We were excited to hear about a major exhibition of the work of artist, knitter and print-maker (and Digits & Threads contributor and friend) Julie Rosvall. Contexture runs at April 7-May 12th 2023 at the Craft Council Newfoundland & Labrador, 155 Water Street, St. John’s, NL.
From the description of the show:
Contexture is a series of prints that is a culmination of my interest in textiles and mark making. Inspired by the work of printmaker Betty Goodwin, I use the medium of printmaking to preserve the textures and patterns of knit and fabric. I knit swatches of found patterns or complete knitted garments such as shawls and then harden them to begin the process of capturing their textures and details on paper through collagraphs and soft ground etchings.
An excellent story with gorgeous images about a Canadian Red Cross initiative to make quilts for donation to British families and soliders during the Second World War.
A crocheted Maud Lewis sweater! Maker Grace Tompkins, from Nova Scotia, used her pandemic-acquired crafting skills to honour the work of much-loved artist from her home province.
And Grace isn’t the only young person to have recently taken up yarn-crafting for mental health reasons… This article talks about makers in Toronto and across the country who are bringing crafts to people outside the expected demographics, and in unusual locations: a park, a bar or a cannabis dispensary might not be the typical location for a knitting or crochet class, but as many of us know, yarn crafts can be practiced just about anywhere!
Opening this week at Toronto’s Textile Museum, Padina Bondar: Refuse is an exhibition of textiles and clothes created using disposed materials, otherwise destined for landfill. Bondar’s work explores fashion and sustainability, and with it she hopes to “challenge systems, change perspectives, and inspire change”. She describes the exhibition, featuring couture-quality bobbin lace and embroideries, weaves, knits, and crochet works, as “a display of magic that results in combining traditional tools and techniques with modern-day technology and engineering.”
The Art Gallery of Hamilton is hosting a major new exhibition of Indigenous beadwork.
Radical Stitch looks at the contemporary and transformative context of beading through the aesthetic innovations of artists and the tactile beauty of beads. Beading materials and techniques are rooted in both culturally informed traditions and cultural adaptation, and function as a place of encounter, knowledge transfer, and acts of resistance. Connecting to a tradition of making, exercised over thousands of years, this skill-based practice ties one artist to another, past to present and beyond.
Visit between now and May 28, 2023.
Featured image by Julie Rosvall.
