Category: Textiles

  • The art and craft of Bornean ikat

    Yesterday a friend shared an amazing experience: a visit to Sarawak to experience the creation of ikat. Ikat is a patterning technique that begins with threads in a warp, or weft, or both, are tied in patterns before dyeing. The tied areas resist dye and so a pattern emerges as these threads are then woven…

  • The Dowse Art Gallery

    The Dowse is in Lower Hutt outside Pōneke Wellington and it is always worth a visit. At present the exhibitions are Softy: Textiles from the Dowse Collection, Wing and a Prayer, Uana/ Carried By The Waves by Claudia Jowitt, and Whakahokihoki: Jewellery from the Dowse Collection. There is also an interactive installation, Wheel of Avalon,…

  • New books in the library

    Some new books have been added to the library. Stitches in Time by Sue Bradley. Aussie Fair by Liz Gemmell The Gentleman’s Wardrobe by Vanessa Mooncie This British book was republished in 2020 and includes simple instructions and patterns for making old-style wallets, jackets, dressing gowns and the like, for discerning men who enjoy dressing-up…

  • Patterns in the collection

    This week the collection of sewing and knitting patterns grew with the addition of a couple of generous gifts.

  • New opening hours

    The studio is now open for the summer. Opening hours for the studio are 11am to 3pm on weekdays, and by appointment. Call +64 (0)224 058 526 or send an email to make a date to come in. Something from the studio collection is on display in the window, and there is art to look…

  • The politics of dress

    Dress is often used to convey messages. In 1973 a black gown made of wool became a star when it was in the Cameo New Zealand Fashion Showcase. The gown, named Tania, featured Māori motifs and was worn to signal support for Māori causes as well as for the wool industry, particularly in 1974 in…

  • Mana

    During the activism years of the 1970s Pacific and Māori voices were given a platform through print. Mana was a publication that highlighted societal issues while, at the same time, promoted identity and cultural values. During its short run – July 1977 to May 1978 – the paper relied on voluntary support and an editorial…

  • Āhuataka

    An intriguing exhibition at the Centre of Contemporary Art in Christchurch Ōtautahi is just about to end its run. Āhuataka is an exploration of Māori woven adornment. The small exhibition space in CoCA has on display artefacts from the Canterbury Museum; taonga tupuna (ancestral treasures). These are grouped together with contemporary art from practitioners who…

  • A rubber stamp

    Sometimes it is the small things that make a big difference. This week, on our trip northwards to Auckland, we stopped in at Ōtautahi Christchurch for a couple of days. On one of those days we went along to the rubber stamp shop to order a new stamp, expecting it to take days and that…

  • A reader contributes

    This week a reader from South Africa has sent in a Facebook link to “Architecture of Return“, an artwork of the floor plan of the British Museum on a blue deer hide, along with symbols for the artefacts that are held in the Museum’s collections. This piece references the hide paintings that convey histories across…