The Artists' Roadmap to Success

Part of the reason for establishing Red Thread Collective was for emerging artists to be able to connect and share knowledge in order to further establish their careers as professional artists. There is a whole other level to being an artist aside from making the work. A new book has been launched by Katharine T. Carter & Associates 'Accelerating the Curves' is a roadmap for artists to have an endurable and successful career. Constructed in three varying levels of development, Stage One, Two and Three, the publication offers practical guides and examples to develop a workable plan and give artists the courage necessary to get to where they want to head. Whilst the book is slightly on the pricey side ($95) it is well worth the investment for those seriously considering a career in art. Visit this website for an in-depth introduction written by Katherine T. Carter who has had over 25 years experience working with artists to achieve their goals and purpose.

http://www.ktcassoc.com/roadmap/roadmap_intro.html

To market, to market Red Thread goes...

Come see us this weekend Saturday 10 December 10am - 2pm at the Box Factory Community Christmas Market where members Luka Va, Jane Lang and Kara Growden will be selling their beautiful handmade wares including cards, wrapping paper, ornaments and lots more to get in the chrissie spirit. Plenty of things to do including workshops, local entertainment and food. 59 Regent Street South, Adelaide

Scribbles + Glitter Beginnings | Amanda McCavour

Toronto-based artist, Amanda McCavour, creates incredibly detailed and tonal drawings by sewing onto a dissolvable fabric, leaving the threads vulnerable and left to hang for themselves, and effectively subtly distorting the imagery in her works. 

Recreating more literal representations of the objects within McCavour's surrounds include Living Room and StandIn for Home whilst more organic and repetitive shapes can be found in installations Icebox and Scribble.

Amanda McCavour graduated from York University with a Bachelor of Fine Arts in Visual Arts. She has participated in a number of solo and group exhibitions in Toronto, and is currently an artist in residence in the Harboufront Centre's Studio.

Cut. Slice. Fold. | Emma van Leest workshop

For those of you in Melbourne, or heading over next weekend Paper Convention Collective presents workshop by the one and only Emma van Leest as part of Cut. Slice. Fold.  programme on Saturday 19 November. 

This workshop will enable you to learn the skills of Paper-Cutting techniques which is currently pushing contemporary creative expression to new frontiers. Emma has exhibited widely and was recently featured on ABC TV’s Art Nation and in the publication Paper cutting: contemporary artists, timeless craft by Laura Heyenga & Rob Ryan.

Make sure you don't miss out and book your place 'here' tickets are $80 for the 3 hour session, all you need to bring is a stanley knife/scalpel, with papers kindly donated by K.W.Doggett Fine Papers.


For more on her practice and images of her work visit her website

26,000 piece Textile Archive

Andrea Aranow Textile Archive from Aaron Rayburn on Vimeo.

The Great Tablecloth | Red Poles Gallery, McLaren Vale

The Great Tablecloth

29 October 2012 - 1 January 2012

Red Poles Gallery, McLaren Vale

Opening: Saturday 29 October 3pm

Features Red Thread member and feature artist Cheryl Hutchens and also good friend and mentor Irmina van Niele plus a number of artists working in jewellery, painting, mixed media, glass and ceramic... should be a hoot!

How does your Arts Career grow?

How Does your Arts Career Grow? free public forum

Monday 31 October 2011 | 6:30-9:30pm

Space Theatre, Adelaide Festival Centre

An exclusive opportunity to take part in a panel discussion with some of Adelaide’s most progressive and proactive arts professionals. Contribute and share your thoughts on what it takes to start, grow and sustain a career in the modern day arts industry. Whether your passion lies with performing, publicity, marketing or even law, bring your fresh ideas and tough questions for an evening of thorough discussion and forward thinking.

