Shelley Rhodes, Behind the Stitches

Today I’m sharing more from the Knit & Stitch Show from Harrogate last year, and now I’ve shared all of the graduate showcase exhibits I’m going to move on and share some of the equally exquisite work on display in the gallery sections, starting with Shelley Rhodes.

I’d not seen any of Shelley’s work before but I was completely mesmerised by it - both when they were hung together, and individually. Shelley’s a mixed media artist who is drawn to the concept of fragmentation on repair, each the elements for her pieces are either weathered, worn or broken.

Her website says she is ‘drawn to the effects of time, the transience of nature, the things that go un-noticed and the ever-changing fragility of things around her.’

And together her pieces are quite a statement.

BEHIND THE STITCHES, SHELLEY RHODES

But I think are equally good alone.

She uses stitches to join pieces, and takes inspiration from Kantha making and combines layers of distressed, pre-used cloth piecing, matching and mending as she goes - and the results are stunning.

A SEGMENT OF BEHIND THE STITCHES, SHELLEY RHODES

I loved the detail on each of these elements, and it was great to be able to get so close to do that. I’m always amazed at how cohesive mixed media art is whilst using scraps - but then I guess if I were to colour code my scraps I’d be in with more of a chance of not creating a rainbow! Though obviously these are a level above anything I would create, but I’m sure there is still the satisfaction of putting something together well, whatever your skill level.

A SEGMENT OF BEHIND THE STITCHES, SHELLEY RHODES

I think though of all of the different type and shaped pieces, it is these oblongs that are my favourite, perhaps it’s the colours, perhaps the addition of nails/tacks - or maybe both.

A SEGMENT OF BEHIND THE STITCHES, SHELLEY RHODES

I’m glad to have seen them, and to share them here - and to wonder at their inception and beauty, and now you can too.

Transition and Decay, the rusty interpretation

While there may not be as many photos here as in my colourful interpretation post these rusty interpretations really did make me stop and think about the craft and work that has gone into both of these pieces.

The book by Gilly Meeks held items in various stages of rusting along with stitching and shows the effect that has on the material

THE RUSTING BOOK, GILLY MEEKS

Gilly says it comines her love of the making process, stitch and found rusty objects. Recycled fabrics in the book include cotton, linen, silk and tea bag fabric and all rect in different ways to the rusting process. Gilly also says she’s very drawn to the ghostly marks which result from the process.

The larger Rust quilt by Fiona Burrows takes a different and larger approach - her piece shows the aesthetic and symbolic qualities of decay and decomposition in the style of Piet Mondrian.

RUST, FIONA BURROWS

And just look at the detailed quilting.

RUST, FIONA BURROWS

I love both of these pieces as much as I love the colourful interpretations, but to me these pieces really needed their own post to shine (or rust!).

Which of the interpretations I’ve shown is your favourite?

Transition and Decay, the colourful interpretation

Back in March in an unassuming building in Nottingham I went along to the East Midlands Contemporary Textiles exhibition titled Transition and Decay. I wasn’t quite sure what to expect, but the leaflet was handed out at the Newark Quilt Show back in January and as we planned to be in Nottingham that week, then there was no reason not for combining a visit to the exhibition with our errands, and lunch!

And we weren’t disappointed with any of those. We started out at another new-to-us venue, the Nottingham Society of Artists Gallery in a part of the town (city?) centre we’ve not visited much yet, and we were met with a riot of colour. Even MOH was impressed and took some photos.

It’ll be no surprise to you, and it certainly wasn’t to me, that I was instantly attracted to the most colourful exhibits some of which I’m sharing in this post. My favourite item from the exhibition was this ‘Fading Hydrangeas’ as not only can you instantly see the decay, and all the colours of the hydrangeas throughout its lifecycle, but also because of the intricate work and the patience it must have required.

FADING HYDRANGEAS, HELEN JONES

Helen said that she loves colour and has been inspired by the constantly changing hues of the hydrangeas in her garden; from the bright, pure colours right the way through to the delicate petals in winter. Isn’t it gorgeous?

The next one I’m sharing is more literal - ‘Use it or lose it’ - and a type of decay that I’m sure all of us are keen to embrace, but it’s also a timey reminder to actually make that happen isn’t it?

USE IT OR LOSE IT, CATHERINE TYNDALL

VARIOUS SMALL QUILTED SQUARES BY THE EMCT GROUP

There was little information available in the show notes for the items above and below, but I understand they were completed by members of the East Midlands Contemporary Textiles group for their regular meetings, and they felt (and I agree) that they should also be displayed.

RAINBOW COLOURS AND EXQUISITE STITCHING, EMCT GROUP

This piece by Linda Forey started as ‘a possible method of looking at transparency in colours, and became a fun game of adding applique shapes’ - either way the result is stunning and playful - and also a contender for my favourite piece in the exhibition.

PLAYING WITH COLOUR, LINDA FOREY

LONG STRIPS OF INDIVIDUAL SQUARES, EMCT GROUP

I love the colourful strips of individual works pieced together, and wish I could share more about them. It was the fruit on the blue background (on the right above) that caught my eye, and the more I looked the more detail and amount of work I could see.

Truly amazing.

It was a great exhibition, which also had a ‘touching table’ where the artists had made available the pieces they’d created when starting out to create the pieces for the exhibition, that was really interesting but also highlighted that there’s always so much more that goes into creating anything quite this beautiful.

Look out for another post where I’ll share with more items from the exhibition, which look at transition and decay in a completely different way, that’s why I’m sharing it as a separate post - I didn’t want either of the approaches to get lost.