I’m delighted to announce that I am hosting a forthcoming day of talks as part of the 2011 Stroud International Textile Festival, that will celebrate some of the innovative applications and aesthetic explorations in contemporary weave practice.
With a respectful nod to tradition, the invited speakers are all forging new ground within the fashion, science, furnishings and art spheres taking weave into dynamic new arenas. From e-textiles to art for architectural spaces, each speaker is a pioneer in their discipline and is taking their expertise into unexpected arenas.
Speakers:
Laura Thomas, artist, curator and design consultant. Well known for her trademark encapsulation of delicate textile structures in acrylic resin, recent significant commissions include a Museumaker project to design a triptych window for The Beaney Museum and Art Gallery in Canterbury and a vessel presented to Cricket Australia from the Welsh Assembly Government to commemorate the Ashes being played in Cardiff in 2009. A recipient of a Creative Wales Ambassador Award from the Arts Council of Wales, Laura is currently developing new bodies of work in residence at the Ruthin Craft Centre.
Asha Peta Thompson, is a founding partner of Intelligent Textiles Ltd (ITL)along with Stan Swallow. Asha is an expert in woven technical textiles, specifically electronically active ‘e-textiles’. The ITL patented processes have been applied to many products and principles from heated bedding to iPod connected garments. Recent press coverage has focused on their partnering with the Ministry of Defence to develop embedded technical functionality into military clothing, predominantly as a replacement for conventional cables in soldier systems.
Kirsty McDougall, is one half of Dashing Tweeds, Britain’s latest tweed textile company. Opening up a contemporary arena for a classic quality fabric, Dashing Tweeds has created a range of tweeds for the 21st century, designed by photographer Guy Hills and weaver Kirsty McDougall. Quirky colour palettes, inventive yarn combinations and sophisticated tactile qualities have taken the traditional tweed into uncharted territory, winning them fans across the fashion world. Of particular note is their LumaTwill™ range which is a fusion of technical sportswear with elegant tweed cloth. Light reflective yarns punctuate the woollen checks, so when worn at night it illuminates as light hits the fabric.
Melissa French, artist, designer and coordinator of the Puff & Flock textile collective. Melissa’s practice sees her span the commercial and conceptual sphere. A graduate of the renowned MA Textile Futures at Central St Martins, Melissa has garnered a reputation for work that questions the expected application of woven textiles. Her Urban Upholstery concept takes textiles beyond decoration. This time-based work integrates various metals in her woven fabrics to enable them to endure time and weather whist evolving through natural rusting or oxidising. Inspired by graffiti, urban guerrilla movements and traditional interior textiles and design, Melissa wants to bring an element of beauty, pattern, design and ultimately surprise to the urban landscape.
Ptolemy Mann, artist and architectural colour consultant. Renowned for her impeccable eye for colour, Ptolemy produces striking ikat dyed woven artworks for corporate, commercial and domestic spaces, which have been exhibited and specified all over the world. Working with a UK manufacturer, she has also recently added limited edition mill woven cloth to her repertoire, suitable for cushions, drapes and other applications. Ptolemy is also in demand as an architectural colour consultant, bringing vibrant palette’s to the usually colour-shy world of external facades, as well as devising internal colour schemes for healthcare environments to aid way finding and psychological well being.
Tickets are available from the Stroud International Textiles website:
Cost: £40/£35 (Students/Friends of SIT)
£5.00 for light lunch
There are limited tickets available particularly at the concessionary rate. The last weave symposium I was involved in (warp+weft at the National Wool Museum) ended up with a waiting list of disappointed people, please do book asap!
I look forward to seeing you there!
Showing posts with label Weave. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Weave. Show all posts
Tuesday, March 22, 2011
Sunday, February 13, 2011
warp+weft exhibition at Craft in the Bay, Cardiff
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| To and Fro by Ainsley Hillard |
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| Ann Sutton |
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| Hiroko Takeda |
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| X-Ray Deress by Kathy Schicker on wall, various structures by Ann Sutton in cabinet, and White Sac by Priti Vega on plinth |
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| Hiroko Takeda in foreground, Nuno in background |
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| Nuno |
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| Maelstrom by Lucy McMullen, loaned by ASF Shetland |
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| Ann Richards |
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| Kase by Nuno on right, Arc by Laura Thomas on plinth |
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| Arc by moi |
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| Ismini Samanidou & Gary Allson |
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| Gallery shot |
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| Neckpieces by Makeba Lewis |
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| Monoliths by Ptolemy Mann |
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| Sue Hiley Harris and Ainsley Hillard |
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| Light Flow by Priti Vega on wall |
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| Gallery shot |
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| Monoliths by Ptolemy Mann in foreground |
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| Sue Hiley Harris |
Thought I'd share with you some exhibition shots of the warp+weft exhibition in its latest venue - Craft in the Bay in Cardiff. It was wonderful to hang the show in such a different venue to Oriel Myrddin. The exhibition was able to take on a new dynamic, with different visual links between work. I was also able to add the fantastic Maelstrom by Lucy McMullen, generously loaned by ASF Shetland.
