It's all in the background - designing substrate

 

Scaling up an image of the Brisbane River to develop the substrate for a new art quilt. Each square needs to be 6cm x 6cm to make a finished size of 5 cm square.  I created a "to scale" model of the finished quilt on drafting paper. I printed an image of the river (attribution below) and then scaled it up to get a fairly accurate flow across the quilt.  The substrate rightly tells the background story. It is the foundation on which the main elements or features reside. So it isn't the "hero" of the piece - it needs to be recognised and visible without overwhelming the piece.   I can now easily identify which squares hold a section of the river and start to experiment on piecing, applique, fusing, printing, and painting to learn which gives the best outcome for the substrate. 

(Brisbane River original image: Magpie Shooter; edited version Paulguard at en.wikipedia https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/indix.php?curid=9724127)

My foundation piece might well end up being a different representation of the river. I've experimented with some mark making - monoprinting the symbols and signs of the river. Grasses, flow, eddies, detritus, marks made on a river bank.  This could end up a quilted whole cloth or be cut up and restitched. I'm enjoying the monochrome palette .Understated and quietly confident is the aim. Always.