 |
Our other activities: |
05 December 2023
Kathleen’s interest in needle and thread was sparked by a visit to a puppet show in Birmingham. There she was fascinated by the puppets, made with fabric and stitch, weaving magical tales. From then on she took up needle and thread to create dolls and creatures around which her imagination developed her own stories.
As a maker, she draws her inspiration from sources as varied as the Clangers, Birmingham Art Gallery, the Pitt Rivers Museum, folk customs and tales and artist Andy Goldsworthy, who uses natural materials. The woods near her home are a constant source of inspiration, providing solace, mystery, textures and colours. This has led to creation of a whole series of Woodland Creatures, the Silver Populi, who have their own stories to tell. The Populi, shy creatures, help the Story teller in the woods working with word blossoms to be used in the stories. She enjoys the immediacy of using thread and fabrics and likes to create colourful, textured and boldly embroidered pieces. She layers scraps of preloved materials, odd bits and pieces, such as paper and then stitches on top. Her creations are often very small and have hidden messages which can only be viewed close up.
As a curator she gathers other textile artists and presents them with a challenge to be developed in six months. The “Shirt Collar Project” was an exhibition by artists who were given a shirt collar to work with. Kathleen’s interpretation was based on the fact that Royal Airforce pilots used to have to wear shirt with collars buttoned up and once strapped in to the plane they found the collar tightened virtually strangling them. Hearing this fact she created a bird of peace with the collar round its neck strangling it and called it Friendly Fire.
As a tutor, she teaches on her Sewcial workshops whereby you arrive not knowing what you will be making – a sewing challenge. She also encourages students of limited ability to make their own puppets and tell their own stories with them. A delightful and entertaining talk given by a story teller with a colourful imagination.
MW
Our December 2023 gallery
