Julian Beever, master of perspective

If you’ve never seen this work, you’re in for a surprise, a shock, and more than likely a great feeling of inadequacy! This is one of the “real” artists that make me feel like I’m no more than a child playing at finger-painting. But there will always be somebody who can do it better, whatever it is you do. All you can do is admire the work, be amazed, and thank the Lord that they exist to awe and inspire us. The vast majority of us will never reach this level, we just do the best we can.

Then take into consideration the fact that he works with such an usual medium; sidewalks and pavements…. He works primarily in Europe, and somehow manages to distort his drawings in such a way as to give them an absolutely unbelievable three dimensional effect when viewed from a certain angle.

He also does murals and traditional fine art paintings, but the “sidewalk art” is my favorite. He is an English artist who has been creating his pavement creations since the mid-1990s. Beever uses a technique called trompe l’oeil, French for “trick the eye”, and you absolutely cannot believe how well he does it. Take this for an example, if you can manage to wrap your mind around it… Now, keep in mind that what you are seeing right now is total optical illusion, created by the artist. There is nothing but the pavement in front of him (he’s the guy in the photo); no ledge, no Batman or Robin, no crowd, no burning building, just his art. Can you see where it begins? Look closely and with any luck you may be able to discern where the pavement leaves off and the drawing begins. Can you see the lines of the pavement in the drawing? Can you even believe that this guy can actually pull this off? I’ve looked at his work dozens of times and I remain in awe. And the real kicker is, that sometimes by the day after he’s finished a drawing, they’re often gone, erased by the feet of passing pedestrians. His work survives through photographs. What I would like to know is , who could actually walk over something like that?

Well, it wouldn’t be fair to just leave you with the one example of his work; let’s look at some more: Remember, all of these are drawings done on flat pavement, using “trompe l’oeil”, tricking the eye.

There are many more. I have only scratched the surface.

A truly free art form

As I have said in my previous post on this craft, it is time-consuming and requires patience. However, It is not difficult and I found it extremely relaxing; like some people find knitting and crocheting relaxing.

The first thing you need is a supply of long-leaf pine needles. They have to be long-leafs, which are approximately 6″ to 15″ long. Hopefully, instead of “cheating” and buying or ordering them, you live in an area where you can just go gather armloads full from a forest floor. Somehow buying them seems to be defeating the purpose, but if you have no other alternative, they can be ordered (already “cleaned”). After you gather your needles, you will need to soak them (say a dishpan full at a time) by pouring boiling water over them and letting it cool enough to handle the needles. Place them on a towel or other surface to dry.

You will find that the needles always grow in “bundles” or “groups” of three, and you have to separate them. The water will have softened the tip that holds them together so that you can easily scrape or pull it off with your fingers, the flat edge of a nail-file, butter knife, anything that works for you. Then you are left with three separate needles. You will need a lot of them.

You will also need a large blunt tapestry needle, and some heavy quilting thread. Also I found it much easier to use a piece of plastic tubing about 3″ long. Some people say to use a soda straw, but I find that a bit too small and flimsy. I can’t remember exactly where I got my tube, but it was a little bigger and stronger than a soda straw. Something from a hardware store, I believe. Some people don’t use the tube at all, but it’s purpose is as a gauge, to help keep your coils an even size.

Start by putting enough cleaned pine needles together to begin a coil approximately 1/2″ in diameter. You want to wrap two or three inches of the ends of the pine needles which had the “cap” or “sheath” with a single strand of thread (the needle is threaded as if you were embroidering). Many people use rafia, but I don’t know this method, and I like the way the black thread constrasts with the pine needles. Wrap them snugly, leaving the loose end of the thread under the wrapping to secure it. Wrap about 3″ or so in this manner and secure the thread. Make sure to snip off any loose pine needle ends sticking out from the wrapping. Now you curl the wrapped end into the beginning of a circular form, and anchor it together using a whip-stitch. This small circle or oval (your choice) is the beginning of the bottom of your basket. Now push the remaining loose ends of the pine needles through the plastic tube, and continue the coiling process, while adding cleaned pine needles to the tube as you go to maintain a consistent sized coil. As you create this circle, sew the coils together using the same simple whip-stitch, drawing the thread through from front to back. The spacing of the stitches will widen as the coil grows. Keep the coil flat by bending it as needed as you progress. It’s a lot easier than it sounds. Once you get used to it, it’s pretty mindless; hence it is relaxing. See my first post on “pine needle baskets for the beginner” to view my very first attempts. And I had no idea what I was doing!

