Pattern. I can’t NOT play with it.
I’ve had a lifelong fascination for nature’s patterns & colours for as long as I can remember. As a kid I was always picking up bits of nature and bringing them home in my pockets! (I loved to scribble / draw doodles & colour them in too).
As an artist, I collect pattern imagery, for my own reference library, of things that ‘catch my eye’, things I notice in the world around me. I can spend hours looking over this accumulated ‘data’, a visual treasure chest of colour, texture, & shapes, that can be mixed & combined in so many ways!
The word ‘pattern’ originally meant something that can be predictably repeated, whether a behaviour, a sewing pattern, or a fabric design. The traditional repeating pattern often feels comforting, familiar, because there is a recognizable element to connect to. That’s not the kind of pattern I am fascinated with at all!
What I am in love with is finding the unexpected in the ordinary. The things I wasn’t looking for. I am forever fascinated by the infinite possibilities to create visual pattern, from almost anything I care to bring my attention to, whether by photography, collage, painting, or folded paper, you can bet I somehow end up creating some kind of pattern! I’ve become acutely aware this week that I want to explore pattern on a much larger scale, continuing to add real depth into it, still using 2D printed imagery as my material, but placing that work into large spaces. Or creating large spaces using it.
I’ll have to redefine my definition & understanding of pattern, & dedicate quality time to building a closer relationship with it. Which reminds me that even the structure of anyone’s life has a pattern to it. It doesn’t have to be predictable. I’d like mine to be adventurous, slow, playful, & open to collaboration with the unexpected.
I like Edward De Bono’s thoughts on the word ‘’pattern’’ in his book ‘Wordpower’ https://www.amazon.com/Word-Power-Edward-Bono/dp/0905310020. He spoke of patterns as relating to ‘being part of a group that has a coming, & a staying, together’. I really like that. It sounds so inclusive, an open invitation for anything & everything to be a part of it, including the unexpected.
Vicky xxx
