Guiding Light (Framed Fine Art Print)

Limited Edition Fine Art (Giclée) print from an original felt painting by Noelle Ferris.

The original was inspired by the lighthouse at Galley Head, County Cork.

Lighthouse keepers are no longer guardians of Irish lighthouses as they have become automated and unmanned. It was only in 1997 that the last manned lighthouse in Ireland became automated. What a sacrifice all the lighthouse keepers made during their time of service down through the centuries.

Under their watchful eyes and listening ears, they diligently guided those in peril on the sea. We all need guidance in life, and that is perhaps why I gravitate towards making felt paintings of lighthouses.

Felted paintings are made primarily from wool, but other fibres such as bamboo and silk, along with Angelina, can be added.

To start, the artist needs to create the canvas by laying out multiple layers of undyed wool tops, overlapping them like tiles. Then, all the different colours required for the design need to be mixed using hand carders. The op coloured layer forms the design.

It is then wet felted by hand, using hot soapy water, and fulled (shrunk) by rolling the piece hundreds of times. After that, it is left to dry. During the wet felting process, the design will shrink.

Following wet felting, many hours of needle felting are required to add detail and fix any distortions that may have occurred during the wet felting process. Needle felting involves simply taking a few strands of wool fibre and stabbing them into the felted design using a felting needle.

Additionally, free motion embroidery by sewing machine and hand embroidery can be added.

This giclée print is produced from a high-resolution scan of the original felt painting, using quality ultra-chrome pigment inks. It is printed on pH-neutral heavyweight art paper.

The print image size is 1"x 8" and is mounted with an acid-free mountboard (16"x12") in size. Framed in an 16"x12" off-white deep box frame.

This design has a limited print run of 250. All prints are numbered, titled and signed by Noelle.