Elisabeth Seeger Halvorsen

For several years I have been working with translucency of transparent and perforated textiles. I am intrigued by the fact that our «visual being» is in a state of constant change. As the sun travels across the sky. The light and angels of its rays change, ever altering our perception of the space we occupy, outside as well as indoors. Nothing is permanent and we experience something new all the time. Ornamentation and repeating patterns have always interested me.

Previously, I have made installations with several large screens, using two textile layers. The first layer is perforated in a particular pattern, the second is transparent. By emitting light, artificial or natural, through the perforated surface, an ornament of light points appears on the transparent surface. New impressions are created in and around the work as the lighting conditions change.

Lately, I have focused on creating blinds with perforated patterns. I perforate the textiles using a hammer and a punch, creating each point individually by hand. I have also made blinds without physical perforation – but with a translucent pattern against a dense background. These blinds are printed with a negative pattern, using a screen printing technique on the blind fabric. Here as well, my aim has been to make the apperarance of the blind, and the pattern, change with the light. The pattern change from dark on light background, to light on a darker background, as light passes through the fabric.

The perforated blinds may be created in different sizes, and with different patterns (also in different sizes). At Oslo Open, I will also show handicraft works made with block printing and screen printing techniques.