Found, discarded, reclaimed materials: fabric (including old clothes), plant debris, plastic, t-bags, wool, twine, wire, paper, oil, thread, aluminium bottle tops, feathers, steel, wood, lead, copper, water, rocks, earth, eco ink
500 (w) x 600 (l) x 350 (h) cms max (dimensions vary according to site)
2023
Inspired by walks in woodlands, the work celebrates biodiversity, hopeful of nature being more cared for, and thriving. Woods and forests provide vital ecosystems - crucial to our survival. My labour-intensive process of hand-stitching, use of old clothes and collected (reused) fabric from across the globe (eg: Tibetan prayer flags, Kenyan khangas, sari offcuts..) relates to slow art, visible mending, making do, care and repair. The work references pieced patchwork of Korean Bojagi, Gee’s Bend quilts and African textiles art, the many unnamed hands who labour at textiles production, the history of trade routes, and wasteful fashion industry.
Flags represent a shared ideal. The title was inspired by a phrase ‘the word for world is forest’ (Ursula Le Guin). Treated as large-scale drawings, or paintings, sculptural lines and layered fields of colour. Solid vertical hoists contrast soft hangings - hand-stitched patchworks of semi-translucent materials collaged together, that hang at different heights. The viewer will see through one to another.
‘We used to frame forests as scary, dangerous places.. we are now telling a different story of care-taking…’ (Margaret Heffernan)
This album documents Flags of the Forest installed at Tremenheere Sculpture Gardens (Penzance, Cornwall, UK) in the summer of 2023 as part of Wander_Land, an exhibition with Royal Society of Sculptors members.
Our artist-led exhibition was assisted by curator Martin Holman.
Photo by Russell Sach
Photo by Russell Sach
Photo by Barbara Beyer
Photo by Russell Sach
Photo by Barbara Beyer
Photo by Barbara Beyer
Photo by Jane Jobling
Photo by David Bird
Photo by Barbara Beyer
Photo by Mick Waite
Photo by Mick Waite
Photo by Mick Waite
Photo by Mick Waite
Photo by Mick Waite
Photo by Mick Waite
Video of Flags of the Forest sited at Tremenheere Sculpture Gardens (Penzance, Cornwall, UK) in the summer of 2023, as part of Wander_Land, an exhibition with Royal Society of Sculptors members.