ISSN 2007-001X April 2018
“TEXTILE TESSERA” is an installation by Judi Tompkins (Queensland) and Jo Franco (Western Australia),
Conveners of
“Re-imagined” a Challenge with a Difference –
a virtual mixed media Exhibition.
As participants in the “Re-imagined” Challenge finish entries, take photographs and write Artist Statements, the conveners have just started their textile installation to be displayed at the Opening of “Re-imagined” at Rug Hooking Week at Sauder Village, Ohio, USA.
The original abstract design, a representation of the puzzle of a fibre diaspora was Judi’s. Jo being more literal, immediately saw it as a map of Australia, suggesting it seemed appropriate with the Exhibition featuring work from the Southern Hemisphere.
Thus, Judi’s tongue in check reference to this particular piece of the installation as :-
“My multi-coloured piece with the glass sparkly bits and bits of metal are indeed representational of Australian outback (drawing on my taxidermy-ness)…
as if a road train has driven at speed through a flock of Lorikeets and scattered the feathers and shattered windscreen across the landscape!! Oh….maybe that is too vivid?
Was thinking of calling this piece…Flattened Fauna…. Maybe that’s too strong?
Judi goes on to describes the process so far;
At first glance, Jo and my decision to collaborate on a piece for “Re-imagined”: a Challenge with a Difference seemed pretty straightforward. After all, we have a pretty good understanding and respect for each other’s opinions and approach to rughooking and fibre/textile art; we communicate well and offer support and criticism in a constructive way; agreed on our common goal; are willing to compromise; are reliable and reasonable time-mangers; and Jo is pretty tolerant!
So, could we have overlooked anything in our simple plan to share the work on a common project and bring it smoothly together at the end?
You bet! (Keeping in mind that your experience will differ from ours.)
Life Like all of you, we both have incredibly busy lives on a “good” day with the usual appointments, chores, family “stuff”, frustrations and things that require 
attention and get in the way. I however managed to add selling a house, moving and building a house and studio into the middle of this; and the building process became quite awful just about the time I was due to work on our mutual project and served to redefine and clarify the concept of “challenge” for me!
Logistics Naturally if you build a new house and don’t have family to live with (sponge off?) then you need find someplace to rent and keep your “stuff” – most of which you are convinced you won’t need because the build will, “only take about four months”. Hah!
Just to keep things interesting and adrenaline-filled, I initially kept only a few boxes of rughooking and fibre supplies, frames, fabrics and fibres in a small room at my rental unit – supposedly my “studio” but used by my dog as her “office”.
“I’ll just keep the necessary things because I can easily get anything I need from one of the two large shipping containers at the building site”.
Hah! (again)
I realised too late that access to these containers would be “delicate” because of the construction toilet and the sheer volume of stacked building materials. Oh well…surely, I can get what I need from Spotlight.
Wrong.
Gradually I unloaded more and more from the storage units into my rental “studio” and into the back bedroom,
ensuring I can’t find anything in any location.
(“but…I know I have it somewhere”)
Timing
The realization that I need to get my “bit” done well in advance of my shifting house; preparation for a workshop/demo early in July and Jo’s leaving for the US when she takes our collaborative piece to the launch of the “Re-imagined” Challenge at Sauder Village, made the next obstacle an extra challenge indeed!
Tabula Rasa
Yes. The dreaded blank slate indeed! In spite of all the communication via email, Skype, photos and Facebook with Jo…I just couldn’t start hooking!
Didn’t know what to do (I thought I did at first…but I didn’t!); didn’t know where to start; didn’t know what fabric and colours to use; didn’t like what I did start; convinced I just couldn’t do it; thought it was probably a dumb idea anyway (whose was it? Surely I was innocent in all this!).
Nearly suggested that Jo should “just do it”. I didn’t.
I’m sure there are and will be other hassles and frustrations with getting this collaboration done but it has been worth the aggravation. It is indeed a challenge and had really pushed me (nearly over the edge…but not quite…yet!)
I need to think faster; keep the goal and vision in mind and
just “do it”!
I will.
I am.
I will be OK in the end…everything is frustrating at the halfway point.”
From Jo …………
To brighten my day and tie our works together Judi sent me some of this yummy coloured silk yarn purchased from Clare at Feltfine.com.au
My section of the project is also underway, however in a more “restrained” style.
If you haven’t collaborated on a textile art work, you really should give it a try, it’s amazing what you learn and it is fun!
