Special Sunday Night Edition: Reflections on Color by Ann Pangborn

image_pdfimage_print

Welcome to the Special Sunday Night Edition of Spin Artiste. Tonight we have a special treat:  Fiber Artist Ann Pangborn of Wooly Bliss has graciously offered to share some thoughts on color.

Before we let Ann take it away, let’s find out about Ann:

For Ann Pangborn, art has always been at the center of her life.  Ann earned a masters in Creative Arts Education from Rutgers University where she first became involved with therapeutic arts as a volunteer in the pediatrics ward at St. Peter’s Hospital. In 2002, she earned national professional certification to practice as an Expressive Arts Therapist.


Expressive Arts Therapy which is (unlike the related field of Art Therapy) a non-psychotherapeutic practice, often “intermodal,” in that it usually blends various forms of creative expression. Expressive Arts Therapists help people by encouraging expression. The practice often resembles arts education — with a core intention of supporting exploration and illuminating the creative process; the experience is nurturing and transformative.

Ann was Artist-in-Residence from 2002 to 2004 at the Radiation Oncology Unit of the Mount Nittany Medical Center where she helped to transform the waiting room experience with color and creativity. Currently, she is a juried member of The Gallery Shop, in Lemont, Pennsylvania where she enjoys exhibiting her felted art alongside the work of several dozen regional artists. Ann has taught at the Pennsylvania State University; The Art Alliance in Lemont, Pennsylvania; in private studios and now in her home studio in State College in central Pennsylvania.

As a fiber artist, Ann focuses on feltmaking which, in her words, “synthesizes so many things I love: sharing the craft with others is pure bliss”.

Now, onto Ann Pangborn’s Reflections on Color, Entitled “Pink”:

 

Why are we drawn to some colors, repelled by others?

This question is at the heart of an art exercise, “Forbidden Colors,” described by art educator/therapist Peter London in his wonderful book “No More Secondhand Art.” I adapted the exercise for a course I taught years ago, “Creative Renewal,” that was a series of ten workshops. In this adaptation of “Forbidden Colors,” an assortment of crayons — lots of crayons! — is passed around the studio, and students are asked to look through and each select just one crayon: their least-favorite color. What color would that be for you? The rest of the exercise, with guidance in the form of questions, time for facilitated discussion, and several drawing exercises, is an exploration of why the “Forbidden Color” has been rejected. And the exercise involves each student doing all of the work for that workshop ONLY in his/her chosen “Forbidden Color,” — that least favorite color — all the time guided to become mindful of what the color means, how it came to be rejected. In the process, this unwanted color is often reclaimed.

When I did the exercise myself, in advance of leading the workshop, several colors competed to be my “Forbidden Color.” Mustard yellow? Pale grey? Pallid pink? I chose the pink crayon. And as I worked, for hours, completing different drawing exercises using only that pale pink crayon, I discovered why I had rejected the color: I thought it was weak, fluffy, overly feminine, drained of real color, not serious. And so I had avoided using pink in my work.

Reclaiming pink, I saw the color in a new way. So much tender loveliness: flower petals, sunrises, the blush on peaches, babies’ cheeks, puppies’ tongues.

Recently I’ve been working with a lot of pink fiber, exploring layering pink merino with other colors and fibers to create thin, opalescent and glowing felted scarves; felting very feminine scarves with pink roses as the motif and ruffled edges cascading all along the lengths of the scarves; hand-carding pink fiber and strips of pink silk fabric to spin funky art yarn that is pink — and is also very expressive!

There’s been a lot of research about how and why color affects people. Topics include Color Therapy; Crystal Healing; Vibrational Energy of Colors; Chakras. Culturally, fashion experts like Pantone unveil their color “Forecast” for the season ahead. Is this forecast just a way to get us to think our clothing is out of date? Is it a way to get us to rush out and buy new things in the “hottest” colors? Or is it on a more subtle level, a cultural response that is as holistic and organic as it is a marketing manipulation? Do we yearn for soothing honeysuckle pink in a springtime of difficult times? Embrace Lipstick Red when the economy just won’t rebound and we’re heading into another cold winter? I suspect that color trends reflect both: marketing and a deeper longing.

All images courtesy of Woolyblissfeltmaking.wordpress.com.

4 thoughts on “Special Sunday Night Edition: Reflections on Color by Ann Pangborn”

  1. I love the idea of incorporating non-favorite colors into artwork, to develop a new appreciation for a color (& learn something about yourself in the process). I’m going to try to do a drawing with Burnt Umber. Yuck. Wish me luck 😉

    1. Ooh…Burnt Umber! Good one. When I was learning to quilt, my teacher taught me to always include an “ugly” fabric in with my selections — she was right, that little bit of something that looked a little off did improve the overall look of the piece. Let us know how your Burnt Umber experiments turn out!

  2. This talented author/artist and I share a dislike of similar ugly colors; mustard yellows and grays. Could some colors be seen universally as ugly? Probably there are cultural and regional differences in perspective; a monsoon gray is perhaps seen as a much different color in parched asian lands than in misty northern pacific areas, like Seattle Washinton! After a cold, gray and sad winter, this reader is so looking forward to some invigorating spring colors. No matter if by the fashion market or mother nature. Just bring it on! Thanks for the article and photos of Ms. Pangborn’s gorgeous felt pieces.

    1. Good questions, Felting Fan! I’m not sure about universally ugly…culturally, definitely. I agree, bring on the colors.

Comments are closed.

© 2012-2024 Spin Artiste - Handspun Yarn All Rights Reserved
Web Design by Zesty Blog Consulting