My stand at New Designers

A condensed installation of my final degree shows work at New Designers. I recieved alot of lovely comments two exhibitions and an invitation to sell my work at Handmade UK in Chelsea Hall in November. I hadn't planned on turning my work into actual fashion pieces but with the interest I have had with the garments alone I think this is something I need to really look into working on. I also will be going to Manchester next week for my MA interview which will determine my next step with my work.

I have several conceptual ideas involving knit and embroidery with political and social concepts. Which if I am given a place at Manchester I can set in motion.

I have started making other pieces now which I will upload when they are finished. keep you posted :)

latest from New Designers

Finally feel like I have recovered from my week at New Designers. I was very pleased with the god feedback I gotf rom people visiting. I was selected to exhibit at Lantarnam Grange Arts Centre in Wales. Which I am really looking forward to being a pat of. I was also selected for something else which I am keeping under wraps until I know for sure.

I also need to be making piecesto sell at Cardigan Quays this month and prep for my MA Textiles interview at Manchester Met. So busy busy.

The final installation at my end of degree show at Carmarthenshire College

Before my final work was put together I did several photo shoots to get the right idea of what it would look like .

update of putting up my work

A picture or two of me putting up my work and one of the final piece which will be at New Designers stand T10 Carmarthenshire College. Where my installation will be put up.

I want explore film and photography within textiles in the future

My final years work

I have taken a couple of close up images of my work with my mobile and have a short film too. I will be putting up a similiar installation up at New Designers London, where I hope my concept will be seen by a  wider audience who can see past the commercial viability side of my work which is not my intention t the moment but to work on conceptual textile art pieces with a strong political theme.

My work all along has been to highlight the fragility of childrens futures in the ever present threat of war. With subtle hand embroidery of bullet holes in muslin and the garments have been aged slightly with distressing the garments and tea staining them. red poppy ribbon embroidery has been added on some of the garments to bring to light the memory of past wars and the present.

The projection is of my two children wearing the garments which is filmed throughmy knitted panels which have a war element added with the floral like pieces on the panels which are of the soldier lace I developed through out the year developing my own technique.

This last week has consisted of a massive clearout and making pieces to submit to local galleries and co-operative craft shops where I will hopefully be able to sell my pieces. As well as reading and reading and reading. I have read a boot by Patti Smith which was very ispiring and am half way through the Floating Artist.

Finally Over

Yesterday was my last day at university and adding the finishing touches to my installation. I am very please with the effect I get with the film projected onto the knitted panels which is very interesting. I will be having a photoshoot of my final work and have it filmed to capture the projection and then will up load it onto y blog and will then upload my ARTSTHREAD protfolio with the film also.

This weekend will now be working on my portfolio and sketchbooks and then I will be finished. I am looking forward to going to New Designers to show my work and then working on other projects I have in mind..and also I will be selling pieces of my work at Cardigan Quays again this year in the summer which is a beautiful gallery setting in Cardigan..this will be another oppurtunity to expose my work with a commercial side .

progress so far

getting a bit nervous now as I write this and think of the last couple of weeks when my work will be up and ready for viewing. At my graduate show. When i will finally be able to read a book with out thinking of something to do...well at least for a little bit...but it will be nice to relax a bit.

My final works is coming together with the last bit of embroidry to do and put the rest of my embroidery panels to put together and my portfolio and then I am done. I have the editing for my film being done as we speak and this will be projected with in my enclosed installation and the shadows will play on the garments and embroidery.

5 Year Plan

screen print onto glass with fabric placed behind, early stages of research

Within the next 5 years I plan to complete my Masters in textiles, work on having my work exhibited. On graduating I will be entering the hand knitting association competition, aswell as joining their graduate page, waiting to hear if my submission for exhibiting my work has been successful and working part time to pay for my MA aswell as selling pieces of my more commercial work at craft fairs.

I use alot of ribbon embroidery in my work and make my own knitted canvas for embroidering onto and upcycled window, picture and print frames. This was a research stage of my work researching different techniques and processes. I want to take this further with the encasing of glass. 

making final pieces stage

Close of embroidery on one of the desses I have made and a chrochet shrug and hand made button.

Using a print technique I have been able to create a lace like print and created knitting panels.

political knitting to remember the brave

http://www.thisissouthwales.co.uk/Girls-knitted-poppies-gifts-make-public-smile/story-13861244-detail/story.html

first step to creating my own knitted installation with the knitting. for a tribute to rememberance day. With my assistant Rosie. I wanted to place something at a place where I had remebered a year before the place had been covered with young soldiers for a parade walking through town it felt like a farewell ceremony, this bought a tear to my eye and the rest of the public standing in the crowd standing next to these young men and women.

MA Textiles will giving a starting point or a diving board for me to jump in to the world of becoming a professional conceptual artist creating installations that are innovative and thought provoking. Whilst studying for my MA I plan to keep applying for exhibitions national and international and build my profile through competitions.

MA

I am in the process of applying for an MA in Manchester in Textiles. I want create a completely new aesthetic to embroidery and knit with the use of glass and artificial and natural light which will play on the shadows created by the embroidery. I am passionate about the handmade and traditional techniques. I am quite a vocal person and particularly on political, sociala nd personal issues of today. I want my work to provoke thought and conversation about the concept beneath the layers of stitch knit and glass.

I want to experiment with fusing embroidery within glass, and create life size installations utilizing open space. I want to experiement with wire, metal work and ceramics with embroidery and stitch, and experiement with the before and after processes. 

I am inspired by lace and creating images within the lace using embroidery and knitting techniques. My work is inspired by political and social issues that evoke questions and possibly answers.

work in progress update 2

update on installation setup

Its scary now as the reminder for the olympics being 100 days makes my deadline feel even closer. Yesterday I put a mock up of how my installtion would look and think I may need to make more panels. but I am pleased with the progress but can't quite decide wether to have a white space or black space. As shadows created from the embroidery is a major part of my concept.

Easter

I originally wanted to photograph my children wearing my garments but even though the sun was shining it was too cold for them to run around in summer dresses and shorts...so I will have a seperate shoot when it gets warmer which I hope will be very soon.

The origial idea was to have children palying in the outdoors and making daisy chains and then this will be projected onto the wall of my installation.

Didn't get as much as I wanted done over these two weeks. However I did have my work photographed and almost finished making my shrug. With just a few embroidery pieces to do and then full steam ahead wih embroidering knittd panels.

A political artist

My future work will be highlighting political, social, and personal issues with particular emphasis on the affect they have on children and their future. With the ever present threat of war and conflict having a large impact on children which i will highlight in my work through the medium of knitting and embroidery adding a soft hand made delicate aesthetic but with a powerful thought provoking concept.

With delicate embroidery being bullet holes and delicat ribbon embroidery flowers showing the red blood poppy symbol and the delicats fragil and vulnerable side to children's future with the threat of war.

Freedom of Craft: Leading up to Graduate show and New Designers

Freedom of Craft: Leading up to Graduate show and New Designers: I am on the right track with getting my work finished...saying that I have alot of embroidery to do and knit a couple more panels...but I ...

Leading up to Graduate show and New Designers

I am on the right track with getting my work finished...saying that I have alot of embroidery to do and knit a couple more panels...but I am excited and nervous about the prospect of graduating, mostly excited I think. So as I said I would share the progress of my work so here is my first photoshoot of samples and how my work will look.