Create/Elevate at Harewood House

Stitched Detail from Common Threads

 

On until 20 October at Harewood House (inside and outside), Create/Elevate is the third Harewood Biennial and celebrates the power of craft to inspire people, collaborate and imagine new worlds.  Sixteen British and international artists have their work on show within three interwoven themes: New Narratives which offer fresh perspectives on Harewood's collections and history, The Use of Land addressing issues of local and global ecology and Nourish which explores the conviviality of sharing food and knowledge.  

The Harewood estate was founded on money from the West Indian sugar trade. The money came from owning plantations, slaves, ships and warehouses and thus is steeped in colonialism. “I believe very strongly that we can change things in the present, but for better or for worse there is nothing that any of us can do about history and the past.” David Lascelles, Earl of Harewood.  We are told that "The contemporary exhibits provide new ways to engage with the centuries of craft artistry embedded within the interiors of Harewood House. Create/Elevate shows how artists and makers work collectively to affect societal change and promote social equity."

Common Threads
Collaboratively embroidered textile panels
Themes: New Narratives & Nourish

A couple of the exhibits were part of the British Textile Biennial (BTB) which took place in Lancashire in 2023 which you can read more about here, here & here. Common Threads was one of these. Part of both the New Narratives & Nourish themes here at Harewood, Common Threads was stitched by women from the South Asian community in Burnley, Leeds, Pendle & Karachi, Pakistan, introduced by textile artist, Alice Kettle. Participants shared stories of family and home and working with artist Rabia Sharif, stitched their experiences of these into panels...

Common Threads
Collaboratively embroidered textile panels
Themes: New Narratives & Nourish

Rebecca Chesney, another BTB exhibitor, made her windsock installation from tents discarded after music festivals.  She sees it as an indicator of current conditions and a barometer of the climate crisis.  I was particulary pleased to see this, as I hadn't managed to see it at the BTB.  It is an indicator of the amount of waste left behind after festivals..

Rebecca Chesney - Conditions at Present
Windsocks made from reclaimed tent fabric
Theme: The Use of Land

Jakup Ferri's exhibit was co-created with women artisans from Albania, Kosovo, Burkina Faso & Suriname. We are told that the installation supports carpet making and embroidery as techniques of inclusion, coherence and community building.  It was wonderfully colourful and quirky..

Jakup Ferri - The Monumentality of the Everday
Handwoven carpets, embroidered textiles & paintings
Theme: New Narratives

Jakup Ferri - The Monumentality of the Everday
Handwoven carpets, embroidered textiles & paintings
Theme: New Narratives

Jakup Ferri - The Monumentality of the Everday
Handwoven carpets, embroidered textiles & paintings
Theme: New Narratives

Emefa Cole is honouring the spirit of enslaved Africans through her Baobab tree sculptures.  This African tree is revered for its ability to survive in the harshest conditions and is a great source of natural health remedies..

Emefa Cole - Untitled
Wax-cast Bronze Sculptures
Themes: New Narratives & The Use of the Land

Rosa Harradine's brushes and brooms explore the notions of functionality, beauty & experimentation...

Rosa Harradine - Fibre & Form
Handmade brushes & brooms
Themes: New Narratives & The Use of the Land

Rosa Harradine - Fibre & Form
Handmade brushes & brooms
Themes: New Narratives & The Use of the Land

The design of Mani Kambo's block printed wallpaper comes from her research into the global exchange of ideas and styles across Harewood's collections and interiors...

Mani Kambo - Layered Legacies
Hand block printed wallpaper
Theme: New Narratives

Britto Arts Trust's large Rasad (meaning: ration) installation reimagines a small town Bangladeshi street market and includes handcrafted objects that point to colonialism, economic extraction and exploitation...

Britto Arts Trust - Rasad (detail)
Ceramics, textiles & metal produced collaboratively in workshops in Dhaka
Themes: New Narratives, The Use of the Land & Nourish

Britto Arts Trust - Rasad (detail)
Ceramics, textiles & metal produced collaboratively in workshops in Dhaka
Themes: New Narratives, The Use of the Land & Nourish

Britto Arts Trust - Rasad (detail)
Ceramics, textiles & metal produced collaboratively in workshops in Dhaka
Themes: New Narratives, The Use of the Land & Nourish

BEIT Collective collaborated with Lebanese designer Hamza Mekdad and craftspeople based in Lebanon to create items that reflect everyday culinary and domestic rituals.  The use of the Corinthian capital (top part of classical columns) is a common decorative element in Lebanese vessels..

