My project required a bit more research. I realised that I am a little bit lost. Therefore I decided to analyse the data a little bit more in depth.
Computer programmes such as Audacity came in handy while trying to translate musical notes into frequencies. After downloading the programme I started to play the notes from the pentatonic scale, mixed them all together, changed order etc. That got me involved for a long while.
https//:audacityteam.org
The time was not wasted. I discovered some nice patterns and started to think about taking them forward into my design studies.
Those are the musical frequencies I translated from the data gathered. I played all the notes together, then chose the notes that people would choose the most. Tried playing piano and also used my own voice.
Research didn’t finish here. I used a help of the website FLAT to write down the musical notes onto staves. In order to print the sheet music later. My idea was to use the partiture as a base of my design studies. I could draw on top, analyse the tendency of shapes it is giving me. Other words – to visualise the positioning of the musical notes.
https://flat.io/my-library
Those are the results. first picture shows how notes are placed on the partiture. After I used different colours to join different notes together to get geometric patterns. I coded note C with red, D with light blue, E with orange, G with dar green and A with pink.
On top I placed the frequencies of the most used notes that I traced from the image shown above.
Then got my hands on the fabric!
Stitch sample number 4. Patchwork. Hand stitch.
Sample IV. I used three different fabrics – cotton canvas, dorado and juniper linen. This time I didn’t uses different colour to represent different musical scale. I used different weight of fabric. The lighter the fabric – the higher the pitch of a note.
From the design study shown above I chose small motives of geometric shapes I discovered. I represented scales C, D and E. On top I hand embroidered the frequencies of the notes C(white) and A(beige).
Work process.
Patchwork. Considering the geometric shapes drawn before, I cut stencils from cardboard and accordingly from the three different fabrics. Then pinned them together and pressed very well in order for the fabric to stay in the shape wanted. All the fabrics behaved well. I used this technique before therefore I more or less knew the weight of fabrics I need to choose. Something sturdy and easy iron.
After all the fabric was shaped, I joined the pieces together, pressed again and removed the paper from underneath.
The result was pleasing. The sample was quite robust at the same time flexible. All three fabrics, regardless of their differences, behaved as one.
On top – satin stitch using cotton thread.
So far, that’s my favourite sample. It has techniques and materials well mixed, plus it is pleasing aesthetically. I can easily see it being used in some fashion garments.
Stitch sample number 5. Machine and hand stitch. Padding.
Sample V. I joined two fabrics. Cotton and polyester net. In between I inserted cotton padding.
Botton fabric is padded making the geometric shapes shown in my design study. The padding represents the shapes notes make on the partiture and the embroidery, again, is representing sound frequencies and waves. But this time of the scales E and G.
The top fabric is hand stitched. Then after the excess padding is removed and two layers – cotton and polyester – joined together with a machine stitch.
Work process.
I particularly like the hand stitch technique I used. Stitching over a net or really thin and light fabric with heavier thread. All the stitches are really loose. Due to the lightness of the fabric we can see all the movement of the thread. That perfectly represents the fluidity that musical harmonies have.
In contrast I used a more stiff and messy machine stitch on the top, to represent that music also can be irritating when played wrong.
The top stitch curled my underneath fabric, because I didn’t pin the layers correctly. Regardless the final result did not suffer from that. In fact that gives it more character!
I do not like the effect of padding here, I doubt I would take the technique any forward in the project. Unless I would need to do it much more tidy. The sample feels way too heavy.
Yet I am really happy about the hand embroidery stitches! This technique for could be taken forward in the future.
Stitch – in textiles its usually used for decorative purposes. Yet my sampling, so far, is showing me that it has so much more than that. It can construct, relate, create. Not many times that I took fabric manipulation to any extent as I am specialising in print. Yet I am absolutely enjoying this new experience and gaining a lot of new skills!
To be continued.
Fascinating post. The use of the audacity programme to help you develop the graphic imagery from your data information is great. Including your analogue translations of the digital graphics and hand drawn development is really refreshing jumping from digital to analogue. The embroidered samples, patchwork pieces and exploration with a wide range of materials is excellent, all tied in neatly and driven by your data information. It is so easy to stray from the data and network theme when the materials and techniques begin to take off, so well done for seeing the benefit of letting the theme drive your creativity. Have you ever tried CAD embroidery? We have a machine in the department. Contact our technician Hannah Scott who would be happy to chat with you about it. it could be interesting to push the digital interpreted in analogue techniques, followed by analogue sampling re configured using digital technology.
Excellent potential here.
Thank you very much! In fact while making the sample, I was thinking about CAD embroidery. I am really interested and will contact Hannah for sure.
Thanks for your brilliant feedback!