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Rapunzel and the Yellow Wallpaper

Rapunzel, Rapunzel, let down your hair........





Torr Vale Mill - May 2013



A new project for Derbyshire Open Arts 2013 with a site specific installation at Torr Vale MIll, New Mills. I will be in the mill in a pop up studio working on the project, come along to have a look and join in the interactive weave.

Work in progress....




High Peak Community Arts - Memory Box Project - 2013

A new project for a new year.
Memory Box project.
Working with High Peak Community Arts in Glossop at the D Cafe for people with dementia and their carers.
The first session was a great opportunity to get to know people and we came up with loads of ideas for what to include in the boxes and how to incorporate them in textile form.
Pictured above are the fabric bags which each participant will use to collect and store items whilst we make the boxes.
We also began working on some techniques, trying out Rag Rug and weaving to make decorations for the boxes.

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We made felt with artist Carol Wilson, we will use the felt to make the boxes.
Because of the snow & ice we were a small group this week but those who did come had collected some interesting memorabilia which will be used later in the project, either to keep in the box or to decorate it. 

Some of the weaving & rag rug samples from last session.

Carol took the felt pieces home to complete the felt-making process, I took home some photographs to transfer onto fabric.

One of the felt pieces that will be used to make a box.

The felt making was great fun, creative, sociable and a good work-out.
Next session we will have the felt back to work with and will also look at some other techniques.

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We cut the felt out ready to make into the boxes and began to decorate the sides before making up.
We transfered old photographs onto fabric and used hand and machine stitch to decorate or frame them. 




The photographs will now be either kept in the boxes or attached to the sides. 

The photographs sparked off a lot of conversations around the group. 
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Another technique we used to decorate the boxes was needle felting, the pieces could be made to keep in the box or worked straight onto the sides.
needle felting by one of the group

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Once the boxes were stitched together we added the finishing touches, buttons & other trinkets were added...

....and we made little bags to keep treasures safe inside.

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We hope you can come along to the celebration on Wed 8 May at 11am.



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GODLEY COMMUNITY PRIMARY SCHOOL

May 2012

Art's week:
'Oh! I Do Like To Be Beside The Seaside'

Collaborative mixed-media work by:
Year 3
Year 4
Year 5
Year 6

Arranging the pieces
Finished piece in my garden
Beach Huts by Year 6 - Detail

Beach Huts by Year 6 - Detail

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New Mills Festival 2012

Thanks to Sarah Swallow for this image of her work from the mono printing workshop

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BOTH PRINT WORKSHOPS ARE NOW FULL!
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Workshops and Demonstrations inspired by "Hello, I'm still here 2"
At New Mills Heritage Centre
Part of New Mills Art Trail

Saturday 29 September
Introduction to printing techniques

Block Printing -  11.00 – 12.00
Taking inspiration from the exhibition you will create two printing blocks from recycled and everyday materials.
You will then use your block to print onto paper & fabric.

Mono Printing – 15.00 – 16.00
Taking inspiration from the exhibition you will experiment with mono-printing techniques to create designs on paper and fabric.

All materials provided. No experience necessary.
Suitable for adults and age 10+.

Workshops are free but spaces are limited so please book in advance: SORRY BOOKING CLOSED - WORKSHOPS FULL!
phone 07790070897


Sunday 30 September
Batik Demonstration – 11.00 – 12.00

Batik originated in Java and has been used for centuries as a method of decorating fabric it is also known as a ‘wax resist’ technique.
Molten wax is used to draw a design onto the cloth, this is then dyed but the wax prevents the dye from penetrating the areas it has been applied to.
After dying the wax is removed thus creating the design.

Free Demonstration.


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ALEXANDRA PARK PRIMARY SCHOOL
CENTENARY QUILT

Project to run from October 2011 - February 2012

Over the next few months I will be working with all the pupils at Alexandra Park Primary School, Edgeley to create a commemorative quilt for their centenary next year, the finished quilt will be displayed in the new reception area of the recently re-furbished school.
Every child will have a piece of work included in the quilt inspired by the school and its surroundings, with historical and current references.


WORKSHOP 1
Tuesday 11 October 2011 - Reception 

The reception children made rubbings of surfaces around the school, using these as inspiration they created textured collagraph printing plates using dried food (such as rice and lentils) and vegetable sacks.
They printed onto fabrics using colours inspired by the school building and the uniform.


Collagraph prints (detail) by Reception
WORKSHOP 2
Tuesday 11 October 2011 - Year 1 

Year 1 children made drawings of buildings around the school area, both modern and historic. They transferred their drawings onto press print and printed them onto the same fabric selection as reception.


Local Buildings by Year 1


WORKSHOP 3
Tuesday 1 November 2011 - Year 4
Year 4 each produced one letter, working to fixed measurements they drew, cut out, appliqued and stitched in perfect harmony to create the blue and yellow wording.


WORKSHOP 4
Thursday 24 November 2011 - Year 5
Year 5 observed each other at break time and drew whatever inspired them, food, games or friends. They used applique and stitch with fabric and buttons to recreate ‘playtime’.

