Fall in love with felting

OLGA LIVSHIN

Felting is an ancient craft, originating with the nomadic tribes of Central and Eastern Asia. Traditionally, the nomads made tents, clothing and rugs out of felt. Two contemporary Vancouver felt artists, Elana Sigal and Claudie Azoulai, reinterpret the ages-old craft into a modern art form that belongs firmly in the 21st century. Their joint exhibition, Feltworks, opened March 8 at the Sidney and Gertrude Zack Gallery.

The show reflects the friendship that has developed between the two artists, which commenced long ago. “We met at the JCC, where our children went to preschool together,” Sigal told the Jewish Independent. “We started chatting, realized we were both artists, and decided to form an art group. I was designing jewelry then and still do, now. Claudie was a teacher. She just discovered felting.”

Azoulai chimed in: “I learned felting from a felt artist on Hornby Island, Alma Schofield. My artistic background is in sculpture and printmaking, but I loved fibre art. I showed it to Elana, and we began felting together. We went to felting workshops together.”

“I loved felting instantly,” Sigal shared. “Although it’s labor intensive, I could make a small piece, a picture, in a few hours. Painting takes much longer – weeks – but felt design is more immediate. And, unlike enamel jewelry I created at the time, felting is clean, not toxic. All it involves are soap and water.”

Azoulai, a teacher for more than three decades, elaborated, “Felting needs three components: heat, moisture and friction. For the ancient nomads, felting was part of their infrastructure. I think they discovered it by accident. Perhaps they sheared wool from their sheep, put the raw fibres under their feet to keep warm, and thus made the first felt.”

Like the nomads of old, both artists derive comfort from working with wool and enjoy the felting process. “It’s hard work,” said Sigal, “but it’s meditative, very therapeutic, almost like a massage.” Azoulai nodded in agreement.

The collaborative nature of their relationship grew as the years went by. “It was nice to have an artist friend,” Sigal said. “When we met, we didn’t talk about children or what we made for supper. We talked about art, discussed esthetics. Sometimes we critiqued each other’s works. It’s necessary for an artist; it adds objectivity. You can’t be objective towards your own pieces.”

The friendship that developed hasn’t led to similarity in imagery, however. “We are not in competition,” Azoulai said, smiling. Just the opposite, the two artists couldn’t be more diverse in their creative approaches, although they use the same dying method. Sigal and Azoulai dye their own wool, and the fibres come out of their dying vats in all the colors of the rainbow. Moreover, because of their original dying technique, the colors fluctuate, flow onto each other, making for nuances and combinations that lend life to their images.

Each of the artists cultivates her distinct path to beauty, they explained. “I don’t make any drawing before I start,” said Sigal. “Often, I start working on a felt piece, thinking it [will] be completely different than what comes out in the end. It takes a lot of fine-tuning for me to get what I want, but the material is forgiving. I can manipulate it, cut [and] create multilayered pieces. Abstract paintings and organic shapes inspire many of my images. Plums and pears in particular – they can be imperfect but still recognizable.”

Sigal’s hangings are influenced by painters, including Henri Matisse and Paul Klee, and are full of bold color and capricious shapes. Black abstract figures, reminiscent of African tribal art, dance among purple and golden flowers in “Eden,” as if flying inside a dream. Colorful gems, or maybe plums, bubble and overflow in “Plum Passion.” The birds of paradise shimmer in “Nesting,” as the artist combines various materials: chiffon, organza, mesh and others, to create her signature decorative effects of vivid hues and whimsical arabesques.

In contrast, Azoulai’s compositions are more tranquil and life-like. “I usually start with photographs. I take photos when I walk in a forest. I also use people’s photos. But a photo is only the source. The result is often influenced by the palette of colors I have at the moment.”

Azoulai’s love of nature seeps through her images of sunny “Arbutus Grove” and contemplative “Backwoods,” inviting the viewer to walk beneath the trees with the artist, to touch the bark, to smell the grass, to admire the inquisitive duck. In “Sunkissed,” a young woman, full of wonder and joy, projects her feelings off the wool like a living girl.

The two artistic visions on the gallery walls complement each other, as friends often do in life. But one driving force is constant for both artists: the need to create. “When you get a creative urge, it’s going to gush out, whatever you do,” said Azoulai. “When I don’t work in my studio, I cook lavish dinners. I used creativity in my teaching – and I taught for 34 years.”

Feltworks is at the Zack until March 25.

Olga Livshin is a Vancouver freelance writer. She can be reached at [email protected].

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