In 2009, The Textile Study Group selected their first Textile Study Group Graduate of the Year, in association with the Embroiderers’ Guild.
Andrea Butler was chosen from that year’s selection of students for the Embroiderer’s Guild Graduate Showcase.
Andrea says of her work “My current practice has evolved from a personal exploration into the transformative power of drawing. A drawing can become a meditative experience, releasing one’s spirit from the limits of the corporeal body and dissolving time and place. My work considers the changes experienced by the body and the psyche as they move between these alternate states of being.
Intertwined with this notion of metamorphosis is a preoccupation with the theme of protection; more specifically how the corporeal body acts as a protective skin around an intrinsic, ethereal self.”
The selection team felt that Andrea’s work was “outstanding, showing extensive research and considerable attention to detail.”
Integument, photo credit Art Van Go
Andrea is a graduate of the Julia Caprara School of Textile Arts and for the future also has an interest in teaching.
Andrea was presented with her certificate at the Knitting and Stitching Show at Alexandra Palace, in October 2009, where she exhibited her work as part of the Embroiderer’s Guild Graduate Showcase.
The Textile Study Group gratefully acknowledges the assistance of the Embroiderer’s Guild and is delighted to have made such a strong start in fulfilling its ambition to support new graduates and build connections within innovative stitched textiles.