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Sunday 30 May 2021

A METHAPHORICAL WALL


Thank you Amanda for giving us the option of a metaphorical wall.  I wasn’t too keen on doing bricks and/or fences so stepped out on a limb which I have explained below.  I discovered halfway through that this was definitely not going to be the easiest choice.  I layered white organza between two layers of Aquasol and did most of the quilting at the same time.  After dissolving the Aquasol I then layered this piece onto blue fabric and did more quilting to hold it in place.  I didn’t expect sand dunes to prove so challenging and after assembling it and quilting it I used Oil Paint Sticks, Gelato crayons, Inktense blocks and finally to get a misty look to the fog I used Luminaire paints.  I used a lot of paint to give it depth and life which led to much frustration on my part but in the end I had to leave it as is otherwise it might have been a disaster.  Nevertheless a good challenge as I was constantly second guessing myself.

 

Condensed information from Wikipedia:  The Namid Desert purported to be at least 55-80 million years old and is said to be one of the oldest deserts in the world.  It stretches for more than 2000 kilometres along the Atlantic coast (West Coast of Southern Africa) of Angola, Namibia and South Africa and the  sand dunes, some of which are 300 metres high and span 32 kilometres long stretch along this coastal region.  Near the coast the desert reaches daily temperatures of 45 degrees C.  Fogs that originate off shore from the cold Atlantic sea (Benguela Current) and hot air from the desert create a fog belt that frequently envelops parts of the desert.  Coastal regions can experience more than 180 days of thick fog a year which has proved a major hazard to ships thus it is named the Skeleton Coast, but is a major source of moisture for desert life.

 The fog is my metaphorical Wall as seen below.










10 comments:

  1. Your portrayal of the Namib Desert meeting the sea with the fog rolling in is superb and so well constructed . Namibia must be a fascinating place to visit and I now wonder why we never did when living in SA. I love the use of wonderful colours to show how sands change with the wind. You must be delighted at how this piece evolved.

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  2. I love it! I really like what it is representing and how you have portrayed it. I love the colours and the ripples in the sand. Another one that I feel I want to interact with... take my shoes off and walk across the sand dunes (maybe not the whole way). Do you know if climate change is affecting the fog and consequently, the moisture needed in the desert?

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    1. In answer to your question regarding climate change you may be very interested in the following link: https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/23311932.2019.1645258

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  3. A visit to that region is yet another goal for Mick and I. I love the way you have portrayed it, and fog as a metaphorical wall is prefect.

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  4. I've just been looking at pictures of the desert: it looks amazing and you have really captured it in your quilt.

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  5. Great result...could be looking at the real thing until you zoom in. You have nailed it.

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  6. Great quilt and you have captured the sand, sea and fog beautifully. Well done, Patricia. Love it when people think out of the box.
    Hilary

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  7. I love this Patricia. The waves are superb. And I really like how you have shown the fog rolling in. Were you able to see these dunes yourself?

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    1. No Diane I haven't been there unfortunately but I believe it is absolutely beautiful and the sand dunes are changing constantly with the wind. My neighbour used to live at the top of Namibia on the border of Angola and Zimbabwe near the Caprivi Strip, and she saw my piece evolve and said it was the most stark but beautiful part of that area.

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  8. Thanks Patricia for the description of both your beautiful quilt and the Namibia desert. A very complicated and well executed piece.

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