Group Exchange – The 2nd Tamworth Textile Triennial

This week I'm on a deadline – I've committed to having my cochineal-inspired quilt pieced and ready for quilting by Friday morning. The front is done, and the back is more than half done, so I feel a break is in order to show you a glimpse of this textile exhibition currently touring the countryside.

Make.Shift Concepts, Cloudscape 2014, Digital print silk organza

For the Group Exchange, 22 artists were invited to explore the theme of collaboration and the meaning that is created through relationship. The end results are as beautiful as they are diverse. Needlework, knitting, embroidery, digital printing, weaving, felting, machine sewing and sculptural structured textiles are all represented.

Louise Tuckwell, Detail from 11 works of cotton on linen, collaborator Trish Ritchie

It fascinated me to see the range of works that could flow from a single theme. Obviously I can't show you all the pieces in the exhibition, but I've picked a selection that hopefully shows the breadth of work on show. Each piece had its usual title tag, but interestingly included comments by the artist that gave you insight into their thought and/or working process, so you could see how they got from the theme to the finished piece.

Mandy Gunn, Centro-Polis 2014, Recycled shopping bags and wrappings on cardboard construction

It was really refreshing to see an exhibition focussed on textiles as art. We don't seem to get much of that in Australia where textiles are largely seen as functional or decorative and bound by the disciplines of fashion or craft.

Monique van Nieuwland, Detail of Ocean Scape 2014, Cotton linen warp, fishing line, fishing net, shopping bags, rubbish bags, onion net, rope, audio/video tape

The exhibition has already been to Gosford, Sydney and finished in Melbourne today, but venues still to come are:

Port Pirie Regional Gallery, SA
22 August – 4 October 2015

Western Plains Cultural Centre, Dubbo, NSW
17 October 2015 – 17 January 2016

Wangaratta Regional Gallery, VIC
30 January – 13 March 2016

Craft ACT, Craft and Design Centre
7 April – 15 May 2016

Wollongong City Gallery, NSW
28 May – 28 August 2016

Glasshouse Regional Gallery, Port Macquarie, NSW
3 September – 30 October 2016

It's definitely worth checking out.

Penny Evans, Stranded 2014. Cardboard, acrylic paint, raffia, cotton, paper