BEIT Collective - The Essence of Home
Crafted homeware objects exploring the importance of the classical Corinthian order in Lebanese domestic life
Themes: New Narratives & Nourish

There is of course lots more to the exhibition and apart from that there is Harewood House itself which has marvellous ceilings...

Decorative Ceiling - Harewood House

 

and amazing grounds...

Walled Garden _ Harewood

View of the Lake - Harewood

There's plenty of parking at Harewood and lots of grounds (+ playground) to wander through, the house to visit, refreshments in the cafes and, of course, a shop.  Art Fund members get a 50% discount on ticket prices.

Revive Your Wardrobe

Wearing a dress dyed navy & stitched

(Dyed with Dylon Machine Dye)

We all have clothes in our wardrobe that we quite like but somehow they don't get the wear they deserve or we might be trying out Second Hand September, promoted by Oxfam, in a bid to take a more sustainable approach to our wardrobe.  By buying second hand, we can take a stand against fast fashion and reduce our carbon footprint. And if you have bought something second hand from a charity shop or one of the increasing number of online resale sites (e.g. Vinted, eBay, Thrift+) it may turn out to be not quite what you'd hoped for. So, do you donate the currently unsuccessful garment to your favourite charity shop, or sell it again on a resale site? 

Perhaps try a different approach...

Dress stitched to cover marks

Dress & stitching then dyed navy

If you don't like the colour but the item is otherwise great - think about dyeing it. There are a number of important things to bear in mind here. Firstly, think of colour mixing rules. If the garment is red and you dye it blue it will end up purple. If it's yellow to start with, it will turn a shade of green and so on. If the fabric is patterned you will probably still be able to see the pattern after you dye the garment...

Check pattern is still visible when overdyed with navy

If it has top stitching, this may not dye as the thread is often synthetic. Will the colour you are dyeing the garment look good if the topstitching stays the undyed colour? Also, it is quite hard to get a true black.  Garments dyed black will often come out a dark grey. Will you mind? 

And very importantly, are you using the right dye? Cotton, linen and viscose turn out very well when dyed in the washing machine with Dylon machine dyes and you don't need to add anything else. It won't cover bleach, and stains and faded areas may still remain. You can dye the above fabrics and silk, ramie, wool and cashmere using RIT All-Purpose dye which is an alternative dye product. If you are dyeing synthetic garments you would need Rit DyeMore for Synthetic Fibres. Dyeing a garment, or even better several at a time, has a number of more sustainable advantages over buying new ones through waste reduction, increasing garment longevity and reduced environmental impact and water use.

Two tops dyed black (dark grey result) & shortened

I have used Dylon in the machine many times very successfully. Usually I save up a few things that I want a particular colour so that I get the best use out of a dye pod. I have dyed trousers, tops and dresses which I have gone on to wear much more than if I'd left them the colour they were. You can use RIT in the machine too but it's more of a palaver than Dylon. I have used RIT very successfully in a tub to dye wool and cashmere and been pleased with the outcome.

Cashmere cardi dyed from bright orange to khaki using RIT All Purpose Dye

It may not be the colour of a garment that's the problem, it may be something to do with the fit. I often find things are too long as I'm quite short and have successfully shortened several tops and trousers so they are a length I am more comfortable with. I have even done this with jumpers where I have cut off the bottom, picked up the stitches and knitted a new edging at a better length. This is more complicated than just stitching something up but if you are a knitter or know one who could help, this might be an option for you... 

Jumper - Bottom and sleeves cut off & re-knitted to be shorter

Maybe it's something cosmetic about a garment. Perhaps you just don't like the buttons. These can easily be changed. In fact you might already have some suitable buttons in your button tin, or might find some in your local charity shop or haberdashers.

