PUTRAJAYA, (Bernama) — Through the ‘Roselin Arts and Signature’ Facebook page, account owner Yuslinda Yusof shares her vivid and beautiful Malaysian-oriented embroidered artworks, including the National Day-themed series, featuring her exceptional skills.
At a glance, her works look like colourful oil paintings, but the sophistication of her crafts shines through in each sheet of thread that is neatly woven, and shows her precision and creativity that translates into embroidered paintings.
Yuslinda, 45, a self-taught artist who honed her skills through reading and video tutorials, who is also a former landscape architect, took her new hobby seriously after seeing the work of Jura Gric, an embroidery artist from Lithuania.
The first series of her artwork displays the concept of ‘Nostalgia Kampong’, followed by the second series ‘Memori Sambutan Hari Raya Aidilfitri’ and the latest ones ‘Nostalgia Kemerdekaan’, which captures the essence of the celebration of the country’s independence.
“This work tells the story of the nostalgia of flying the Jalur Gemilang in conjunction with the upcoming National Day, which is a must-do event among Malaysians every time August arrives,” said Yuslinda, who is fondly known as Roselin.
The ‘Nostalgia Kemerdekaan’ series comprises 11 works with three main themes, namely, ‘Semangat Patriotisme,’ ‘Kayuhan Kemerdekaan,’ and ‘Semangat Cintakan Tanah Airku Malaysia.’
“Each work is drawn and embroidered with great care so that the image of the spirit of patriotism can be translated. For example, the embroidered painting shows a family carrying the Jalur Gemilang on a bicycle,” said Yuslinda, who is now a full-time housewife.
The mother of three said that although each work is different, the four elements or concepts that are always highlighted in her works are nostalgia, village, landscape and architecture.
“I have noticed that embroidery makers in the country tend to lean towards traditional motifs such as floral, animal or human, as well as foreign landscapes, but to me, Malaysia is unique.”
“The country’s scenic views cannot be found elsewhere. This is why the elements that I apply in my works remind us of the origins of our beloved country,” said Yuslinda, who often features traditional Malay house architecture, paddy fields, creeks, ginger flowers and coconut trees in her works.
Yuslinda’s passion for producing each embroidered artwork can be seen through the quality of the yarn she uses, which is DMC embroidery yarn made from 100 per cent Egyptian cotton yarn, or CXC embroidery yarn.
Each of Yuslinda’s artwork, born from imagination or any photo, will be roughly sketched on the surface of Calico type fabric using an easy-to-wash pen before being embroidered.
To make her embroidery drawings come alive, Yuslinda uses a combination of various sewing techniques including ‘long and short stitches,’ ‘French knot stitch,’ ‘seed stitch,’ and ‘back stitch’ to get a fine or thick embroidery texture.
“For small stitches, I have to use a magnifying glass. The type of fabric, the size of the needle and the thickness of the thread used also plays an important role in producing a quality final product,” said Yuslinda, who has a small studio at her house in Shah Alam.
Yuslinda said that some of her works were sold for between RM1,250 and RM3,000, as they were 100 per cent handmade without using any embroidery machine.
“A single artwork can take weeks or months depending on the type of skills, drawing and sewing used,” said the Kuala Pilah, Negeri Sembilan native.
— BERNAMA