The exhibition closes at Craft in Bay on the 20th Feb, so you've just got a week to catch it before it moves on to its next venue, Smith's Row in Bury St Edmunds.
As part of the accompanying programme of warp+weft related events at Craft in the Bay, Dr Keireine Canavan will be giving a talk on Bedouin Al Sadu weaving in Kuwait on Saturday 19th Feb at 11am. £3 donation towards Craft in the Bay education projects. Booking essential.
Tuesday, September 21, 2010
warp+weft: cross disciplanary approaches to weave symposium at The National Wool Museum, 11th Sept 2010
To mark the opening of the warp+weft exhibitions at Oriel Myrddin and the National Wool Museum, Dr Jessica Hemmings kindly put together a brilliant symposium exploring the unexpected connections with weave.
The day begin with Jessica's introduction, highlighting some wonderful examples of practice within the art textiles sphere which is woven, or references the process of weaving. My absolute favourite example was the 'Wind up: Walking the Warp' project by Anne Wilson. I thought the below image was so powerful - a real visual spectacle which to a non-weaver must seem utterly bizarre. It's also a profound comment on the passing of time, the nature of craftsmanship, and the power of process. You can read more about this intriguing project here: http://www.annewilsonartist.com/windup-chicago-walking.html
The first invited speaker was Professor Lesley Millar, well known for her high profile curatorial projects such as Cloth and Culture, 21:21 and Through the Surface. Lesley spoke eloquently about constructed narratives implicit in the weave process, a concept harnessed to great effect by many of the artists she has worked with in her curation projects. At the end of her presentation she told us of her newly launched web gallery / educational resource for textile art, Transition and Influence.
We then had a presentation from Dr Wayne Forster, Head of the Welsh School of Architecture, which recounted much of the dialogue between Wayne and myself exploring the common ground between the architectural and textile disciplines. You may remember I blogged last year about the Architextiles series of workshops I ran with Wayne at the School of Architecture. Wayne presented many of the examples of cross disciplinary works in both textiles and architecture we'd come across in our research and how this fed into the workshops we ran for the first and second year architecture students.
Following a very tasty lunch in the Museum restaurant, we returned to lecture from Andy Ross, the Director of ASF Shetland, part of the Centre for Creative Industries in Shetland. A trained opera singer, Andy ensured that anybody veering towards a post-lunch lull was re-energised. He opened by singing a traditional weavers song, and then proceeded to explain his absorbing creative journey between textiles and music exploring where the crossovers are, such as in language and rhythm. He even got the delegates singing - quite appropriate for Wales!
During a coffee break there was then a screening of two short films by Matt Hulse Light Work: many hands and Anne Wilson’s Walking the Warp.
To conclude Ruth Greany, a textile trend researcher for WGSN talked about her former career as a woven fashion textile designer for Woven Studio and her work now at WGSN, exploring how trends are researched, identified, synthesised and presented to clients.
The symposium generated a huge amount of energy and enthusiasm on the day - a real feeling that the weave fraternity is starting to find its voice. It was referred to time and time again by speakers and delegates that weaving has not been seen as a sexy discipline and as a result just hasn't been in the limelight such as knitting has in recent years.Craft skills are under threat, there aren't many job opportunities for weave students to aspire towards, and there isn't a strong collectors market for art and craft textiles. But little is to be achieved by just repeating these laments. Weavers need to be working harder to bring what they are doing to the fore. The exhibitions I've curated had this very aim - to celebrate the achievements of the creative and entrepreneurial weave artists and designers working in this field, to both inform the public and to act as inspiration to other weavers. We need to create our own opportunities and keep striving to create the most extraordinary woven textiles thus claiming our rightful place as an important and stimulating applied art / craft / design area.
