Contextual Review

Comparing my current skills to those from part one, I have definitely learnt how to diversify my ideas and be more experimental within my practices. In part two, I refined these skills into an artistic style I believe is more authentic and personal to me. One of these skills I am quite proud of in my work is a delicacy within textiles. My Project U, where I looked at the delicate capabilities of crochet in interior spaces – inspired by artist Shane Waltener - used this delicacy to link to the nostalgic and sentimental feelings running through my project’s theme. Furthermore, I have really enjoyed working with a range of different processes in part two. Though I often find the workload and overlap of projects challenging, I think it has given me the opportunity to try many new processes. My favourite textile outcome of part two has been my loom weave for Project Performance and Function. Though I had never used the loom before, I learnt quickly that I really enjoy using the machine and finding new ways to make interesting shapes with materials.

The Portfolio project was the most important project in part two for me personally. The most challenging aspect of portfolio season was the need for critical thinking skills and thoughtful selection of your own work. I found that I struggled with the desire to put a lot of work into my portfolio before thinking about the narrative or story the work as a whole told. During this stage, I found the help of my peers and tutors most useful as I could see how the layout of my work impacted the viewer as well as myself. I aimed to create a body of work that felt successful and varied but also met the criteria of BA courses. I started my portfolio by researching the expectations of my BA choices. I visited open days and reached out to current students of the courses I applied to. The work of students Lily Grundy and Oliver Richard Roberts (current CSM Textile Design students) really inspired me and gave a guideline for what my portfolio should include. I also had the opportunity to speak to tutors about my work and skills, which gave me new insight on extending an outcome and further developing ideas. Considering part three and future work, I plan to approach my work with the same consideration of thoughtful layouts, development and varied practices.

Some of my biggest research inspirations have come from exhibitions, artists, books/journals as well as primary sources. My most influential research piece from part two has been an exploration of Cats Cradle through primary and secondary sources. I am inspired by Cats cradle as it can have multiple meanings, conceptual, but also literal connotations. For my Project U, the string and game related to the physical ties/links between family members, but also more literally an exploration of string and crochet becoming ‘webs’ that symbolised control. Cats Cradle and the ‘webs’ also led me to exploring the work of artists like Shane Waltener, whose interior sculptural pieces using crochet really inspired a lot of my work in Project U. I have been really passionate about exploring textiles through different outcomes, not only in fashion or sculpture but also interior spaces, everyday settings, performance, interactive games and so on. My favourite of his work is a piece “Auntie Peggy Has Departed” 2003, a distortion of the traditional crochet doily and antique furniture that was showcased in a tube station in London. I admire Waltener’s awareness of the viewer and spaces his work inhabits, how his work contrasts the busy atmosphere of the city with soft sentimental art.

In the future, I want to explore my passion for literature in my work. I believe that journals, literature, plays, and, poetry all hold ideas and feelings that can be transformed into a material or process. I have always wanted to bridge the gap between my love for reading and writing into my love for textiles and I plan to do further research into it for my next project if possible. I hope that this may elevate my work to a deeper conceptual meaning and strengthen its material with not only visual but also literary research.

Sustainability is also a key element of my work that I would like to focus on more. Within the Performance and Function project I did already start focusing on the context of living in an urban city and how this linked to waste, but I would like to further explore these ideas. For instance, up-cycling materials and reusing unwanted objects into new textiles. I really enjoyed experiences such as ‘The Coded’ Human stories Project that focused on ideas like this and the importance of human sustainability.

Auntie Peggy has departed 1. Available at: https://www.shanewaltener.com/installations/04/01auntie_peggy.html (Accessed: February 19, 2023).

Oliver Roberts (@oliverrichardroberts) • instagram photos and videos (no date). Available at: https://www.instagram.com/oliverrichardroberts/ (Accessed: February 19, 2023).

Cøded - Cønscious Fashion (no date) THE. Available at: https://www.the-coded.com/ (Accessed: February 19, 2023).

Contextual Review

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