Panel includes: Christie Anthoney (Facilitator), Creative Director, TAFE SA AC Arts; Annette Tripodi, Operations and Program Manager, WOMADelaide; Brigid Noone, Independent Artist & Curator; Edwin Kemp Attrill, Artistic Director, University of Adelaide Theatre Guild and Ianto Ware, Project Manager, Renew Adelaide

How Does Your Arts Career Grow? is presented by Adelaide Festival Centre and Carclew Youth Arts and is a free event, however online registration is essential. To secure your seat and for more information, visit www.adelaidefestivalcentre.com.au/theartsgrowthwww.adelaidefestivalcentre.com.au/theartsgrowth

Feature Artist | Cheryl Hutchens

Tell us about yourself, how would you describe your work? My work explores the experience of illness and the fragility of the body. Recent work has used embroidery to investigate some common viruses and bacteria which cause us pain and suffering.

Who or what inspires you to create? Most of all I really like making things. If I wasn’t making art I’d be stitching home wares or making clothes. I’m fascinated by the internal workings of the body and I get a great deal of my inspiration from medical textbooks, documentaries and TV shows like Embarrassing Bodies.

What materials do you like to work with? Any fibre, but mostly cloth based textiles. At the moment I’m really interested in embroidery and knitting.

What are your favourite 5 art related websites or blogs?

www.craftaustralia.org.au – for industry news and information about grants, competitions and exhibitions

craftvic.org.au – I would like to say I visit just for news…but often also for shopping

www.ravelry.com – a fantastic source for knitting inspiration

yarnstorm.blogs.com/jane_brocket/ – wonderful blog by an English author devoted to all the good things in life (…knitting, quilting, baking) and she posts beautiful photographs of her creations and travels

www.visualarts.net.au – NAVA is good for arts business advice (and you can look me up in the artist galleries here to see more of my work)

If you could give one piece of advice for emerging artists, what would it be? Make the work that you want to make and don’t be influenced too much by other’s opinions.

Cheryl Hutchens graduated from the South Australian School of Art in 1999 with a Bachelor of Visual Arts. She studied dress-making at Douglas Mawson Institute of TAFE before moving to London in 2003, where she lived for two years and worked in the Library and Archive of the Tate Gallery. Cheryl was a finalist in the Stanthorpe Art Festival and the Lethbridge 10,000 Small Scale Art Award in 2010, and in February this year her Break, suffer, heal series was acquired by the Adelaide University’s art collection. Cheryl is currently undertaking post-graduate study at the South Australian School of Art.

Exhibitions | Dare to Differ & Ernabella Arts

Spring has definitely sprung and October has many wonderful exhibitions, artist talks and workshops to offer. Dare to Differ at Gallery M is a celebration of contemporary quilts curated by the Quilters Guild of South Australia and features Red Thread member Susan Long. Head along to the exhibition floor talk "What is an Art Quilt?" on Sunday 16 October 2pm, which looks at the quilts on display as well as hearing from Suzanne Gummow on what makes a good quilt. Cost is FREE however bookings are essential 8377 2904 and for more details visit the Gallery M website

Image: June Brown, rust on cotton

SA Museum will present an exhibition of new works from Ernabella Arts, Australia's oldest Indigenous arts centre, acknowledging its long history but with sights firmly set on the future. Opening from 14 October - 13 November, the museum will run storytelling and basket making workshops which can be booked through the Education Team 8207 7429 for more info visit the SA Museum website

'the empty nest' exhibition opening

I welcome you all to join me to celebrate the opening of my first solo exhibition the empty nest, next Sunday 2 October 4-6pm at Seedling Art Space, cnr Main Road & Turners Avenue, Coromandel Valley.

In this exhibition, I have utilised handmade papers to create works reflecting my childhood experience of separated homes filled with coming and going, traversing from one to the other and attempting to discover my identity as a whole, rather than in fragmented parts. 

Accompanying the sculpture/installation work of hybrid nest/egg forms, is a series of large format photographs of found empty nests, symbolising a home once occupied, a remnant of place no longer shared.

The exhibition is open 11am-3pm Saturdays and Sundays from 1 - 16 October and I will be sitting the gallery during this time, so please feel free to come look and have a chat.

