Textile Study Group

Composition: big | bold | brave, with Bobby Britnell

Composition is one of the key elements in art and design, whether you are creating a drawing, painting or involved with any visual art form. It provides the viewer with the tools needed for making sense of finished works.

We will begin by looking at how a composition can be changed by the simple placing of a horizontal line, the size of motifs in relation to the picture plane, and the positioning of these motifs. We will investigate some of these ideas through a number of creative exercises onto paper and from these create some large bold monochromatic drawings.

Learning from master artists is paramount in understanding these concepts, so artist research will be fundamental in cementing personal ideas. Be prepared for some dramatic effects and large scale works on fabric which explore these concepts in challenging ways.

Bobby runs and teaches courses from her studio in South Shropshire and attracts students from all over the world. She also brings in the best UK tutors. She exhibits and teaches all over the country and abroad and was a tutor on the BA (Hons) programme for the Julia Caprara School of Stitched Textiles. She published her first book in 2013, which has been reprinted in 2021.

Building with cloth: fold | layer | wrap, with Jan Miller

Building with cloth examines household fabrics from ‘raw’ materials to rags to recycled. How and where your collection of textiles were constructed, washed, prepared, folded, stored, repaired, handed down, re-purposed, may uncover a history – real or imagined.

Record: marks, colours, ideas, drawings, collages
Work: with mixed media to construct and test
Make: samples, the starting point of a series
Review/edit: small changes make big differences

Observation of known artists’ work may inspire an approach that can be adapted to your developing experiments: 2D or 3D; scale up/down; focus on patterns and rhythms; manipulate with folds, layers, coiling, wrapping; construct shapes. A workshop to develop your own method of research; a sketchbook and samples that may stand alone; the potential to create future work.

Jan has an MA Textile Culture, is a freelance artist based in Norwich and a member of the Costume and Textile Association for Norfolk Museums. She participates in local Open Studios and is an exhibiting member of the 62 Group. Her work is inspired by coastal walks and local landscapes.

Coming into view: remove | reduce | refine, with Mary Sleigh

‘Less is more’ is the catch phrase for this workshop. Starting with something familiar – kept and treasured, given as a present or collected on a walk – we shall define its essence through experiments, sampling and recording significant elements. These discoveries will be the basis of new work revealing unexplored aspects of a familiar object.

We will explore, through the use of mixed media, possible ways of working allowing for change through experimentation and making. Deconstructing, paring back, obscuring and revealing are some of the activities in working towards a fresh approach, seeing something with new eyes. Individual approaches, innovation and a willingness to try something new will be encouraged, alongside discussion and personal tutorials. Results may be a set of individual samples or the start of a new piece of work capturing the qualities discovered in the workshop.

Having taught in Further Education for many years, Mary now works with groups developing ideas and extending their practice. Some courses are currently online workshops. She enjoys the freedom, time and challenge in writing, pursuing her own creative work and exhibits both in UK and abroad.