As a result of spending two days at the symposium and the various exhibition openings talking to a veritable 'who's who' in the world of weaving, I've been mulling over how to continue the momentum of interest and energy thats seems to have started. Ideas are already forming, and I'll tell you about them once they start to become reality. One thing I have decided to start now is a new blog which will record all the interesting weave related items I find happening in art design, craft, science, industry and academia. I spend a little too much time researching online and it would be wonderful to be able to share the suprising, curious, intrguing, beautiful weave related images and links I find with you. It will also review exhibitions I go to, books I read, and any other curious snippets of relevant info. I hope it will in time become a valuable resource for students, researchers and curators who are exploring weave in all its guises, but also the general art/design/craft enthusiast. There's not much posted yet (only just started!) but please subscribe and tell your friends and colleagues about it too: http://www.thewarpandweftblog.blogspot.com/
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| Dr Jessica Hemmings. Photo: Kathryn Campbell Dodd. |
The day begin with Jessica's introduction, highlighting some wonderful examples of practice within the art textiles sphere which is woven, or references the process of weaving. My absolute favourite example was the 'Wind up: Walking the Warp' project by Anne Wilson. I thought the below image was so powerful - a real visual spectacle which to a non-weaver must seem utterly bizarre. It's also a profound comment on the passing of time, the nature of craftsmanship, and the power of process. You can read more about this intriguing project here: http://www.annewilsonartist.com/windup-chicago-walking.html
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| http://www.flickr.com/photos/28703188@N02/4250155682/ Anne Wilson, “Wind-Up: Walking the Warp,” 2008 Photo: Surabhi Ghosh |
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| Professor Lesley Millar. Photo: Kathryn Campbell Dodd. |
We then had a presentation from Dr Wayne Forster, Head of the Welsh School of Architecture, which recounted much of the dialogue between Wayne and myself exploring the common ground between the architectural and textile disciplines. You may remember I blogged last year about the Architextiles series of workshops I ran with Wayne at the School of Architecture. Wayne presented many of the examples of cross disciplinary works in both textiles and architecture we'd come across in our research and how this fed into the workshops we ran for the first and second year architecture students.
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| Dr Wayne Forster. Photo: Kathryn Campbell Dodd |
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| Andy Ross. Photo: Kathryn Campbell Dodd |
To conclude Ruth Greany, a textile trend researcher for WGSN talked about her former career as a woven fashion textile designer for Woven Studio and her work now at WGSN, exploring how trends are researched, identified, synthesised and presented to clients.
 |
| Ruth Greany. Photo: Kathryn Campbell Dodd |
As a result of spending two days at the symposium and the various exhibition openings talking to a veritable 'who's who' in the world of weaving, I've been mulling over how to continue the momentum of interest and energy thats seems to have started. Ideas are already forming, and I'll tell you about them once they start to become reality. One thing I have decided to start now is a new blog which will record all the interesting weave related items I find happening in art design, craft, science, industry and academia. I spend a little too much time researching online and it would be wonderful to be able to share the suprising, curious, intrguing, beautiful weave related images and links I find with you. It will also review exhibitions I go to, books I read, and any other curious snippets of relevant info. I hope it will in time become a valuable resource for students, researchers and curators who are exploring weave in all its guises, but also the general art/design/craft enthusiast. There's not much posted yet (only just started!) but please subscribe and tell your friends and colleagues about it too: http://www.thewarpandweftblog.blogspot.com/
Wednesday, July 7, 2010
Warp + Weft exhibitions and symposium...
The following is a press release for a series of exhibitions I am curating or coordinating.....
The Oriel Myrddin Gallery in Carmarthen is delighted to be presenting a long overdue exhibition of unexpected woven textiles by contemporary artists and designers who show a respect for tradition, yet are embracing new technology, aesthetics and making methods.
With generous support from The Laura Ashley Foundation, Warp + Weft will tell the story of contemporary weave in this oft overlooked field with a series of stunning works by the following artists and designers:
Ainsley Hillard
Ann Richards
Ann Sutton
Hiroko Takeda
Ismini Samanidou + Gary Allson
Kathy Schicker
Laura Thomas
Lucy McMullen
Makeba Lewis
Peter Collingwood
Priti Veja
Ptolemy Mann
Reiko Sudo (Nuno)
Sue Hiley Harris
Warp + Weft opens to the public on the 11th Sept and closes on the 30th October. The gallery is open Monday –Saturday 10am-5pm and admission is free. For further information please visit the Oriel Myrddin website.