Shirt dyed from cream to black (dark grey result) with Dylon. Original plastic buttons replaced by mother of pearl buttons from my stash

Finally it might be that a mend that is needed. Your garments might have a hole or be wearing thin. This too can be easily remedied with a patch, a darn or some reinforcing stitching. Or perhaps you need to cover up a stain, or some marks which you could again do with some decorative stitching or add some patches. You might want to consider whether you want to go down the route of visible mending or the more traditional route.

Stitching on trousers backed on the inside with fabric where trouser fabric is wearing thin

Apron with patches & stitching, Boro style, to cover a stitched design I didn't like

If things are a little big you might be able to take them in or use one of the alteration services that many towns and cities have.

I often combine several of these techniques and you could too and give your wardrobe a whole new lease of life without having to buy anything new!

And if you want to read about one of my visible mending projects, click here.

Igshaan Adams - Weerhoud at The Hepworth, Wakefield

Igshaan Adams - Weerhoud

 

Igshaan Adams' exhibition, Weerhoud, is currently on at The Hepworth, Wakefield. Adams is from South Africa and Weerhoud means "Witheld" in Africaans. We are told that Weerhoud "examines the impact of lived experiences and traumas on the human psyche, with a particular emphasis on the healing potential of movement". This work is full of light and texture, and the cloud-like structures are ethereal. 

Igshaan Adams - Bent

Igshaan Adams - Bent (detail)

Adams was born in 1982 in a suburb of Cape Town and his work is influenced by his experience as a mixed race, queer man who grew up under apartheid in South Africa.

Igshaan Adams - Empty

I first came across Igshaan Adams at Unravel - The Power & Politics of Textiles in Art at Barbican, London where he had wall based pieces and also some of his suspended cloud installations.  Here, at Wakefield, he's exhibiting his largest cloud installation to date and two new tapestries, made especially for this exhibition, together with other existing work.

Igshaan Adams - Jaime-Lee, Byron, Dustin, Faroll, Lynette

The above tapestry was produced in collaboration with the dancers the piece is named after.  The dancers are from the Garage Dance Ensemble in South Africa's Northern Cape province.  They performed on a large canvas that was on top of a painted plastic sheet.  As the dancers moved, paint marks were left on the canvas and Adams used these patterns, shapes, colours and forms as inspiration for the tapestry.  Some parts remain unwoven.  The work is adorned with beads, chains, shells, stones, ribbons and ropes...

Igshaan Adams - Jaime-Lee, Byron, Dustin, Faroll, Lynette - detail

Igshaan Adams - Oorskot (Remains/excess)

Igshaan Adams - Oorskot (Remains/excess)- detail

Adams' dust clouds are created from wire, beads and found objects.  He describes them as "entangled messes" and wants it to be possible for the viewer to be totally immersed in the cloud installation, to study the detail but also to see the entirety...

Igshaan Adams - Dust cloud detail

We are told that in Adams work "dust symbolises the remnants of past experiences and the traces they leave on our identities," and that "dust serves as a reminder of presence, a human trace that encapsulates the memory of a particular time and place."

Igshaan Adams - Dust cloud detail

Adams' use of materials, techniques, positive and negative space is intriquing. He is aided in the production of his work by a team assistants. If you're interested in textile art, this is definitely a must see!

Igshaan Adams - Weerhoud

Weerhoud is on until 3 November 2024. 

The Hepworth has a nice cafe and small shop.  There is a carpark nearby, as is Wakefield Kirkgate railway station. Wakefield Westgate railway station is about 25 minutes walk away.

Mary Delany & More At Beningbrough Hall, Near York

Passiflora Laurifolia Bay Leaved (detail)
Mary Delany

 

On a sunny day recently, I cycled out to Beningbrough Hall, which is a very pleasant ride along cycle tracks and quiet country roads.  Beningbrough Hall is a National Trust property near York and I went to see their current exhibitions.  The Botanical World of Mary Delany is definitely one exhibition not to miss. 

