The exhibition: Memory Cloth - Rememberings in Textile - by Els van Baarle (NL), Cherilyn Martin (NL & UK), Cas Holmes (UK) and Glenys Mann (AUS) was held at the Museum de Kantfabriek (Horst, NL) between 12th October 2014 to 4th January 2015. The exhibition was opened by Marie-Therese Wisniowski (AUS).
The Museum de Kantfabriek (Horst, The Netherlands)
The existence of the Museum de Kantfabriek is evidence that the textile industry was the beginning of the economic prosperity in the region of Northern Limburg. The soil was poor and so sheep were kept to provide fertilization. The wool was spun and in winter it was woven. Farmers grew flax to make linen. Nowhere else in The Netherlands was weaving done at home on such a large scale. Thus a knowledge base about the textile industry arose. Where textile industry developed, wonderful feats of textile art and industry came to the fore. The Museum has a special collection of old and modern objects that you can view in permanent and changing exhibitions.
When you arrive at the Museum de Kantfabriek you may think you are in a textile factory of the last Century. Rattling machines in the factory creates a lingering memory of the 1930s. At the same time, there exists a modern museum which features textiles and the textile industry in Horst and surrounding regions of the Netherlands.
The Museum displays stimulating exhibitions as well as providing inspiring activities for young and old such as workshops, classes and lectures. In the documentation center of the museum you will discover, in addition to comprehensive genealogical offerings, everything about the history of the region and of its textile history.
Until 2006 the almost antique lace machines were still used daily to produce more than a thousand very fine threads. A number of these machines have been preserved so that visitors to the Museum can see them in a functional condition. You smell the oil, you hear and feel the rumble of the machines - you are in a lace factory. Before your eyes, lace is formed by a combination of machines, bobbins and needles at high speed and with brilliant logic. Effective mechanical magic created by people at a time when there were no highly technical gadgets, no intelligent apps and no computers to support them!
Opening Talk by Marie-Therese Wisniowski, 12th October, 2014
It is wonderful to be here at this delightful venue to open the exhibition – “Memory Cloth. Rememberings in Textile” by four international renowned textile artists - Els van Baarle (The Netherlands), Cherilyn Martin (The Netherlands/UK), Cas Holmes (UK) and Glenys Mann (Australia). I have known and worked with these artists in a number of different venues within Australia and so have become a real fan of their textile art.
Of course, in times gone by women were the gatherers and men were the hunters, and so we gathered the “good” stuff, cooked, washed, made and mended clothes, and taught our daughters our co-operative skills. Hence, women quickly embellished the functionality of cloth into artworks in their own right. For example, there is an embroidered silk gauze ritual garment, which displays rows of even, round chain stitches that were used both for outline and to fill in color of the cloth. It was created in the 4th century BC and was discovered in the Zhou era tomb at Mashan, Hubei province in China. This cloth now forms part of our collective memory. From that time onward, if not before, women have dominated the fibre and textile arts.
Memories of pivotal events in an artists’ life have often been captured in their fibre art. ArtCloth purposely made to herald such events are not necessarily narrative images on cloth, but rather expose a complex psychological state of mind and so may manifest itself as abstract expressionistic motifs on cloth. Each artist in this exhibition has done just that by creating memories on the cloth and/or prints that are both complex and varied. Their techniques are different, since the encapsulation of particular memories varies (as they should) and so decidedly yield rich and complex artworks.
Els van Baarle is a textile artist/teacher from The Netherlands, who teaches surface design classes throughout the world. Her sources of inspiration stem from ancient history; in particular, those periods that trace, underlie and help forge our present time. In this exhibition she wishes to capture the wear and tear of time and she does so by using the slow process of multiple layers of wax and dyes on paper and cloth resulting in a body of complex artworks which feature a wealth of color and depth but that encapsulate the gradual erosion of memory itself. Such works include the long red diptych - hand woven cotton from Indonesia - that Els took with her on trips and embroidered her daily experiences as a record of capturing fleeting events. On one of the other works in this exhibition Els has printed maps on cloth and paper envelopes, which record the numerous places and connection that she has to Zeeland. A Latin bible has been pulled apart, waxed, dyed and re-assembled into an 8 meter long work thus re-contextualizing the book physically, artistically and subverting its associated reverence into an expressive and radical interpretation of memory, words and meaning.