Alongside this exhibition there will be a satellite exhibition at the National Wool Museum in Drefach Felindre, Carmarthenshire. Warp + Weft: from handloom to production will showcase weavers who have developed their practice into the commercial arena through collaboration with mills to produce contemporary woven textiles products for both fashion and interiors that retain a distinctive craft aesthetic. An exciting array of covetable textile goods will be presented from the following companies and designers:
Cefyn Burgess
Dashing Tweeds
Donna Wilson / SCP / Melin Tregwynt
Eleanor Pritchard
Margo Selby
The Linen Shop
Tim Parry Williams
Wallace and Sewell
The exhibition opens on 4th September and will close on 8th January 2011. The National Wool Museum opening times: April–September: open daily from 10am–5pm. October–March: Tues–Sat
10am to 5pm. Admission is free. For further information please visit the National Wool Museum website: http://www.museumwales.ac.uk/en/wool/
To celebrate the opening of the two exhibitions, we are delighted that noted textile academic Dr Jessica Hemmings is directing a one day symposium entitled ‘Cross disciplinary approaches to weave’ at the National Wool Museum on Saturday 11th September. Speakers confirmed so far include:
There are limited tickets available for this event so early booking is highly recommended. Further details and a booking form can be found here: http://www.museumwales.ac.uk/en/whatson/?event_id=4380
Alongside these events there are two further textile exhibitions for you to visit at The National Botanic Garden of Wales in Carmarthenshire. Fibre Art Wales will be holding its first ever ‘textiles in the open’ exhibition across the dramatic landscape of the Gardens. Fibre Art Wales patron Mary Lloyd Jones will be exhibiting alongside the following members of the group:
Alison Moger
Bethan Ash
Claire Cawte
Laura Thomas
Lisa Porch
Louise Bird
Michelle Griffiths
Ruth Harries
Ruth McLees
In The National Botanic Garden Of Wales gallery, there will be an exciting exhibition showcasing the diverse work of selected graduates, students and staff, from the BA Contemporary Textiles course in the West Wales School of the Arts, Coleg Sir Gâr. Exhibitors include:
Anita Bowyer
Danie Carter
Debbie Smyth
Elspeth Morris
Kelly Jenkins
Lisa Connelly
Liz Miller
Paula Philips Davies
Shellie Holden
Zoe Gealy
Both exhibitions at The National Botanic Garden of Wales open on the 10th Sept and close on the 30th November 2010. The gardens are open daily from 10am-6pm until the 28th October. Between the 29th Oct-28th March the opening hours are 10am-4.30pm.
The National Botanic Garden of Wales admission prices:
Adults £8.00
OAPS £6.50
Children (5-16) £4.00
Under 5’s are free
Family (2 Adults & up to 4 children) £19.50
Further details can be found here: http://www.gardenofwales.org.uk/
For further information about the exhibitions please contact:
Ismini Samanidou (Photo: Toril Brancher 2010)
Makeba Lewis (Photo: Toril Brancher 2010)
Hiroko Takeda
Laura Thomas (Photo: Toril Brancher 2010)
Ann Sutton (Photo: Toril Brancher, 2010)
With generous support from The Laura Ashley Foundation, Warp + Weft will tell the story of contemporary weave in this oft overlooked field with a series of stunning works by the following artists and designers:
Ainsley Hillard
Ann Richards
Ann Sutton
Hiroko Takeda
Ismini Samanidou + Gary Allson
Kathy Schicker
Laura Thomas
Lucy McMullen
Makeba Lewis
Peter Collingwood
Priti Veja
Ptolemy Mann
Reiko Sudo (Nuno)
Sue Hiley Harris
Warp + Weft opens to the public on the 11th Sept and closes on the 30th October. The gallery is open Monday –Saturday 10am-5pm and admission is free. For further information please visit the Oriel Myrddin website.
Alongside this exhibition there will be a satellite exhibition at the National Wool Museum in Drefach Felindre, Carmarthenshire. Warp + Weft: from handloom to production will showcase weavers who have developed their practice into the commercial arena through collaboration with mills to produce contemporary woven textiles products for both fashion and interiors that retain a distinctive craft aesthetic. An exciting array of covetable textile goods will be presented from the following companies and designers:
Cefyn Burgess
Dashing Tweeds
Donna Wilson / SCP / Melin Tregwynt
Eleanor Pritchard
Margo Selby
The Linen Shop
Tim Parry Williams
Wallace and Sewell
The exhibition opens on 4th September and will close on 8th January 2011. The National Wool Museum opening times: April–September: open daily from 10am–5pm. October–March: Tues–Sat
10am to 5pm. Admission is free. For further information please visit the National Wool Museum website: http://www.museumwales.ac.uk/en/wool/
To celebrate the opening of the two exhibitions, we are delighted that noted textile academic Dr Jessica Hemmings is directing a one day symposium entitled ‘Cross disciplinary approaches to weave’ at the National Wool Museum on Saturday 11th September. Speakers confirmed so far include:
- Professor Lesley Millar, curator of a number of key textile exhibitions in the last decade, including “Textual Space” and “Cloth & Culture Now”.