 

Physalis - Winter Cherry
Mary Delany

In her 70s, in the late 18th Century, Mary Delany (1700-1788) produced almost 1000 collages (985) of plants and only stopped in her 80s when her eyesight was failing.  Many were created at Bulstrode Park, Buckinghamshire, the home of her great friend, Margaret Bentinck, the Duchess of Portland.  The collages on show aren't the originals, they are high resolution photographic reproductions that are four times the size of the originals.  They are amazingly intricate which, when you realise you are looking at a magnification of x4, makes them all the more remarkable.

Scarlet Geranium and Lobelia Cardinalis
Mary Delany

They are all presented on a black paper background which Mary painted using a watercolour mix, coloured with soot.  Her collage papers are also painted with watercolours.  Mary then cut the coloured papers to the shapes she needed and stuck them on with a variety of different glues.  Some collages have more then 200 pieces.

Spiraea Ulmaria - Meadowsweet (detail)
Mary Delany

We are not seeing the originals, which are held at the British Museum, because they are very fragile and because they use watercolours, are very light sensitive.  Also the collages are kept in folios which doesn't make viewing easy.  The reproductions are very good and allow a much wider audience to see them.  The collection is known as the Flora Delanica.

Cactus Grandifloras - Melon Thistle
Mary Delany

On the collages or "paper mosaiks" as Mary called them, she has written the plant's latin name and also the common name.  Sometimes there are interesting historical details on the reverse of the collage which might include what was happening where she was on the day she created them.  This might mention a royal visit or some such.  Mary moved in high society and had many friends in high places.  In fact it was Joseph Banks who was the director of the Royal Botanic Gardens at Kew who sent her many plant samples to copy as he held her work in very high esteem.  This was one of those samples and one of the last "mosaiks" that Mary made...

Portlandia Grandiflora (Jamaican Bell Flower)
Mary Delany

As well as Mary Delany there is a small exhibition of some of the remarkable work of women artists held in the National Trust's various collections.  These include watercolours by Susanna Drury from 1739 of the Giant's Causeway in Northern Ireland which show the feature with geological accuracy and also popularised the Giant's Causeway... 

East Prospect of the Giant's Causeway (detail)
Susanna Drury

There is a modern screen with embroidered panels of plants and mottos by Bess of Hardwick and Mary Queen of Scots (from the time of her captivity at Hardwick Hall) which helped Bess learn Latin,

Needlework Octagons Mounted on a Modern Screen
Bess of Hardwick & Mary Queen of Scots

aquatints that have been embellished with fabrics and embroidery by Sabine Winn - embellising prints with fabric was a popular craft in the 18th century...

Le Fleuve Scamandre (detail)
Sabine Winn

There are also works by Maria Sibylla Merian of the plants and insects of Suriname and one of Marianne North's scientifically accurate floral paintings...  

A Pineapple Surrounded by Cockroaches
Maria Sibylla Merian

Japan - Marianne North

The latter two are linked with Mary Delany by a modern sculptural piece by Rebecca Stevenson in the hall which consists of the three women's heads decorated with fruit and flowers...

Mary, Maria, Marianne
Rebecca Stevenson

Carrying on the natural world theme, local artist, Kate Buckley has an origami installation of butterflies hanging in the stairwell and there is an origami room where you can create origami flowers, butterflies & bugs which you can leave behind for display or take away with you.  I left a flower and a butterfly. If you want to try out some origami at home check out the videos and instructions on Kate's website. Origami, the Japanese art of paper folding, as well as being an artform has also been used in science and engineering.

Origami Butterfly Installation - Kate Buckley

In addition, there is a new Mediterranean Garden to explore, created by Andy Sturgeon.  This has been created to be resilient in the face of our changing climate with plants that can withstand higher temperatures and drier summer conditions but also wetter winters.

Mediterranean Garden - Beningbrough Hall

There are, of course, extensive grounds at Beningbrough apart from the Mediterranean Garden, and a play area, cafe, shop, including plants for sale, not to mention interesting rooms and info in the Hall to explore besides the exhibitions mentioned.  Did you know that John Bourchier, a past owner of Beningbrough Hall, added his official seal to Charles 1's death warrant in 1649?

Beningbrough Hall is well worth a visit, especially while The Botanical World of Mary Delany exhibiton is on (continues until 25 March 2025).  Go see!

Nymphaea alba - white water Lilly (detail)
Mary Delany