My inspiration is the Wood Wide Web, a dense underground network of mycorrhizal fungi. These enmesh themselves around and into tree roots, passing information, nutrients and resources between trees, fungi and bacteria in complex symbiotic relationships. These are poorly understood; scientists have mapped some in small scale studies, but many connections remain unknown and uncharted, and have been likened to the missing pieces of a jigsaw puzzle. I have tried to portray these relationships between the fungal networks, the thicker hyphal strands of fungi and the tree roots, whilst also showing a group of trees sharing resources with conjoined roots.
Quilt construction: pieced – varying sized strips and bagging out method; Vilene as batting. Sky: Procion snow dyed cotton. Tree canopy: hand marbling printed on cotton, using acrylic inks, acrylic paint, fabric paints and shaving foam. Soil and rock layers: printed onto cotton by scraping left over shaving foam coloured as above, from another marbling project. Red toadstools and backing: commercially printed cotton. Machine stitched using walking foot and free motion quilting. Raw edge appliqué, heat bonded and machine stitched. Fungal mycelium: FuseFX, so piece must not be ironed without greaseproof paper. Fungal hyphae: hand couched rayon embroidery twist.