- Andrew Ross, Creative Director of ASF Shetland and GlobalYell Music will be speaking about the relationship between weaving and music www.creativeindustriesshetland.org.uk
- Ruth Greany, Textile Trend Researcher for Materials at WGSN will be speaking about trends in woven materials.
- Screenings of short experimental films will explore the rhythms of weaving at the Dovecot Tapestry Studio by filmmaker Matt Hulse and Anne Wilson’s recent “Walking the Warp” project.
- Dr Wayne Forster, Deputy Head of the Welsh School of Architecture will talk about the parallels between textiles and architecture.
There are limited tickets available for this event so early booking is highly recommended. Further details and a booking form can be found here: http://www.museumwales.ac.uk/en/whatson/?event_id=4380
Alongside these events there are two further textile exhibitions for you to visit at The National Botanic Garden of Wales in Carmarthenshire. Fibre Art Wales will be holding its first ever ‘textiles in the open’ exhibition across the dramatic landscape of the Gardens. Fibre Art Wales patron Mary Lloyd Jones will be exhibiting alongside the following members of the group:
Alison Moger
Bethan Ash
Claire Cawte
Laura Thomas
Lisa Porch
Louise Bird
Michelle Griffiths
Ruth Harries
Ruth McLees
In The National Botanic Garden Of Wales gallery, there will be an exciting exhibition showcasing the diverse work of selected graduates, students and staff, from the BA Contemporary Textiles course in the West Wales School of the Arts, Coleg Sir Gâr. Exhibitors include:
Anita Bowyer
Danie Carter
Debbie Smyth
Elspeth Morris
Kelly Jenkins
Lisa Connelly
Liz Miller
Paula Philips Davies
Shellie Holden
Zoe Gealy
Both exhibitions at The National Botanic Garden of Wales open on the 10th Sept and close on the 30th November 2010. The gardens are open daily from 10am-6pm until the 28th October. Between the 29th Oct-28th March the opening hours are 10am-4.30pm.
The National Botanic Garden of Wales admission prices:
Adults £8.00
OAPS £6.50
Children (5-16) £4.00
Under 5’s are free
Family (2 Adults & up to 4 children) £19.50
Further details can be found here: http://www.gardenofwales.org.uk/
For further information about the exhibitions please contact:
- Curator, Laura Thomas, info@laurathomas.co.uk
- Warp +Weft, Kathryn Campbell Dodd, Oriel Myrddin Marketing Officer, KCampbell@carmarthenshire.gov.uk
- Warp + Weft: from hand loom to production: National Galleries and Museums of Wales, Curator, Laura Thomas, info@laurathomas.co.uk
- BA Contemporary Textiles Course Director, West Wales School of the Art, Paula Philips Davies, Paula.Phillips@colegsirgar.ac.uk
- Fibre Art Wales exhibition coordinator, Laura Thomas, info@laurathomas.co.uk
Sunday, September 27, 2009
New work!
In preparation for the forthcoming Origin show in October, I have been very busy making new work. Lots of new techniques as well as some reworked older ones.....
Thought you might enjoy some pictures to get you in the mood for Origin. By the way, its week 2 that I'm exhibiting in, so mark it in your diaries folks! Really hope to see you there.
Thought you might enjoy some pictures to get you in the mood for Origin. By the way, its week 2 that I'm exhibiting in, so mark it in your diaries folks! Really hope to see you there.
Tuesday, April 14, 2009
some new photo's to share with you.......
Some new photo's..... Firstly from the Fibre Art Wales 'Ffibr' exhibition at Llantarnam Grange, Cwmbran earlier this year:
'Better than Grey' exhibition at the Bury St Edmunds Art Gallery, 21st January – 7th March 2009, photos by Douglas Atfield: 
'Better than Grey' exhibition at the Bury St Edmunds Art Gallery, 21st January – 7th March 2009, photos by Douglas Atfield: 
And lastly, some new pictures by Pinegate Photogrpahy in Cardiff:
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