Dillabough Banner- a Work in Progress
The Dillabough Banner- Work in Progress 14x64 inches. Charcoal, manilla tags, silver and gold thread, acrylic gel medium on watercolor paper
The Dillabough Banner WIP ©Leslie Peterson Sapp
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My goal is to research my family history and transform what I uncover into a new series, comprised of stand-alone paintings and an artist book, which would emulate the form of an atlas.
My initial thought was that I would include four fold-out pages, one for each branch of the family. I began with the Dillaboughs, partly because the name is so long that it seemed a good way to determine the necessary page length!
Working on heavy watercolor paper, I soon realized the material was too stiff to fold. As I continued, I found I liked it as a standalone piece. Now I have this rather beautiful work which I love, but am not sure what to do with— but that’s fine. I’m in this for the long haul, and there’s no rush to decide.
For this piece, I bought manila tags and typed the name, year and location of the birth of each ancestor. I used black charcoal to create a gradient from light to dark. I braided and crocheted silver thread and drew it through the eyelet of each tag. As we go back in time, left to right, not only does the page grow darker, but the silver threads of connection unravel and disperse.
The resulting piece evokes many things: the motion of an animal, the flight of birds, sea creatures, kite strings, ship rigging, ticker tape caught in the wind.
The resulting piece evokes many things: the motion of an animal, the flight of birds, sea creatures, kite strings, ship rigging, ticker tape caught in the wind.
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