Dorothy Caldwell Canyon 2012 stitched cotton earth ochre 13 x 17 inches Dear Dorothy I just finished reading the article in the recent SAQA journal. It is very well done and I believe that it respects your work and long career. Congratulations. Dorothy Caldwell detail of Canyon I very much enjoyed reading it and re-visiting the large pieces from Silent Ice / Deep Patience, Dorothy Caldwell Before the Glaciers Melt plant dyed with stitching and applique 14 x 17.5 inches I visited the David Kaye show just before it closed in December and spent a good long while with your work there and with talking to David about our favourites in the show and about some of his own history as a textile artist. Dorothy Caldwell detail of Before the Glaciers Melt I photographed most of the pieces and plan to put up a blog post about that exhibition soon. (Thank you for your permission). Also, may I use the quotes by you that are in that SAQA article? Dorothy Caldwell Looking Up / Looking Down 2016 dyed in the Australian outback with iron oxide and eucalyptus printed and stitched cotton, 55 x 59 inches One thing that I noticed in the new work at David Kaye Gallery is the amount and variety of the hand stitched marks. Dorothy Caldwell detail of Looking Up / Looking Down Do you agree that there is more stitching in these new pieces than in previous work? I love the way that you draw with a couched line - and how sometimes just the wrapping threads have been left behind from a removed thread, evidenced by a line of dots. Dorothy Caldwell detail of Looking Up / Looking Down Masterful. Dorothy Caldwell New Growth in Pink Earth 2016 stitched cotton, pink earth ochre 17.5 x 15.25 inches In the article, you mentioned the difference beteen a painter's gestural mark and a stitcher's smaller and perhaps tighter hand muscle mark, and how you are seeking ways to make energetic marks. Dorothy Caldwell detail of New Growth in Pink Earth Dorothy Caldwell detail of New Growth in Pink Earth I shall carry this (energetic) idea forward into my own work in hand stitch. Dorothy Caldwell Silent Fog / Listening 2016 stitched cotton with ink wash 11.25 x 14.5 inches I also responded to the quote about how you initially view your work with despair but also are grateful for the flaws and mistakes as they give you a place to begin...to repair. Dorothy Caldwell Crossing the River 2016 plant dyed and stitched linen 12.5 x 9.25 inches Thanks for both these inspirational ideas. Dorothy Caldwell Outcrop 2012 stitched cotton with earth ochre 13 x 17 inches "A stitch is a mark like any other mark. It is a dot, a line, a texture. One of my questions is how the mark made with a needle and thread is similar to or different from a drawn or painted mark. The act of stitching involves the small muscles of the hand while seated. In contrast, a painter may use his or her entire body to make a mark. I often think about how to make an energetic stitch - a stitch with a sense of gesture." Dorothy Caldwell Dorothy Caldwell detail of Outcrop Happy New Year! x Judy