Barbara Cade

  • Artist website: https://www.barbaracade.com/

Several years ago, I became interested in Japanese printmaking. At the same time, I was making large felted pieces using the basic layout of the Tangram puzzle. So, I cut the wooden block shapes of the Tangram and experimented printing them with watercolor. I never planned the colors; I just had fun mixing the colors and seeing how they interacted with each other. One day I was cleaning out a trunk and found a laundry sack made of feed sack fabric which my aunt had given to me when I was in high school. I was inspired to draw some of the designs on top of the prints. Then I had the challenge of making the design work as a whole. Each time a shape is designed, the print changes, so every shape needs some thought. The printing is spontaneous, but the artworks are the smallest pieces I have ever done, and the design the most exacting. These artworks pay homage to the artists who created the fabric designs which influences a generation or more, and to the creativity and labor of the women of this country who used the fabrics to make clothing for the family, quilts and many other household items.

Feed-Sack-Fabrics-10
Feed-Sack-Fabrics-11
Feed-Sack-Fabrics-13
Feed-Sack-Fabrics-15

Feed Sack Fabrics #10
7 block watercolor print with colored pencil
8" x 8"

Feed Sack Fabrics #11
7 block watercolor print with colored pencil
8" x 8"

Feed Sack Fabrics #13
7 block watercolor print with colored pencil
8" x 8"

Feed Sack Fabrics #15
7 block watercolor print with colored pencil
8" x 8"