I was inspired by Sir John Franklin’s 1845 expedition to discover and chart a vital Arctic sea route linking the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans. The expedition ended in tragedy with the loss of both its ships, HMS Erebus and HMS Terror, and the lives of all officers and crew. The ships became trapped in the ice, crushed, and eventually lost. They remained on the seabed until discovered in 2014-16. The intent of my piece is to capture a sense of the icy depths of the freezing Arctic seas. The ragged finishing reflects the destruction the ice wrought on the ships.
Cotton fabric, muslin, assorted hand stitch threads, glass beads. The cotton fabric was first mono-printed with Procion dyes then overprinted with several layers of fabric paint. Printed papers were added and the whole piece layered with muslin, backed then quilted with a combination of machine and hand stitch. The loose threads and raw edges are intentional.
