctively simple shapes that could be replicated using mark-making and silhouettes. For instance, the band instrument cut-outs of “Perpetual Canon” (2004) could be applied to reverse appliqué or assembled in a different line-up for each row. I’ve noticed that a lot of these designs could be translated among different fabrics and materials, and I liked that this experience showed me inspiration can come from somewhere and to not isolate my research. For the next task, I could piece together a colour palette or fabric swatches and try attaching beads, or seek techniques in books in ways I could develop it further.