"The individual, unseen, solitary process of art making is made visible"
We are 4 women working with craft processes in fibre; Penny working with needle, thread and fabric exploring the aesthetics of pattern and texture through the motifs and methods of Sashiko, Elaine manipulating and upcycling thread and textiles in symbolic motifs to explore time and natural processes, Ceri manipulating diverse fibre and found materials with hands as tools to make works that serve as a meditative foci for both artist and viewer, Lynn constructing 3 dimensional forms with crochet and recycled textile, thread and plastics.
Our works are largely non-figurative, in an aesthetic language articulating pattern, texture, colour and the embodiment of time vested in their manufacture. Tracing the lines and forms of these art works construction, the viewer can read the way in which they have been crafted, and in a sense accompany the artist in the creative process. This sense of making visible the process and decisions involved in the making of the works is a focus of the exhibition.
The title high vis refers to this and also to broader concepts: The individual, unseen, solitary process of art making is made visible. Traditional craft processes are executed as contemporary art. Functional, utilitarian materials are transformed through contemporary and traditional craft processes. Erstwhile domestic crafts with a long cultural and often gendered history, are made highly visible and highly valuable. Works are linked through the aesthetic language of colour, via the incorporation of hi vis textiles in their construction.
Hi vis articulates an explicit language of safety and warning by its use in hazardous occupations, and an implicit authority associated with its use by enforcement services and emergency workers. These colours fluoresce miraculously. The artists make themselves highly visible and employ their distinct creative vision and practice to express these concepts.
Elaine Goodridge is a practising artist and experienced arts educator based in Sydney. Her multidisciplinary practice encompasses painting,drawing, printmaking, photography and textiles. A particular direction in recent years is the repurposing and upcycling of materials in constructing artworks. This direction conceptually articulates apprehension and anxiety related to global warming and the Anthropocene.
I’m am an artist working across a diverse and forever expanding range of practices. I’m inspired by the connection between individual expression, the handcrafted process and design.
Exploring my practice in diverse and experimental forms, improvising with natural fibre, unexpected materials and repurposed findings. I find creative possibilities flow as I dwell in stillness and while being attentive to moments.
Expressing the essence of who we are through handcrafted pieces, mindful creativity and sensory experiences we enhance every day and our general wellbeing.
My intention is to encourage a present moment response with ourselves to discover a personal relationship, a chance to meet ourselves, through responses and emotions that are invoked.
Penny McLaren is a Sydney based textile crafter with a love of Japanese sashiko and boro style stitching, having learnt traditional Japanese techniques under the guidance of renowned artist and author, Susan Briscoe. Exploration of both traditional and non-traditional aesthetics are explored through pattern, motif, and texture using the same tools (needle, thread, fabric) as when this Japanese rural domestic craft originated out of necessity some hundreds of years ago. Through repetition, form and constancy is sustained, whilst movement and illusion are experienced.
This craft allows continued connection with traditional Japanese culture and history, and importantly, with the many, many mothers and daughters that ‘stitched’ and continue to do so.
Lynn Pavey is a Sydney based Contemporary Fibre Artist, with a focus on repurposed material converging through crochet. Training in clothing technology and horticulture has provided Lynn insight to express her consciousness of our world's biodiversity. Her emotive silhouettes combined with colourful fibre reflect her solicitude.
Invented in the 1930's the Hi Vis colour spectrum was developed as identifier andlocator but to Lynn they are just miraculous colours bringing her works to life by their inclusion.
We are 4 women working with craft processes in fibre; Penny working with needle, thread and fabric exploring the aesthetics of pattern and texture through the motifs and methods of Sashiko, Elaine manipulating and upcycling thread and textiles in symbolic motifs to explore time and natural processes, Ceri manipulating diverse fibre and found materials with hands as tools to make works that serve as a meditative foci for both artist and viewer, Lynn constructing 3 dimensional forms with crochet and recycled textile, thread and plastics.
Our works are largely non-figurative, in an aesthetic language articulating pattern, texture, colour and the embodiment of time vested in their manufacture. Tracing the lines and forms of these art works construction, the viewer can read the way in which they have been crafted, and in a sense accompany the artist in the creative process. This sense of making visible the process and decisions involved in the making of the works is a focus of the exhibition.
The title high vis refers to this and also to broader concepts: The individual, unseen, solitary process of art making is made visible. Traditional craft processes are executed as contemporary art. Functional, utilitarian materials are transformed through contemporary and traditional craft processes. Erstwhile domestic crafts with a long cultural and often gendered history, are made highly visible and highly valuable. Works are linked through the aesthetic language of colour, via the incorporation of hi vis textiles in their construction.
Hi vis articulates an explicit language of safety and warning by its use in hazardous occupations, and an implicit authority associated with its use by enforcement services and emergency workers. These colours fluoresce miraculously. The artists make themselves highly visible and employ their distinct creative vision and practice to express these concepts.
Elaine Goodridge is a practising artist and experienced arts educator based in Sydney. Her multidisciplinary practice encompasses painting,drawing, printmaking, photography and textiles. A particular direction in recent years is the repurposing and upcycling of materials in constructing artworks. This direction conceptually articulates apprehension and anxiety related to global warming and the Anthropocene.
I’m am an artist working across a diverse and forever expanding range of practices. I’m inspired by the connection between individual expression, the handcrafted process and design.
Exploring my practice in diverse and experimental forms, improvising with natural fibre, unexpected materials and repurposed findings. I find creative possibilities flow as I dwell in stillness and while being attentive to moments.
Expressing the essence of who we are through handcrafted pieces, mindful creativity and sensory experiences we enhance every day and our general wellbeing.
My intention is to encourage a present moment response with ourselves to discover a personal relationship, a chance to meet ourselves, through responses and emotions that are invoked.
Penny McLaren is a Sydney based textile crafter with a love of Japanese sashiko and boro style stitching, having learnt traditional Japanese techniques under the guidance of renowned artist and author, Susan Briscoe. Exploration of both traditional and non-traditional aesthetics are explored through pattern, motif, and texture using the same tools (needle, thread, fabric) as when this Japanese rural domestic craft originated out of necessity some hundreds of years ago. Through repetition, form and constancy is sustained, whilst movement and illusion are experienced.
This craft allows continued connection with traditional Japanese culture and history, and importantly, with the many, many mothers and daughters that ‘stitched’ and continue to do so.
Lynn Pavey is a Sydney based Contemporary Fibre Artist, with a focus on repurposed material converging through crochet. Training in clothing technology and horticulture has provided Lynn insight to express her consciousness of our world's biodiversity. Her emotive silhouettes combined with colourful fibre reflect her solicitude.
Invented in the 1930's the Hi Vis colour spectrum was developed as identifier andlocator but to Lynn they are just miraculous colours bringing her works to life by their inclusion.