Exhibition Text:
Hum

Brought together by a shared involvement with and passion for textiles, our discussions have led us to collaborate for the first time on an exhibition for Queens Park Railway Club. It incorporates elements of our works that demonstrate common approaches to making and thinking about textiles. Joanna has made complex dyed and screen-printed ‘bolster covers’ with discernable printed handwriting that has become illegible with layering. These marks now resemble stitches or hairs. The methods adopted create an aesthetic that almost undermines the potential functionality of the work. Mary’s work has evolved from her unique practice of dyeing and obsessively winding yarns around the dismantled spokes of throwaway umbrellas. The range and combinations of colours, in this case influenced by her observations of the city, give a raw organic quality to the intricately assembled structures.

Colour is a prominent feature of the work, encouraging eyes to skip between shades and tones, and make connections between the different elements.
Folded and draped quilts designed and hand stitched by Claire, are presented as elements of sculpture despite also being functional and domestic. In this situation, these ‘lived with’ objects question the value we place on work made within and for the home. They and other elements of the installation reflect on this relationship between home making and studio making within artist’s practices.

Sheets of expanded steel are placed and layered within the space and provide a structural framework for the interrelating elements. They echo the grilles on the windows of the space and suggest places of making - the studio, workshop or factory environment.

Each of us works in ways that involve much repetitive action that leads to the development of making skills, but also to eccentric habits and improvised actions particular to the individual and the nature of their chosen materials. Whether hand stitching, winding, dyeing or printing, the processes and places involved in the making of our work is integral to its meaning. Our works often draw attention to the value systems we attach to fabrics and the labour and materials of their production. This project has enabled us to revisit experiences of encountering and embracing different textile traditions, and discuss how these influence our practices. We have also been thinking about the informal handing down and evolving of skills, through generations of family members and friends, and the reasons for the demise or the revival of particular creative practices.