Grant Project Update - Becoming a Pixel (Portrait 2/5)
Glitch Streak (Work in Progress)
Vancouver Cityscape (Work in Progress)
Grant Project Update - Becoming a Pixel (Portrait 2/5)
Becoming a Pixel - Portrait 2/5, 2022, embroidery floss, Aida cloth, 7 x 7 inches, 35 hours of labour
I’m excited to share the completed second portrait from my self-portrait series Becoming a Pixel. This portrait still has some likeness to my self-image, but there is clearly some loss of definition. Without seeing the first portrait from the series it is now harder to identify this as a self-portrait. I intentionally reduced the overall resolution and total pixels in the cross-stitch pattern. By producing in an image with less detail, I’ve made identification of the person in the portrait less certain.
(Detail) Becoming a Pixel - Portrait 2/5, 2022, embroidery floss, Aida cloth, 7 x 7 inches
Looking at a small section of the finished piece (as shown below) it is very difficult to recognize the image as a portrait on its own.
(Detail) Becoming a Pixel - Portrait 2/5, 2022, embroidery floss, Aida cloth, 7 x 7 inches
Mallory Donen acknowledges the support of the Canada Council for the Arts.
Glitch Streak (Work in Progress)
Mallory Donen with her work in progress Glitch Streak. Photo was taken in her studio in Vancouver, BC, 2022.
I’ve also been making consistent progress on this new large-scale cross-stitch piece, Glitch Streak. I’m currently 1/3 of the way complete and it’s about 10 inches wide. When the work is finished I expect it to measure 30 inches wide. I’ve already logged in about 65 hours of labour on this project! Needless to say the further I get on this piece, the more taxing and strenuous it is getting on my body. This is precisely why I’m pacing myself slowly on this project and spending time on others that are less laborious than this one!
Vancouver Cityscape (Work in Progress)
Vancouver Cityscape (Work in progress), 2022, mixed textiles, canvas, linen, cotton, yarn, thread
Somehow I managed to carve out time to work on this mixed textiles project in May. It’s been very explorative and playful seeing where this piece takes me. I’ve never attempted something quite like it before. The best way to describe it is probably a hybrid between quilting, embroidery, and textile collage. I’m using a combination of machine and hand sewing, as well as cross-stitching and free-hand embroidery. I’ll also be using yarn to add more texture and dimension. Overall, it’s definitely still a work in progress, but I’m very excited to see where this process takes me!
