This part of my course looks at the effects of light and space and how they interact with with a
variety of materials. Mainly it is a series of workshops where I can experiment with the support of guidance notes.
But first there is a research task to get me in the mood. There are several artists listed in my course notes who are all accomplished in this area of textiles; some are European but most are Japanese. I've looked at them all and been surprised at the huge variety of work that can be achieved from what might seem a limited remit. I have found this website, curated by Lesley Millar, really useful for giving an overview:
It is a Gallery of Contemporary Textile Artists and a wonderful resource for anyone with an interest in this area. Each artist has a CV, a statement and contact details; it all feels very accessible. I've selected a few that I particularly like then added one or two of my own.
Kyoko Kumai
This artist works with the most inorganic material imaginable - stainless steel. In spite of the potentially unforgiving nature of the materials she chooses Kumai takes inspiration from the world around her and tries to capture the elements and their fluidity. She somehow manages to make pieces that seem to move in an organic way.
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| A Beginning- C 2004 Stainless steel filaments |
Masakazu and Naomi Kobayashi
The approach of Naomi Kobayashi is a little different. She uses Japanese paper, cotton and thread to express her feelings about the cycle of life in mountainous area where she lives. Part of her process is to consider the natural world and the way she interacts with it. Over many years she has used the circle as a metaphor for the continuation of life in the face of death. The work below lets light shine through but contains it as well.
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| work99#107 Various fibres |
http://www.culturebase.net/artist.php?912
Koji Takaki
I saw the work of this artist at "Cloth and Memory 2" at Salts' Mill late last year.
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| Koji Takaki - MA http://ocatextiles2.wordpress.com/ |
The work presented was begun in Manchester for the "Textural Space" exhibition in 2001 and added to for "Cloth and Memory 2". The trellis you can see contains the memory of time and space from Manchester. The translucent polypropylene cubes are much more recent work but I found it hard to imagine one without the other. The cubes appeared to float amongst the trellis and the whole thing moved in the air currents in the huge exhibition space.
Yoriko Yoneyama
It's hard to believe that art can be created with rice but that is what this artist used for her piece in the "Cloth and Memory 2" exhibition. Although rice is a staple food in the east and has been valued highly in the past there is now a huge amount wasted and thrown away. Yoriko collected a quantity of this discarded rice, threaded it on silk. allowed it to dry and added some mirrors. I saw this with the sun on it and it looked like rain which never hit the ground. Using this metaphor the mirrors looked like puddles that reflected the sun and the raindrops.
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| Rice Dreams - Yoriko Yonyama http://www.culture24.org.uk/ |
In this work the artist has made links with between the value of rice in her culture and the value of fibres in our society both of which are now overlooked. The beauty of this work is hard to convey; it is ethereal but with a substantial message about the apparently delicate and fragile sustaining whole cultures.
Machiko Agano
This puts a slightly different slant on the idea of playing with light, reflections and shadows. This was also at "Cloth and Memory 2" and the work of Machiko Agano. She is reflecting on the expanse of her life and noticing how much has changed. In her childhood the kimono was everyday dress for women - now it is worn only for special occasions. The process of dyeing the fabrics for kimonos lives in Machiko's memory - the river water washed away the resist paste and created ribbons of brightly coloured fabric in the water and this happened throughout Japan. Only more recently has the problem of the pollution of waterways been acknowledged.
The work displayed was inkjet printed fabrics based on old designs. The pieces were long, thin and sinuous to evoke running water. On the reverse of the the strips was mirror sheeting and the hope is that the visitor will be able to see the fabric as a running river.
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| Machiko Agano Cloth and Memory 2 catalogue |
This sort of work is fairly new and only one of the styles that this artist uses. She uses all manner of techniques, weaving, knitting, finger knitting to make statements about her concern for the environment and lost culture.
Other styles of work taken from the Transition and Influence website.
Nora Fok
In early 2011 I was lucky enough to see Cloud Nylon by Nora Fok at the Harley Gallery. Nora is a textile artist who uses very fine microfilament to make jewellery. She uses knots, plaits and knitting to make geometrically inspired pieces. She finds the systems and order of patterns in nature offer the inspiration she needs. She is particularly intrigued by DNA and has used it as her inspiration many times.