WORKSHOP 5
Monday 9 January 2012 - Year 6
Year 6 signed their names along with the names of staff and ex-pupils, they also took photographs of every aspect of school life.

WORKSHOP 6
Wednesday 18 January 2012 - Year 2
Year 2 focused on their friends at school and drew portraits of each other which they then transformed into textile collages.
WORKSHOP 7
Wednesday 18 January 2012 - Year 3
Year 3 studied the exterior of the building especially the patterns of the striking red brick, they used weave to recreate their designs.



There is also a selection of historic photographs included.

For more details go to Gallery or Home

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SAT 24 SEPT 12pm - 3pm
NEW MILLS FESTIVAL 2011  -  Woolly Wander 
Torrs Hydro - Railing Wrap




The railing wrap at the Torrs Hydro site has been created with art students from New Mills School Business and Enterprise College as part of the Woolly Wander Trail for the New Mills Festival 2011.

When we have been working on site there has been a lot of interest from people passing by and everyone has been invited to join in. 

There will be a final wrapping session on Saturday 24 September 2011 from 12pm to 3pm and all are welcome. I will have all materials available but if you would like to add a special memory of your own you are welcome to bring along a piece of fabric to add to the installation.

Torrs Hydro also have an Open Day at the same time so we hope to see you there.


OUR LADY'S CATHOLIC PRIMARY SCHOOL 
EDGELEY, STOCKPORT

JULY 2011




Tie-Dye - Year 3
Inspiration from Guinea



Paper Weaving - Year 3
Inspiration Papua New Guinea


Mini Beasts - Year 1
Positives and Negatives
Close up Observation

Look out for more images from the project at Our Lady's when the work has been displayed around the school.
Fabric Weavings from Year 3
Butterfly Banners from Year 1
Talking Textiles - The Fisherman and His Wife by Year 5

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HIGH PEAK COMMUNITY ARTS   
Project eARTh


I worked on a six week project with High Peak Community Arts.

Arts and Well-being:
Participatory arts projects with disabled adults; people with long-term medical conditions; people experiencing mental distress; elders in community and residential settings.


Taking inspiration from the rich heritage of the textile industry which once thrived in theTorrs, New Mills we embarked on a contemporary up-cycling project. Combining some dull old dining chairs and a heap of old fabric and transforming them into something good.
The group of local people who attended the workshops explored a range of traditional textile skills including weaving, dying, braiding and embroidery. The cotton fabrics used are a mixture of pre-used household textiles and clothing, it was interesting to notice that the floral and striped designs printed on much of the fabric echoed the designs from the sample books on display at New Mills Heritage Centre which have details of hundreds of fabrics printed at the local mills in the past.
The group chose to use their skills to create stunning seating using chairs from Glossopdale Furniture Project. The result is something both beautiful and practical, art that can be appreciated visually, tactilely, and comfortably.
These chairs are now on display until September as part of the Derbyshire Open Art exhibition at Buxton Art Gallery.


Derbyshire open Arts 012

Wrapped Chairs in Derbyshire Open Art Exhibition - Buxton Art Gallery - August 2011
(Photograph: Pam Garside)



After the Derbyshire Open Art exhibition closed, the chairs moved on to an exhibition at Buxton Methodist Church and now one of the chairs is back in Buxton Art Gallery, displayed in a glass case! as part of an exhibition for 'project eARTh'.



Project Earth Exhibition - Buxton Art Gallery - October 2011
(photograph: Pam Garside)


MINI PROJECT - THURSDAY 13 OCTOBER 2011
Project eARTh at Buxton Art Gallery

An afternoon at Buxton Art Gallery with Project eARTh members to view their exhibition, as well as 'Mark in Stitch', a temporary exhibition by Cheshire Textiles, and the Museum's permanent collection, followed by a workshop inspired by the viewing.

When I visited the gallery to prepare the workshop I noticed that several of the pieces in 'Mark in Stitch' used stitching on paper. I also noticed that although there were postcards on sale for this exhibition, there were no postcards for Buxton Museum and Art Gallery.

The group took paper and pencil around the exhibitions and made drawings of the things that inspired them. We then used these as a basis for some postcard designs, using a mixture of drawing, collage and stitch. We then mailed the post cards to High Peak Community Arts. 

Once all the postcards had arrived I collected them together and produced a hard backed fabric bound concertina book tied with a brown ribbon, which itself looks like it could be an exhibit in a museum.

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My-shirt - unMade in Manchester
New workshop running this summer at MMU - w/c 4 July 2011

SEE GALLERY FOR IMAGES OF THIS WORKSHOP WITH PUPILS FROM LARK HILL PRIMARY SCHOOL

The workshop is for 15-16 and 16+ age groups and is focused around an old t-shirt, preferably provided by the students. The theme and content link closely to my current work and my objectives are:
Use ordinary, readily available materials including scrap paper and an old t-shirt.
Create a journal using drawing, collage and stitch which tells the story of the day.
Methodical and meticulous investigation of an old t-shirt including discussion on it’s history. Transform the t-shirt into a meaningful work of art.

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