Collective Meeting | 5 October

Come join our friendly group of artists at our next meeting on 

Wednesday 5 October 6:30 start - 9pm.Head to Box Factory, Regent Street Adelaide upstairs to the Hurtle Room, all you need to do is bring along your current work or project and be open to sharing your ideas and techniques with other artists. 

If you think  someone would be interested in attending our meetings, we really enjoy meeting artists/craftspeople from all different backgrounds. You never know how your work might inspire another or what you may learn from others, so the Red Thread door is always open and welcome.

LOVE LACE | Tsunami by Janet Echelman

How wonderful is it to see that the age-old technique of lace is being celebrated in today’s art world in the Love Lace exhibition at the Powerhouse Museum, Sydney. 134 artists from 20 countries unleash their passion for lace in this spectacular exhibition of winning entries and finalists in the Museum’s International Lace Award.

The exhibition ranges from bold large-scale installations and sculptures to intricate textiles and jewellery. Materials include gold and silver wire, linen and silk as well as mulberry paper, tapa cloth, horse hair, titanium and optical fibre.

One artist who demonstrates how a traditional technique can be transformed into contemporary art is the 24 metre wide lace work titled Tsunami by Janet Echelman (USA) that will be installed 13 metres above George Street at the Sydney Town Hall from  23 September to 23 October.

Tsunami was inspired and gets its name from the events that unfolded following the 2010 Chile earthquake. Echelman was motivated by the 1.26 micro second shortening of that day on February 27, which resulted from the earthquake’s redistribution of the Earth’s mass.

‘By meditating on these epiphenomena, the work underscores the interdependence of Earth systems and the global community.  It asks the viewer to pause and consider the larger fabric of which they are a part,” said Janet Echelman.


For more information and images on all the works in the exhibition visit the Love Lace website.

Feature Artist: Rachel Penn (UK)

Get ready for one of most in-depth feature artist post Red Thread has ever had. Rachel Penn contacted us after moving recently to Adelaide after graduating from the Chelsea School of Art Textile Design program and I couldn't wait to share her practice with the Adelaide community and our readers to gain an insight into her unique and striking pieces. Read on...

Tell us about yourself, how would you describe your work? I think I would best describe myself as an all rounder. Although I have predominantly focused on knit and crochet for the last few years I would still consider myself a mixed media textile designer, I love to get involved and experiment with all processes and materials, exploring the true potential of fabric design. I especially have a passion for niche, constructed and very detailed textiles that have a strong focus on concept, following them through into bespoke or editorial fashion, jewellery and interior pieces. I find it particularly uplifting seeing my design work through to end, from drawings and samples, to the finalised collection. 

Who or what inspires you as a textile designer? The inspiration behind my previous projects has always varied depending on the brief given. I like my design ideas to follow a strong narrative, taking inspiration either from the diverse patterns and constructive qualities of architecture to the organic forms and structures in nature. I particularly love to explore different cultures and the diverse aspects of life within them, looking at historical craft techniques and the art associated with individual countries. I also believe that drawing, painting and taking photos are extremely important parts of the design process when it comes to developing your ideas and gaining inspiration about a subject. 

What materials do you like to work with? My list of favourite materials to work with is always changing depending on the project at hand, however I have focused alot on knit and crochet the past couple of years. Having very little prior knowledge of the craft, with its heavily traditional connotations, I felt it gave me the opportunity to explore the potential within a constructive process, finding new ways to use yarn as a basis for mixed media, structural design. I love to experiment between the contrast in hard and soft materials, which I focused on in my final degree show project.

What did you most enjoy about the Textile Design program at Chelsea College of Art? I believe that the best thing about my Textile Design degree at Chelsea was the opportunity to meet like minded, creative individuals. I loved working in the studios amongst my peers, immersing myself in contemporary design 24/7. Also the fact that I was based in London was a huge bonus as it fed my enthusiasm for knowledge and inspiration, something that has brought me to Australia with a desire to see and experience more worldwide.

