Five years ago, when I began experimenting making paper from Dominica's abundant natural resources, I had in mind a paper that would be suitable traditional pastels. I don't like the regular texture and colours of store bought pastel paper and besides, commercial pastel papers are not available on a small island in the Caribbean.
From banana stems, sugar cane bagasse, pineapple leaves, palm fronds and exotic grasses I created a collection of papers that were unique in colour and texture. But it was the unique texture that had me stumped, for I considered it too course for pastels, which are normally applied to a slighted abraded but level surface.
But the pronounced wood grain on my Garden of Eden screen gave an interesting effect and this led to my recent experiments in using my handmade papers as I originally intended. The tangerens in my previous post and the detail of my pastel painting of bougainvillea shown above open up the unique possibilities.
Tangerens and bougainvillea bring back memories of two dear departed friends.
Roderick Borde was a saxophonist who in his earlier years played with the Louis Armstrong All Stars. His signature tune was "Tangerine". I first heard the strains of Roderick's playing when I was at anchor off a hotel in the British Virgin Islands in the 1980's. Had not my dinghy been available for rowing ashore, I would have walked on water.
Bougainvillea was Virgin Island poet Sheila Hyndman's (1958-1991) favourite flower. For her funeral service I raided every garden on the island and decorated every inch of the church.
I don't have a recording of Roderick playing "Tangerine" but here's Jimmy Dorsey's version with Bob Eberly and Helen O'Connell on vocals.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q-JDUnZv1N0
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