Category: Craft

  • New books for the library

    There are three new books in the library: Design from Peasant Art, Make Your Own Rugs and Central Otago Couture: The Eden Hore Collection. Kathleen Mann’s book about design from colloquial art was published in London by Adam and Charles Black in 1939 and this edition is the reprinted edition from 1952. It is a…

  • CTANZ symposium – Fascination

    The recent Costume and Textiles Aotearoa New Zealand symposium was held in Dunedin Ōtepoti and it was based on the theme of “Fascination”. Dunedin has a proud history and heritage of settlement and the symposium was held in Toitū Otago Settlers Museum. The event was split into two streams of presentations, one in the auditorium…

  • Welcome back to the blog

    Hello dear readers, I hope you have all had a good few weeks while the blog has been inactive. It seemed strange not to be writing the weekly words to you all, but the rest has been good and there is plenty to tell! A quick update on the studio. The equipment, as you know,…

  • Woven Histories

    New York’s Museum of Modern Art is currently hosting Woven Histories: Textiles and Modern Abstraction. The show, on until 13th September this year, connects the development of ideas in abstract art with textiles and clothing. (The MoMA magazine offers seven ways to experience the exhibition.) With artists and makers such as Anni Albers, Olga de…

  • The Quilters – a documentary

    A new documentary about quilting is coming to Netflix shortly. The Quilters follows the progress of a group of men in a Missouri maximum security prison as they undertake a restorative justice programme: making quilts for foster children and children with disabilities. It promises to be a heart-warming and insightful look at how the craft…

  • What’s on Spotify?

    This week’s playlist features: Haneko odori by Tomoe-Ryu Yutadaiko This traditional Japanese taiko drumming piece was recorded in Québec, Canada by the ensemble. The title, taken from the album, is translated as “Bouncing Dance”. Elijah. Op. 70. MWV A25 by Felix Mendelssohn Contralto Clara Serena continues this playlist with a piece from Elijah, the oratorio…

  • CTANZ symposium

    Costume and Textiles Aotearoa New Zealand is holding its annual symposium in a couple of weeks in Dunedin. CTANZ is a membership association of enthusiasts, curators, artists, makers, educators, researchers… anyone with an interest in textiles and costumes is able to join and attend symposium at a discounted fee. This year the theme of is…

  • Old movies on YouTube

    In the days when films in the cinema were categorised (“A” – the main feature, “B” for a shorter accompaniment to go with the main film, and, below that, “C” and even “Z”) the big breaks into the movie industry for actors and designers often came through the “B” movies. With the advent of television,…

  • Mitsuko Asakura

    Mitsuko Asakura is a Japanese artist from Kyoto. Kyoto is home to the famous Gion Festival with its elaborate floats of textiles and sculpture, bearing witness to the city’s rich textile history. Asakura became interested in dyeing – her father was a skilled dyer – and weaving at an early age and her work has…

  • A new look at migration

    Migration is a hot topic and one that has defined the 20th and 21st Centuries but it is troublesome to collect accurate data about migration patterns. This is where social media can help. Social media collects data about location; anyone who uses any of the platforms will have signed up and provided an address. This…