Cherilyn Martin heralds from the UK and The Netherlands and is a world-renowned fibre artist as well as an international tutor in textile arts. In this exhibition, Cherilyn traces memories and personal history via a series of concepts and employs specific techniques to iterate these transient glimpses. In her ‘Memory Cloth - 3 Generations’ series she has created sensitive contemporary works by hand embroidering faces in red thread onto antique lace handkerchiefs. The faces reflect a place in time and history, that is, the minimalist outlines which she uses to capture the essence of a character behind these portraits are stitched onto antique handkerchiefs. Each handkerchief has been originally edged with intricate tatted lace designs. Tatting is a unique type of knotted lace that was popular from the 19th century through the middle of the 20th century. By exploiting these two various media, concepts of time, past experiences and emotions are embedded.
Cherilyn also finds inspiration from remnants of architecture - in particular in the abandoned cave dwellings and cave churches such as the “chiese rupestri” of Basilicata, in Southern Italy. Furthermore she adds: “Underlying themes in my work deal with bereavement, loss and commemoration. I am currently working on a series of stitch drawings, embroidering some personal memories by hand. Inspired by the etched lines of cave drawings, I have stitched silhouettes onto both paper and cloth and included texts taken from my favourite poems about personal loss.”
Cas Holmes travels the world exhibiting her textile pieces as well as tutoring workshops on textiles. Her artworks contain found papers, textiles and discarded materials which she cuts, tears, re-assembles and stitches into multi layered mixed media works which reference the relationships between the urban and natural landscapes. The sensitive execution of hand and machine stitching, dye and paint surface treatments further encapsulates the expressive linear forms, colors and shapes that reflect her connection to the fleeting memories that inform the work.
Her “Memory Cloth Lace Museum” maps the wild spaces, the wasteland, roadside verges, waterways and the places where gardens meet the greater landscape onto cloth. She has collected on her travels many of the materials she used in this exhibition. She adds: ”The pieces in this exhibition celebrates the flora to be found in vintage textiles and these have been added to with my own mark. I have also incorporated lace and materials gathered from the museum. I grew up in Norfolk. It too, is a 'flat land' and there is a deep connection between my 'home' with its reclaimed land and dykes (water protective earth walls) and the flat areas of the Netherlands. Both Horst and Norwich were also known for their lace”.
Glenys Mann is an internationally respected Australian contemporary quilt maker who works with “found” cloth, namely old woollen blankets, hand knitted baby clothing, silk - and such like. Amongst her many talents she also runs numerous textile workshops throughout Australia. Over the last few years Glenys has been exploring the world of digital imaging using worn cloth garments as the inspiration for her prints on paper. The works exhibited here link all of us to the human experience of birth, rites of passage and the garments that share our memories and experiences during these early years. Glenys’ artwork is inspired by emotions of the cloth as well as the emotions of everyday life. She muses that, “The art I make speaks, shouts, whispers, breathes in a language of silence. Their presence is tangible. I photograph found cloth because it has a powerful human presence and has the capacity to express humanity, human endeavor, and emotion. The Cloth image holds within itself the memory of all rites of passage, for at first and last we are bound by its weave.”
I know you will enjoy this exhibition as these artists take you on their journeys of remembrances, that just like any book or print, will provoke and evoke their captured experiences.
Marie-Therese Wisniowski was the co-editor of Textile Fibre Forum (the largest textile art magazine in Australasia), a casual lecturer at the University of Newcastle (Australia), an exhibiting ArtCloth artist and an international tutor of textile arts and surface design techniques.
Memory Cloth - Rememberings in Textile
Els van Baarle (The Netherlands) - Artist Statement
I am a textile artist/teacher from the Netherlands. I teach surface design classes all over the world. I have won many awards and prizes with my large scale art-cloth pieces. My work has been widely published. My artworks are in private and museum collections.
Sources of inspiration are ancient history, traces of the past. The wear and tear of time. I love the slow process of using wax and dye many times. The result is a wonderful cloth with a wealth of color and depth.
Els van Baarle's ArtWork: Memory Cloth - Rememberings in Textile
Els van Baarle finds inspiration in antiquity and in particular, of the effect that the passage of time has on a textile surface.
Letters from a Friend. Since the death of Henk Week (1940 - 2007) I am working on a series of "Letters to a Friend".
Henk was a teacher in the village of Renesse, Zeeland. He collected stamps, but also stamped envelopes. Because of his hobby many friends would keep envelopes for him. Henk sorted everything very systematically. After his death, his collection of thousands of envelopes was threatened to be discarded as waste paper. I wanted to prevent this and so I took all of my friend's boxes home. I saw very quickly that I could use these letters in my artwork. In my contribution to this exhibition, I have used approximately 1,000 envelopes in which I have screen printed, painted and stitched them together.
