Interconnected - City Lit, London

Lindy Dumas - Aged 15, A work in progress - Jacket

On a recent trip to London I went to see Interconnected at City Lit.  It was the end of course exhibition for their Advanced Textiles 2022-2024 Course.  You can see their work on instagram - @textile24group.  Ten textile artists were exhibiting and you can see the work of four of them here...

Lindy Dumas - Aged 15, A work in progress - Jacket

I loved Lindy Dumas' work.  Recalling her school days in rural Wales in the 1960s, Lindy's teenage mind wandered from her lessons to outfits for the weekend, messages to friends and other distractions.  Her stitched and collaged blazer and stitched cuffs, referencing this time, were great!

Lindy Dumas - Aged 15, A work in progress - Stitched cuffs (I wish it was summer)

Mei Lock's parents came to Britain in the early 1970s and eventually started their own Chinese take-away and later ran a fish and chip shop.  Being British born and growing up Chinese, put migration and identity at the centre of Mei's work...

Mei Lock - Made it in the UK

Mei Lock - Made it in the UK (detail - But where are you REALLY from?)

Mei Lock - Made it in the UK (detail- CHIPS)

Mei Lock - Made it in the UK (detail - TAKE AW...)

Mei used rice sacks as the fabric for her stitching, and exploited the use of positive and negative space to spell out her messages, stitched mostly in rice sized, white stitching.  I thought her work was very thought provoking and cleverly done.

Julie Yogasundram - Large & Medium Vessel & Jug

Julie Yogasundram's work uses the discarded work of skilled embroiderers of the past.  These traycoths and tablecloths can often be found cheaply in charity shops. Adding her own hand and machine stitching, Julie turns them into something more contemporary that can, again, have value and is more suited to the modern home.  These looked great.

Julie Yogasundram - Fruits of our labours

Myra Bloomfield does not want her textile pieces to be categorised.  Using handstitch, print and applique on naturally dyed and repurposed cloth she creates contemporary assemblages. The dense stitching is meant to refer to the traditional use of stitch as a means of joining, making, repair and embellishment.

Myra Bloomfield - Conversation Pieces (detail)

Her work brought to my mind visible mending, patchwork and boro...

Myra Bloomfield - Conversation Pieces 

This exhibition finished on 18 July 2024 but you can check out the group's work over on instagram.