In the recent past, I have painted, drawn, collaged, pattern cut and sewn clothing, on or with a female form but now I feel that the clothing should speak for itself in this new form, ‘Clothworks’.
These are small scale (25cm x 25cm), abstract works using worn stretched or folded fabric, or garment sections presented in deep frames, that stretch the fabric to show the fine detail of the construction. The worn or shredded areas, whether using knitted or woven fabric, are more easily appreciated in this way.
Displayed in a gallery, these are backlit with interior LED strips and light diffusing sheet to mimic looking through to daylight.
I find it almost impossible to throw away beloved garments. They become loved through wear – the wearing ‘proves’ their value. When they are almost falling off the body, I rescue them to become artworks – ‘Clothworks’.
A few more notes on ‘Clothworks’
Threadbare, worn or ragged clothes, in the 20th century at least, were seen as either an embarrassment, or sign of poverty or neglect. Before that, mending was regarded as a skill and I guess it was up until the nineteen sixties – but have you ever tried darning a sock?!
For the last several years, worn, patched, repaired, re-fashioned clothes have become desirable, as they show a society where showing wear in clothing has become something beautiful, rejecting the constant buying of new, and trashing at the first sign of wear. These pre-loved clothes have also become a fashion statement, for example deliberately torn holes in the knees of jeans, and deliberately scuffed leather shoes.
Undoubtedly, these ideas are all connected to the need to care for our planet, as we now realise (too late, some may say), that humans have been far too care-less, dumping our trash in landfill, and even having it disposed of by being transported halfway around the world.
So, my newest artworks – ‘Clothworks’, I call them – incorporate these ideas by showing the beauty of wear in clothing, and how it sends messages to the viewer. Wear shows the life of the garment, in tandem with the human wearing it. If we wear something for a long time it develops ‘features’ – holes – rips – patches – snags, all of which punctuate the wearing journey, and add to it’s character, in the same way that lines and wrinkles on a human face tell, to an extent, the story of that person’s life.
These Clothworks show in detail the skilful construction and beauty of the component fabrics themselves, as well as their later de-struction.
A great little article can be seen here about worn clothing and it’s significance can be seen here: https://millstonenews.com/the-history-of-ripped-jeans-grandmas-and-edmond/#:~:text=Rips%20and%20faded%20jeans%20became,about%20what%20clothes%20you%20wore.
Bobbie Seagroatt 