Material: Textiles.
Technique: Dyed, embroidered and discharged.
Installation on the right: Title - A Quiet Spot III.
Material: 7 Silk cloths.
Technique: Dyed batik, embroidery and discharged.
Material: Bible.
Technique: Batik and serigraphy.
Material: Paper and fabric roll.
Technique: Batik.
Cherilyn Martin (The Netherlands and UK) - Artist Statement
I continue to find inspiration in remnants of architecture, in particular in the abandoned cave dwellings and cave churches “cheese rupestri’ of Basilicata, in Southern Italy. Cave walls engraved with visual narratives and the fading fresco’s found in rock churches are evidence of story telling which has been so important to Man throughout history.
Exploiting the tactility of the various media I use, to interpret surfaces ravaged by time and the elements, has been at the foundation of my working process.
Developing surfaces in which concepts of time, experience and emotion are embodied.
Underlying themes in my work deal with bereavement, loss and commemoration.
I am currently working on a series of stitch drawings, embroidering some personal memories by hand. Inspired by the etched lines of cave drawings, I have stitched silhouettes onto both paper and cloth and included texts taken from my favourite poems about personal loss.
The slow process of hand stitching allows time for recollection, contemplation and meditation.
Cherilyn Martin's ArtWork: Memory Cloth - Rememberings in Textile
Cherilyn Martin is inspired by textures found on the walls in temples, cemeteries and in underground mines.
Material: Antique blouse and cotton embroidery thread.
Technique: Hand embroidery.
Material: Cotton, scrim, Tissuetex, spunfab, fabric paint and antique lace collars.
Technique: Rust, lamination and screen printing.
Materials: Cotton, silk organza, fusible webbing, batting.
Techniques: Controlled rusting with screen printing, machine stitching, burning, fusing.
Material: Paper, glue, acrylic wash, wax crayon and acrylics & procion.
Technique: Own technique.
Material: Paper, joss paper, procion paint, crayons, glue and acrylic wash.
Technique: Screen printing and momigami.
Material: Synthetic felt, cotton knitted fabrics, fusible film, fabric paint and spunfab.
Technique: Rust, lamination and screen printing.
Cas Holmes (UK) - Artist Statement
I trained in fine arts and work between the disciplines of painting, drawing and textiles. I refer to the wild spaces, the wasteland, roadside verges, waterways and the places where our gardens meet the greater landscape.These are the 'common places' which are not town or countryside, but rather 'edgelands', and they have a strange beauty all of their own. Many of the materials used in pieces are collected as I travel. The pieces in this exhibition celebrates the flora to be found in vintage textiles and these have been added to with my own mark. I have also incorporated lace and materials gathered from the museum. I grew up in Norfolk. It too, is a 'flat land' and there is a deep connection between my 'home' with it reclaimed land and dykes and the flat areas of the Netherlands. Both Horst and Norwich were also known for their lace.
Cas Holmes' ArtWork: Memory Cloth - Rememberings in Textile
Can Holmes is inspired by the relationship between nature, development and lifecycle themes.
Material: Textiles and found materials.
Material: Textiles and found materials.
Material: Textiles and found materials.
Marking the flower and the city of its name.
This piece marks the plants and grasses left to grow along our verges and pathway.
Material: Lace and vintage textiles donated by students from my local Adult Education class in Maidstone.
Glenys Mann (Australia) - Artist Statement
I am a contemporary quilt maker that works with ‘found’ cloth, namely old wool blankets, hand knitted baby clothing and silk.
My work is inspired by emotions of the cloth and emotions of everyday life.
“The art I make speaks, shouts, whispers, breathes in a language of silence. Their presence is tangible. I photograph found cloth because it has a powerful human presence and has the capacity to express humanity, human endeavor, emotion. The Cloth image holds within itself the memory of all rites of passage, for at first and last we are bound by its weave.”
Glenys Manns' ArtWork: Memory Cloth - Rememberings in Textile
Materials and Technique Information: Glenys Manns' artworks were created using “found” cloth dyed in natural dyes, hand stitched, machine stitched, dyed, waxed, batiked. Final images were created as large format digital prints. All works are photographs of hand knits taken by Glenys Mann and manipulated in Photoshop. Digitally printed on acid free paper.
Glenys Manns' works with used textiles and is inspired by the emotions that they evoke.
Technique: Digital print.
Technique: Digital print.
Technique: Digital print.
Technique: Digital print.
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