Once you reach the size that you want the bottom of your basket to be (start small!), begin building the sides by simply forming the next coil on top of the flat circle or oval that you have created; stop making it flat and build upward. For an excellent illustrated lesson on making your first basket, visit http://www.knowitall.org/naturalstate/html/pinecone-interactive/Basket-How-To.cfm

But if you’re not used to using raffia, as they do, I definitely recommend going the thread route. Also, they give a choice of removing the “caps” or not. I have not tried making a basket without removing the caps, but I’m a little leery or that part, especially for the beginner. Even though it takes patience to separate the needles, it seems to me that the cleaned needles would be easier to work with and produce a better, smoother result. But I’m no expert, and they are!

Just like the wide, wild world of gourds, the possibilities here are endless. People dye the needles, incorporate dried walnut shell slices, seashells, beads, whatever their imagination tells them to do. They not only make baskets, but fantastic wall hangings, hats, you wouldn’t believe the things people can make from pine needles! Well, why don’t we visit some of them? I hope you find it as inspiring and amazing as I do. Please visit “Peg’s Basketry“. It is one of my favorites.

Leslie

http://www.nancybasket.com/gpage4.html

http://www.pineywoodsbasketart.com/basketgallery3.html

Truly free art

One Christmas, I was so, so broke (oh what a unique experience for a starving almost-artist!). But that year was worse than most. A good friend of mine turned me on to this extraordinary craft which is truly free. All you need to buy is a large needle, some heavy thread of some sort, and an approximately three-inch piece of plastic tubing, about 1/2″ in diameter (which is optional but recommended). My friend loaned me a book on this subject I had never heard of, and I lived in a place absolutely loaded with long-leaf pine trees. I was set to go. This is not meant to be a “guide” or “instruction”, just my experience, because a lot of it I don’t remember, but I promise I’m going to research it and then fill you in with all the pertinent details. (UPDATE: 07/07/08: for complete instructions, see my post “pine needle art for the beginner”)

I went out into the yard and gathered up an armload of pine needles, and following the book’s directions, proceeded to go at it. You need long-leaf pine needles; the short ones won’t do. They’re about six to twelve inches long. When they fall off of the trees, they are in clusters of three needles bonded together. You soak those in a sink full of warm water (I can’t remember the length of time), and then you carefully scrape off the “stuff” that holds the cluster together. Let them dry. As I said, a lot I don’t remember (this was ten years ago), but once you get started, it is the easiest, most relaxing craft I think I have ever done. You cannot do it quickly. You will never mass produce them, but I swear, everyone that I gave one to was absolutely amazed that I just went out into my backyard and picked up some pine needles and made baskets out of them. Just one more thing I’d like to pursue further if I had the time!

The basic premise is you take your “cured” needles and use the plastic tube to maintain consistency (you sort of thread the pine needles into it, adding as you go along and the tube ensures that the rows are the same size. Or close. Going round and round, as you stitch the rows together, you create a circle. This becomes the bottom of the basket. Then you begin to build the layers upward for the sides. There’s a certain simple stitch used which I can’t remember at the moment, but it is very, very easy.

My first (and only) baskets were pretty clumsy and amateurish, but you just wouldn’t believe how the recipients loved them! The book that my friend loaned me had fantstic works or art made from pine needles; wall hangings, incredibly elaborate baskets, dyed needles, etc. As usual, I never carry anything far enough to get really good at it, I just go in spurts, then move on! Jack of many arts and crafts, master of none.

Since that time I have seen absolutely awesome works of art made from pine needles. The craft is extremely time-consuming, but it gives a great feeling of satisfaction to the artist. I met a man at a crafts fair who made the most beautiful baskets you could imagine. He was in his mid-eighties and legally blind. I believe it’s what keeps him alive. There was a newspaper lady there interviewing a man who was caning a chair. I was so frustrated that I ran after her and said, “you interviewed the wrong guy!” Not to say that re-caning a chair isn’t a nice thing to do, but what about an eighty-something year old man making the most beautiful baskets you’d ever seen, and 90% blind! Now, that’s a story worth writing. So she did. Okay, now don’t laugh, here are a couple of pics of my baskets, uneven stitches and all, but hey, they were my very first. I will be researching this craft a great deal more and keeping you posted….