With the help of the printing technique I used in the exhibition, stamp printing, I have been teaching surface design for years to students from various fields. It is a visual way to study what the pattern surface consists of and what the pattern is. The task is an exercise in the cooperation of hand, eye and brain, added to the skill of composition and the understanding of symmetry. Doing the task requires concentration, a wrong move or a wandering thought will change the planned whole permanently.
Oma’s charm is the calming effect of technology on its maker; the “relationship” between the creator and the printing medium, created over the course of hundreds of printings when the surfaces are realized together, is a dialogue, negotiation and game that requires presence and creativity. As the printing process progresses, the idea literally progresses and the pattern shape gives way to more and more interesting pattern surfaces. In my case, the pattern shape during the process changed from a square to a flower meadow.
All steps were important. I did a lot of experiments and only qualified my own type of patterns. In the works I challenged myself and explored how to create as many different patterns as possible using only one color and shape. The materials and colors that I cut out in this context bring their own addition.
I became convinced of why this task has been held. It awakens an appetite for patterns. Through the tasks, you can understand the unlimited possibilities of patterns and creativity, even with one color and shape.
I’m a systems builder, and systems fascinate me. Making patterns is a way for me to organize thoughts and get things in place, one pattern at a time.
The dialogue with the patterns is never surprising, it is like a game between the compositional possibilities of the shapes; at their best, the elements are in harmony and the pieces become more than the sum of their parts, a beautiful patterned surface where each element has its own function.”
