Made in the Middle
Trace
“Made in the Middle”, a Cratfspace touring exhibition, 2012-13 A partnership between Craftspace and mac birmingham in collaboration with The National Centre for Craft & Design
Launch date: 11/02/12 mac birmingham
Jan has produced a new body of work for the Made in the Middle exhibition entitled, “Trace”. The work draws inspiration from the rituals associated with Maidens’ Garlands or Virgins’ Crowns, first dated in 1680. The Crowns or Cants were funerary mementos thought to have been made for young virginal women who were betrothed but died before they were married. Paper rosettes, ribbons, paper gloves inscribed with personal information of the deceased adorned the crowns which were carried during the funeral and later came to hang in a prominent church position. Many Garlands or Crowns have been lost, destroyed or fragile over time leaving an air of anonymity surrounding the custom. This piece references some of the physical and symbolic properties associated with this tradition to reflect on the absence and presence of loss.
The first two Touring Venues will be:
mac birmingham 11/02/12-15/04/12
The National Centre for Craft & Design, Sleaford 28/04/12-01/07/12
More Touring Venues listed at a later date
Exhibition Link: http://www.macarts.co.uk/events/Visual%20Arts
New Year, New Work, (in progress)
A very Happy New Year.
Christmas and New Year have raced by for another year and I now find myself saying it is nearly the end of January. It is hard to believe.
I have spent quite a lot of time during the past year immersed in making a new body of work entitled “Trace” for the Craftspace exhibition” Made in the Middle” that will be launched at mac birmingham on 11/02/12. It is a touring exhibition that provides an exceptional opportunity to show the work of a number of makers that are part of the wealth of talent that live and work throughout the East & West Midlands, makers in the middle. The exhibition is a partnership between Craftspace and mac birmingham in collaboration with The National Centre for Craft & Design. My inspiration for Trace is more fully explained in the Upcoming Events section however, I must also mention that the exquisite work of Kay Sekimachi continues to be an endless font of inspiration. It has been quite a journey of research, reflection and collaboration. I have been learning new skills, meeting new people and spending far too much time on ebay.
I would particularly like to mention Juraj Matejik who is a fabricator and maker of historical shoes. We collaborated on the fabrication of the pair of shoes for Trace. Usually, he makes shoes using different leathers but when I asked if he could make a pair out of my hand woven fabric he was excited by the challenge. After a meeting at my studio, he took some of my fabric away with him and later after telephone and email exchanges he brought back a pair of shoes that contain just the right amount of historical detail for my purposes. Brilliant! His website is: http://www.np-historicalshoes.com
I must also mention that I was lucky enough to play host to two student placements during the summer, Jodie and Natasha. Both brought differing perspectives to the studio and showed enthusiasm for the developing new work. It is so much nicer to go on a field trip with a like minded person. Thank you Jodie and Natasha for your input.