Is textiles highly regarded as a medium in contemporary visual arts culture? Textiles has the ability to connect us to our past through the tradition of the craft. It can create social identity, bring together communities and represent culture, and this is something that I as a designer try to represent in my textiles through hand crafted techniques used in a contemporary style. It is important to bring textiles into the present contemporary visual arts culture as it is way to connect to the individual using nostalgia.

What are your favourite 5 art related websites or blogs? Well I would say that my favourite website and blogs depend on what I am researching at the time. Previously when in London, I always used to look at the big museum websites such as the V&A, Tate and Somerset House, for inspirational artists and designers or for current exhibitions. I love looking through blogs as you never know what someone else has discovered such as an art piece, fashion designer or illustrator, that could inspire your own work. 

How do you think living in Australia, will influence your designs? As a designer I feel that is extremely important, especially if your given the opportunity, to stimulate your senses and to see as much as possible. After living in london for 4 years I was ready to experience something new, a different environment and culture to inspire me, and when my Family up and moved to Australia, it presented me with this opportunity to begin my discoveries. Im hoping that being here will enable me to explore another side of the world that I have not yet had the pleasure of seeing, immersing myself in the art, community and place.

Red Thread Collective looks forward to meeting Rachel at the next meeting on Wednesday 21 September, but for now check out her website and blog to see more of her amazing works. 

As Far as the Eye Can See

Question: What happens when 22 women who work as professional designers, artists and dancers to doctors, scientists and project managers put their crochet skills to good use? 

Answer: A gallery size, giant eye artwork including 500 hand crocheted squares using 182,784 stitches all in the name of raising funds for Gap Filler, a creative urban regeneration initiative that is taking art and community to Christchurch's vacant city spaces after the city's devastating earthquake in February. 

The work is currently on display at Rodeo, 162-168 Gilbert Street, Adelaide until 28 October before heading to Christchurch to be exhibition in November. For more information and images visit the website here.

The group seeks to continue making a contribution to the Christchurch community through ongoing projects to connect artists, community and provide story.

Looking for Contemporary Textile Artists...

Recently I have been noticing a large volume of viewers of the Red Thread blog are searching for Contemporary Textile Artists. It’s fantastic to see there are so many people interested into the modern interpretations of traditional textile crafts but where can you find sources of artists for a medium that could be seen as an aged sideline in the contemporary visual arts culture? Answer: Below I have featured three titles that I have come across, each listing an amazing array of contemporary textile artists for you all to check out…

By Hand: The Use of Craft in Contemporary Art

In a response to the sleek forms and perfect angles of most late twentieth century design objects, many of today's artists and designers are returning to handmade work such as hand lettering, hand drawing, and hand sewing. From books to pillows to T-shirts to toys, the pieces in this volume define an alternative view of contemporary design. Artists include Kirsten Hassenfeld, Victoria May, Kent Henricksen, Aya Kakeda, Dave Cole, Margarita Cabrera and Kelly Breslin.

Slash: Paper under the Knife

Published to accompany a traveling exhibit opening at the Museum of Arts and Design in New York, Slash: Paper Under the Knife examines the resurgence of traditional handcraft materials and techniques in contemporary art and design. Highlighting the work of forty-five international artists, among them Noriko Ambe, Ben Cowd, Dylan Graham, Oliver Herring, Georgia Russell, Olafur Eliasson, Tom Friedman, William Kentridge, and Kara Walker, the book features not only cut but also burned, torn, laser-cut, shredded and sculpted paper art.

Contemporary Textiles: The Fabric of Fine Art

This book is a stunning and comprehensive look at emerging artists from one of the most exciting mediums in the fine art world today that profiles some of the most daring and innovative examples of textiles in fine art. Artists include Matthew Barney, Maria Pineres, Jennifer Angus, Elaine Reichek, Jessica Rankin, Rosemarie Trockel, Yinka Shonibare, Tilleke Schwarz, Cosima von Bonin, Ghada Amer, Annette Messager, Mike Kelley, and Christo and Jeanne Claude.

Enjoy J

Science Sewing Circle | Sera Waters

As part of Flocked: collecting bird stories from SA exhibition at the South Australian Museum, artist Sera Waters will be hosting a Science Sewing Circle on Saturday 14 August 1:00 – 3:30pm. Bring along a stitching project and bird stories to share and experience the museum’s bird collection in the Biodiversity Gallery.

This is the last week to see the Inside SAM's Place exhibition which is an ongoing collaboration between Craftsouth and the South Australian Museum. Bookings are essential so please register on 8207 7090,

Waters has spent the last several months studying bird collections in the South Australian Museum and gathering personal bird stories from the public via a blog and a nest box installed in the museum foyer. Flocked  features new textile and embroidered work presented, together with bird skins, eggs and nests from the museum collection, creating a rich and complex world of anecdote and art celebrating the colourful culture of local birds and people, and the connections between them. "After the wonderful time I spent with the bird collection, and with individual birds, it struck me how much their world is intertwined with ours, and how reliant we are upon one another," says Waters.

Image: Sera Waters, Self as Plover, 2011, printed linen, felt, crewel and sequins, cotton + card, 130 x 80cm

Red Thread SALA Walk | 20 August

It's SALA Festival time again! And what better way to visit the fantastic variety of SA artists than with your fellow red threaders.

Join us on Saturday 20 August 11am | Meet at The Three River fountain on Victoria Square for a day of exploring our local talent and share our love of art. Some of the exhibitions so far include visiting Central Studios, Grote St, along King William and Pirie Street to Wish List 2011, Craftsouth and strolling through Adelaide Arcade to visit the Art Gallery of SA and Flinders University City Gallery as well as many others. Visit each of the links for exhibition information.

If you could please register your interest, by emailing k.growden@live.com or posting below.

Download the map and itinerary here and make sure to share with friends, and also bring a small amount of money for coffees and cakes along the way.

SALA Festival runs from 5 - 28 August and the full guide can be viewed on their website.

 

Image: Stephanie Radok, We speak your language, 2010 | solo exhibition at Flinders University City Gallery

the empty nest | pozible crowdfunding

For my upcoming solo exhibition, the empty nest at Seedling Art Space in October, I have established a community funding intiative through Pozible. Click this link for full project description and to make a pledge.

Pozible provides creative project creators with a platform to present their ideas to a worldwide audience. If anyone likes the idea, they can support it by pledging money to the creator's project. In return for their support, the project creator will offer rewards depending on the level of funding, essentially differentiating itself from the normal funding process.

 

As a textile artist, my practice predominantly utilizes the medium of handmade and recycled paper to transform a ubiquitous material from a flat surface into a three dimensional form. Exploring the notions of memory, belonging and the handmade I focus on altering the surface of the paper to create tactile qualities. This exhibition will be a significant professional development opportunity to present my first solo show as an emerging artist. 

 

Contributions of $10+ will fund a mentor/writer fee by Dr. Irmina van Niele, costs of production and installation needs, gallery hire, printing of invitations as well as play an important role in the development of my work as an emerging artist. 

 

Your support through pledges, forwarding this link by email or through Facebook or Twitter would be greatly appreciated. If you think anyone would be interested in supporting the project or if they would like more information, please feel free to contact me at k.growden@live.com

India Textiles Tour with Barb Mullen

Experience the rich textile culture of the Gujarat region in India with passionate and highly skilled textile artist Barbara Mullen. It was wonderful to meet Barb at the last Red Thread meeting and hear about her enduring practice as a maker and teacher of traditional textile techniques as well as running international textile tours. 

For thirteen days 10 ~ 22 January 2012, participants will be able to immerse themselves in silk, cotton, calico and wool, by visiting the Rabari tribal village, Maharajah's Palace in Gondai, Calico Museum of Textiles and Kutch's specialist textile and craft villages. Price per person $A5890 includes all airfares, most meals, accommodation, transport, workshops and transfers. 

For more information the tour is produced by World Expeditions contact on 1300 720 000 or enquires@worldexpeditions.com.au

Crochet + Social Activism Unite

The Hyperbolic Crochet Coral Reef - "Ladies Silurian Atoll" (detail). 

Photo © The Institute For Figuring (by Margaret Wertheim)

When I conjure up images of one of Australia's great wonders of the world, the Great Barrier Reef, I picture an explosion of colour in the most electric hues. Whilst I haven't been lucky enough to visit the colossal reef system stretching for over 2,600kms, I am afraid I will be disappointed with what I would see. Scientists now believe with the affects of global warming, the reef will become devastated in coming years. Now you may be wondering if Red Thread has turned into a group to analyse the natural world and its many manifestations. Wrong! In 2005, sisters Margaret and Christine Wertheim created the worldwide Hyperbolic Crochet Coral Reef Project to pay homage to the threat of devastation to this fragile monster. Initially beginning in their humble living room and gradually expanding throughout their house, today their are crochet communities or 'satellites' popping up in Chicago, New York, London to Dublin and Capetown. Now the Royal Institution of Australia (RiAus) is calling for South Australian craftspeople to join in and create your own hyperbolic model which marries handicraft with mathematics, marine biology, social activism and community art on a global scale. To see the many worldwide contributions to the projects visit RiAus and get inspired and get on board. 

Arts Hub | Adelaide Matters June 5

If you happen to stumble across a copy of the latest issue of Adelaide Matters, check out page 13 for an article on Red Thread Collective. Featuring works from the ORNATE exhibition in the background, I had an interesting chat with editor Catherine Clifton during the show about the importance of creating a supportive network for emerging artists. I look forward to developing the initiative in the near future, seeing the group grow and providing encouraging opportunities for all involved.

Lair of Crazy Creatures by Luka Vaitkeviciene

Red Thread Collective member and Illustrator Luka Vaitkeviciene recently arrived in Australia from Vilnius in Lithuania. Luka describes her hometown as little and cozy. Interestingly, yet possibly unconsciously I find she has been drawn to a similarly portrayed city in Adelaide. Her candid and somewhat childlike depictions of animals and people are inspired by her everyday surroundings, “the streets, funny people with funny dogs, old things with stories and children’s books”. Preferably working with the humble pen and paper, Luka has incorporated her designs onto ceramics, bags, badges and dioramas, all of which you can admire on her website.

Luka’s Top 5 blogs

www.scarygirl.com/ - I used to check this often and it inspired me a lot.

animalsindresses.blogspot.com - my friend’s blog on her favourite things and her art.

kushkomikss.blogspot.com/ - It's a Latvian blog about comics, they make nice little comic magazines and put information about comic contests.

juliapott.blogspot.com/ - love her animals!

www.art-dept.com/illustration/fahlen/ - this is very inspiring Swedish artist

RTC members enjoy hearing about the differences between our two cities, Luka’s new characters and stories and we hope that whilst living in Adelaide, she finds some ‘aussie’ inspirations for her illustrations... starting with attempting to draw wombats.

Craftsouth Traditional Craft Skills Workshops

After the success of last year's program of traditional craft skills workshops run by Craftsouth, they are pleased to announce their new program for 2011. Looking for a new direction in your work, or want to learn a traditional technique from a craft practitioner with a culturally and linguistical background, whilst connecting to other South Australian artists and community members, then sign up for these wonderful workshops.

Textile craft workshops running from one day to 10 week courses include Bangeledeshi quilt embroidery, Nigerian indigo dyeing, Bosnian sock knitting and Middle Eastern knotted rug weaving. Material fees are included in the cost of each workshop and Craftsouth members receive a 20% discount.

For more information on the schedule and to register for workshops email niki.vouis@craftsouth.org.au or visit the Craftsouth website