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| Cloud Nylon romillyhills.co.uk |
Over time Nora has found processes that make her work quicker and therefore more accessible. The shapes she creates are original and quite beautiful:
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| Million Dollar Collar www.harleygallery.co.uk |
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This is another artist I saw at Salts' Mill and another intriguing way to interpret textiles. Yoriko printed images of the mill onto Japanese paper, cut it into fine strips and then used it as the weft to weave with. In Japanese this is called Shifu. The cone shapes of the work are inspired by the spinning that was done in the exhibition space. This is another work that has a dreamlike quality. It is made from sericin silk, abaca and Japanese paper.
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| And then - Yoriko Murayama http://www.transitionandinfluence.com |
Shihoko Fukumoto
Indigo has been used for centuries and still has a place for artists if not for general purpose dyeing. Shihoko initially studied painting but found it too inhibiting and now she makes installations and wall hangings. She has blended the Japanese textile technique Shibori with Bokashi (tonal graduation) and created a way to make subtle and translucent work.
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| Jiku - Shihoko Fukumoto |
http://www.someseiryu.net/
Although she only works with indigo there is a vast colour range available to the artist provided the time is given to the dyeing process which can take days and go from very pale to purple. Shihoko often develops her own tools and methods.
Asako Ishizaki
This is another Japanese artist who exhibited at the Textural Space exhibition. I like this work so much and the philosophy the artist has of "wanting people to imagine".
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| I wonder what this pair are imagining? Tsutsumareru Katachi (Wrapping - (O7R) http://www.transitionandinfluence.com |
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| Organism - 1 OR Paper yarn and copper wire http://www.transitionandinfluence.com |
Asako exploits the idea that there are powerful forces we see the effect of but that are in fact invisible; the wind for instance. She calls it "catching invisibility". Central to her work is the effect of light and shadow.
Norma Starzakowna has been influential in the development of printing and dyeing processes that
can give surfaces a three dimensional aspect. Her skills have enabled her to work between architectural
installations, textiles and fashion. Like the artists who exhibited at Salts' Mill Norma draws out the memories embedded in the walls and structure of old buildings using it in her work.
Norma was born in Scotland and trained in Dundee so it's not surprising that she has had work commissioned by the Scottish Parliament. It depicts the achievements and ideals of the Scottish people and celebrates their cultural history using digital and hand processes printed on silk organza.
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| Hinterland - Norma Starzakowna, 2004http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/ |
Caroline Broadhead
Caroline Broadhead trained as a jeweller but has become a very versatile artist using many forms of expression including collaboration with choreographers.
The transition from jeweller to textile artist was a sort of metamorphosis.
I made work out of coloured cotton threads and rope and my tufted bracelets used very fine nylon threads. And as my ideas were developing, I became more interested in the non-precious materials, ones that did not have a recent history in jewellery. By the mid 1980s I was making much larger scale pieces in woven nylon - veils, collars and sleeves. This scale was exciting as it allowed me to examine a spatial awareness around the body in a new way. http://www.themaking.org.uk/
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| The Veil - Caroline Broadhead |
From there it was not such a large step to fashion and designing for Issy Miyake.
In 1990 Caroline Broadhead made the Wobbly Dress, a piece of clothing completely without function. It looks well worn but would be quite impossible to wear. It is made from nylon panels that are stitched together with curved seams which distort the fabric. It looks like it could float.
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| Wobbly Dress - Caroline Broadhead, 1990 http://onviewonline.craftscouncil.org.uk/4040/object/T137#sthash.J08c0HKs.dpuf |
Recently Caroline has explored the way that space can be manipulated using light and shade, considering how an audience moves through the space and the sort of experience they have. It seems that from the very particular, jewellery, the artist has expanded and expanded her area of concern.
I've enjoyed my whistle stop tour around these artists. I've been happy to realise I know the work of some of them and equally delighted to make the acquaintance of some new ones. I particularly like the work of Asako Ishizaki and at some time I would like to see some in an exhibition.
One artist who uses the effects of light and space to beautiful effect is Jan Garside and I'm going to look at her work in more detail in my next post.
Millar L. 2013, Cloth and Memory 2. Salts Mill, Saltaire.
http://www.culturebase.net/
www.harleygallery.co.uk
http://ocatextiles2.wordpress.com/
http://onviewonline.craftscouncil.org.uk/4040/object/T137#sthash.J08c0HKs.dpuf
romillyhills.co.uk
http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/
http://www.someseiryu.net/
http://www.themaking.org.uk/
http://www.transitionandinfluence.com
http://www.themaking.org.uk/
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