HISTORY OF SABA: THE LADDER

When the Dutch landed on Saba in 1640, the island was uninhabited.

Ladderbay,  on the leeward side of the island, was the most accessible landing site.

524 Steps were carved out of the sheer rock face. Steps and side walks were made of many of the extra rocks on the island.

Until the construction, in the 1970’s, of Saba’s first pier at Fort Bay, Ladder bay was the primary point of entry for supplies to the island.

Not only cargo, one of the most famous being a piano, but even people could be brought up, for example the Queen of the Netherlands in a palanquin.

In the 1930’s The Ladder in its current form, as well as a customhouse halfway the steps, were constructed. The steps were made of poured concrete and the staircase walls from a mixture of concrete and rocks.

The background is a piece of dyed fabric that I overpainted with blue  acrylic  and iridescent white paint. The Ladder is an enlarged photo that I painted on paper and traced by pencil on white fabric. This was covered with Steam & Seam and white tule.

All steps and walls are cut out of different hand dyed and stamped fabric made in a workshop from Denise Labadie. The people who are carrying all the cargo are traced, painted, cut out and fused to the steps. This whole part is covered with black tulle.

The grass at the bottom is machine-embroidered over part of the steps.

The white foam of the surf is painted, covered with white Angelina fibers and extensively quilted.  In the sea are pieces of shimmering organdie.

The Ladder sign is painted, fused and stitched on with another piece of black tulle over it.

The whole process can be seen @ kunamola.blogspot.com    

 

Detail views

    

Original picture: