Spotlight on Stitching and Beyond – Part One
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The Tasmanian based ‘Stitching and Beyond’ group was started by Wendy Koolhof and Mahdi Chandler in 2005. It’s purpose is to explore innovative approaches to fiber and textile arts as well as offer members a textile art workshop programme and a variety of exhibition opportunities. It’s diverse membership has now grown to over 150 artists including local, national and international members.
Here Wendy Koolhof gives a brief overview of the groups history, its aims and what we can expect from them in 2014 and beyond.
Marta Brysha – New world order
How did Stitching and Beyond start?
Tasmania is a unique island environment which engenders creativity – a higher than usual number of artists live here, drawing inspiration from our extraordinarily beautiful surroundings.
The concept of our group began with just two people who encouraged others to come together to explore and promote every aspect of traditional and contemporary textiles. The key idea was to explore collaboratively and so stimulate and extend each other’s art practice within the supportive network of the group which now numbers in excess of 150 people.
Our members’ connection is a passion for fabric, fiber and threads, colour and texture together with a desire to share ideas and knowledge collected over many years and from varying backgrounds – people who are like minded yet retain their diversity and unique artistic voice.
June Hope – Felted Tabbard (detail)
What is the aim of the group?
Essentially, we aim to take our artistic expression beyond where we were last month, or last year.
Members try to take a fresh approach to traditional textiles, moving “beyond” the recognised conventions, exploring, expanding and taking risks in their art practice. We often hear the words “what if…” when we are working together, and from this may emerge wonderful ideas, new ways of doing things, and gorgeous unheard of colour combinations.
We share resources, techniques, knowledge, materials; we develop, encourage and learn from each other; we exhibit together in an understanding and supportive environment.
Lauree Brown – Waterspout
The workshop programme
Stitching and Beyond has an extensive textile art workshop programme with local and international tutors teaching new skills, processes, and media; these sessions are open to all members. Announcements for new classes are eagerly awaited and classes often fill within an hour of enrolments opening.
Lijlija Armstrong – Leaving Europe (detail)
Exhibitions
Some members organise solo exhibitions or exhibitions of the work of a group of friends, or people with similar textile expressions.
Annually we hold a challenge open to all members with themes such as ‘Trees’, ‘The F Word’, ‘Bark’, ‘Circles’ and ‘Encrustations’. The art work created in response to the challenge set is now a sought after intrastate travelling exhibition primarily organised through Tasmanian Regional Arts.
Our biennial Exhibition “Out of Hand” aims to showcase the broad approach we take to textiles from traditional and art quilting, embroidery, painting, dyeing, printing, mixed media, to 3 dimensional pieces, basket making and wearable art. We also demonstrate a variety of textile techniques to encourage the broader community to take up needles, threads and fabric, and share our enjoyment.
This year, 48 members exhibited a diverse range of fiber works and filled the vast space of the Long Gallery in Hobart. The textile art workshop programme was also featured to help the viewing public to understand our work through exhibited samples, journals and works in progress, with a focus on the processes of making textile art.
Luna Newby – Water
What have you got coming up next year?
2014 plans include workshops by tutors such as Diane Savona, Kay Khan, Lisa Walton, Effie Mitrofanis, Alison Schwabe, Ken Smith and Penny Eamer; a new challenge; touring the exhibition of our 2013 Challenge, “Encrustations” around Tasmania, as well as working towards our next biennial exhibition “Out of Hand 2015”. Above all, we seek to maintain our diverse and creative group of textile artists.
Sandra Champion – Button grass tussocks (detail)
The work of a few selected members
To truly represent such a large group of people practising such an array of textile expression is well nigh impossible. We believe the philosophy, practice and works of the upcoming interviews with the six selected members accurately reflects the essence of “Stitching and Beyond.” All of these chosen artists imbue their work with their personality, their journey and their individual ongoing relationship with textiles.
Galleries of past exhibitions, workshops and challenge collections as well as notice of what is happening in our group can all be seen on: stitchingandbeyond.com
Article by Wendy Koolhof, founding member of Stitching and Beyond.
Make sure to check back over the next few days for Parts Two & Three. If you’ve enjoyed Part One why not let us know by leaving a comment below.
Love the blue shoe. Tell me more.
Luna will be telling more about her shoes in part 2 or 3 which are following – they are drop dead gorgeous – you should see them in real life!
Hi AmyLue
I make custom shoes to order and teach shoemaking to anyone who is interested. I teach in Tasmania where I live, mainland Australia and NZ. My new website has a gallery of some of my work and many images of shoes that I and others have made on workshops. The shoes you are looking at were made from silk and leather. The silk was pleated randomly and inset behind the leather. The top line of the boot is a wave shape with thin metal sheet inserted between the upper leather so that it can be manipulated. They were made for exhibition purposes only and were featured in the Australian “Textile” magazine, 40 degrees south and a book called “Handmade in Tasmania”. I make art shoes when I can and made 2 felted pairs for Stitching and Beyond’s long gallery exhibition last year. I love to use textiles in my work – felt, silks, machine and hand embroidery. You can find out more by reading through my website.
Thank you for your interest in my work.
Kind regards
Luna
Hi Mahdi, Chris and everyone in Stitching and Beyond
Lovely to see this. Fond memories or wonderful, inspirational Tas
Hi Cas, thankyou very much, Wendy. Look forward to your next workshop here.
Fabulous article, so very privileged to see my work in such illustrious company. A million ‘thank you’s’. And what a wonderful empowering group Stitching and Beyond is…even though I am a remote member. The opportunities I could never have otherwise have had have in a short time, been marvellous. Thank you all.
I enjoyed this article very much. It is interesting to see what fiber artists beyond the shores of North America are doing. I am not yet at the level of artistry exhibited here in this article, but by experimenting and asking “what if” more frequently, I too will find my artistic voice. Thank you for sharing this informative article.
Lauree Brown’s ‘Waterspout’ just does something to me. It rips completely into my psyche. Thank you so much Lauree.
Great article. So proud to have so much Australian talent. I love button grass tussocks.
ilsa.
Thank you Wendy for a very inspiring article – it’s amazing how many possibilities there are for the use of textiles in art. I must also thank my dear husband for forwarding this article to me and shall look forward to more inspiration.
Kathie