All things being Equal

21 September 2011
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Autumnal Equinox: September the 23rd

The artist uses the talent he has, wishing he had more talent. The talent uses the artist it has, wishing it had more artist.
R Brault

It is the time of year when we are all feathering our nests. Its not nearly cold enough to complain but summer is most certainly drawing to an end. Friday, September the 23rd, is the Autumnal Equinox (aequus meaning equal and nox meaning night in Latin) which means we will have an equal amount of day light hours as night darkness.

All things being Equal floral art design

I wanted my fan to hint to the radiantly warm summer we had in Vancouver but also be comforting for the cold days ahead. Just like autumn!

All things being Equal floral art fan design

The fan is shaped in a sector of a circle, glued on equal length wooden slats (nice word for 18 up-cycled Birch coffee stir sticks) which revolve around a pivot so that it can be closed when not in use or opened wide when dressed up for fall.

Detail of All things being Equal floral art design

I wove my fan out of tufts of grass flower heads, gathered and threaded through the fan slats.

Soft veil of green grass for the matt fall leaves

The stray grass spikelets are neatly tucked in and fanned out to create a soft veil of green for the matt fall leaves.

Bright and shiny red orange Viburnum berries add colour contrast and balance to this textural design.

The design was woven so securely that it dried beautifully. The grass and the leaves became slightly paler and softer in colour- blending even better with the wood of the fan. I am still waiting for the berries to dry- they are still plump and red and beautiful a week after I took these pictures!

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Tutorials

21 September 2011 Birch wood coffee stir sticks fan

I wanted to make a thin and delicate fan with open spaced slats for weaving plant material through.

21 September 2011 Weaving with tufts of grass

The fine sections of grass are securely woven and interwoven and resting on the wooden slats. It looks very fragile but is secure enough to use.

21 September 2011 Inserting leaves into slim slats

Guide the fall leaves into the slats with the long length of a needle

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