Silk Fusion in Mixed Media Sculpture

I am rediscovering the joy of working with silk. In this case, silk paper or silk fusion. I made some silk fusion for the heads of two sculptures of laughing gulls. Silk has a natural luster. When dyed, it holds color in an intense way. I wanted jet black for these birds.

And luxury. These birds will tell a story about wealth and power. The bodies of the birds are wrapped in elegant, embroidered linen, repurposed linen napkins. You might encounter weighty linen napkins like these at a fancy restaurant. Imagine a power lunch in the city. The table set with fine china and crystal goblets. The diners dressed in dark suits.

Simple steps to make silk fusion

I dug in my box of silk fiber roving, delighted to find I had some black silk. I mix silk roving with wool to add shine to handspun yarn. The same roving can be fused into a paper-like material without spinning. I started by layering wisps of natural undyed silk on a piece of screening in my workspace. The last layer is intense dyed black. This video from Treenways Silk provided a great refresher.

With the layers held in place by a second screen on top, I thoroughly wet down the material. Then I applied a textile medium. This binding agent fuses the layers together. The next day, when it was dry, I carefully removed the screen, being careful not to tear the thinner edges.

The dried silk fusion has been transformed from the wispy roving I started with. Silk’s long fibers are strong to begin with; the textile medium has made it even stronger. Now, I can cut it into pieces or sew it without risk of tearing or fraying.

Applying silk fusion to the sculpture bird head

I glued cut pieces of silk fusion to the heads and necks of these two birds. I positioned some of the thinner wispy edges of the silk paper to evoke feathers.  

For the standing bird, whose wings are folded against the body, I sewed some black silk to the linen for the tail feathers. I slipped these little casings over the wire armature for the tail. The white dots are painted, as is the circle around the birds’ eyes. (Painting with white on the finished head was a little nerve-wracking, but it worked out.)

The shiny silk makes the whole bird sparkle. It creates a dramatic contrast against the white sections of the bird. I think it elevates the grey knitted wings. They almost take on a silvery quality in this setting.

Next step is to add dark red legs to the birds and set them in the fancy dining room for their power lunch.