Having dabbled in batik in Toronto in the ‘70s, I began experimenting with dyes and bleach, and developed a dye-stencil technique that began on t-shirts in the early ‘80s. After creating and selling hundreds of t-shirts to friends and trendy boutiques along Queen St. West, I felt confident in applying this technique to large-scale canvas.
The canvas was first dyed ,starting with the darkest color (the reverse of batik). Once dried, stencils were applied and a diluted bleach solution was carefully sprayed onto the canvas, removing the color. The stencils were removed, the bleach residue rinsed out and the canvas dyed its second color. These steps of dying, applying stencils and bleaching out areas were repeated several times, creating a layered effect. As confidence grew so did the size of the canvas, creating many 5’x5’ ft.and 6’x4’ ft. works.
The work on canvas was awarded a 1983, Canada Arts Council grant.
Erectus – Dye on canvas – (detail) – aprox 24″ x 36″ – 1983
Zulu Liberation – Dye on canvas – 32″ x 40 ” – 1985
The Missing Piece – Dye on Canvas – 24″ x 34″ – 1982
The Cave – Dye on Canvas – 24″ x 36″ – 1982
Layers – Dye on Canvas – 48″ x 28″ – 1984
Jungle Love – Dye on Canvas – 24″ x 32″ – 1985
Target Practice – Dye on Canvas – 30″ x 24″ – 1984
Homo Erect – Dye on Canvas – 32″ x 42″ – 1984
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