Manuela Caniato Textile Art

My inspiration almost always begins with a tangible experience, a person, or an object that I see regularly. In this case, my inspiration has a dual origin. On one hand, it stems from the desire to celebrate the career of my dear friend Paola, and on the other, from my visits to the circus with my grandchildren and nephew, both last year and this year. What fun we had!

The true creative phase starts with a visual search on Pinterest. I look for clusters of images, each leading to another. For this, Pinterest is an indispensable tool.

So, I searched for circus-inspired images that conveyed a sense of movement, particularly of the female form. I am particularly fond of images of women in motion from the 1930s and 1940s. These vintage photos have a charm that is not easily replicated through embroidery. While the embroidery indicates that the image is dated, it doesn’t capture the texture and allure of an old photograph.

My favorite piece is the one on the back of the shirt because the back panel is large, allowing me to draw and embroider a bigger image with ease.

On the front, however, I had to work within smaller spaces.

Here is an example of the photo that inspired my embroidery of the lady with the lasso. I selected the photograph and drew it using Procreate. After printing it on paper, I transferred the design onto the shirt using a lightbox.

When I draw for embroidery, I simplify the main lines, especially those of the face.

Then I embroider with a pre-selected color palette, in this case, all shades of blue. I generally use two strands of six-strand embroidery floss in three colors from the chosen range. I added thin lines on the legs and on the gloves to give the impression of movement.