Front Cover: Jessie Chorley

On My Mother’s Knee maker’s influenced by domestic heritageCurated by Louise Jones Williams

Kirsty Anderson, Julie Arkell, Jessie Chorley, Louise Frances Evans, Caren Garfen, Kate Jenkins, Lynn Setterington and Ruth Singer.

A Llantarnam Grange Arts Centre Touring Exhibition

Ruth Singer

“On my Mother’s Knee” is an exhibition

that explores the ideas of domestic heritage

through the work of eight contemporary

practitioners. Curated by Louise Jones–

Williams, the line-up of makers involved has

been describe as “textile royalty” and I feel

the selection matches her vision. What is

explored in this exhibition are a group of

makers who chart a direct lineage, they have

a direct contact with the person who had a

profound impact on the way they developed

as people and how their art practise has

been shaped. When talking about “On My

Mother’s Knee” with Louise we have had

numerous, conversations about ideas and

concepts, skills and knowledge and how they

are passed from one generation to another.

I began to think back to my formative years

and what were the influences and factors that

shaped the way I see the world and function

in it. How my artistic vision was formed. I think

that sometimes it is small incidents that have

a profound influence, being surrounded by

creativity in a variety of forms, knowing that

there is nothing out of the ordinary in drawing,

painting, modelling, building and creating.

This gives us the confidence to explore and

experiment, to get things wrong and learn

from our mistakes and in turn make us more

rounded individuals. I feel this exhibition is

more than just about the creative process, it

explores the fundamental process of how we

learn and evolve.

Hywel Pontin, Director, Llantarnam Grange Arts Centre

Foreword

Kate Jenkins

On My Mother’s Knee maker’s influenced by domestic heritageCurated by Louise Jones Williams

Kirsty Anderson, Julie Arkell, Jessie Chorley, Louise Frances Evans, Caren Garfen, Kate Jenkins, Lynn Setterington and Ruth Singer.

Many makers grow up in homes surrounded

by fabric and sewing paraphernalia, taught

by their mothers and grandmothers to

sew, knit, embroider, quilt and crochet.

Growing up in these families, it was the

older generations who influenced the next

with the passing on of their practical skills,

punctuated with stories told from books

and anecdotes from their own lives; also

passing on from generation to generation

precious objects and mementoes.

Sometimes a maker’s skills and interest are

inherited from relatives they’ve never met;

grandparents who were tailors, dressmakers

and milliners; or sometimes just from their

parent’s creativity in gardening or cooking.

The makers in this exhibition would not be

who they are today without the influence of

their families, a legacy which is embodied in

every delicate stitch.

Inspiration for this exhibition has come

from observing my daughter’s interest in

art, design and making. It has made me

think more about learnt and inherited skills.

Each time I collect my daughter from her

grandparent’s house, where she spends a

few hours after school, I find her and my

mother making clothes and fixing the wool

hair on the old rag dolls from my childhood,

doing tapestry, sewing and most recently

knitting. The closeness between myself, my

daughter and my mother reminds me very

much of my childhood with my mother

and grandmother. My grandmother was

a constant presence when I was growing

up, as she lived with us. In her youth, my

grandmother had been a milliner until she

married in the 1930s and made almost

all her own clothes as well as my mother’s

when she was a young girl. In later years my

grandmother taught sewing in community

education classes and my mother went on Kirsty Anderson

to teach patchwork, quilting and just about

every other craft, passing on the skills and

traditions they had learnt.

And so our house was always filled with loose

threads, fabric, pins and needles (always

getting stuck in the carpet); the button box

was a treasure trove to be looked through

on rainy days; the precious sewing scissors

– never to be used for anything else! One

of my clearest childhood memories was

the frustration of being made to stand on

a small stool to be pinned into a something

that was being made for me. I also fondly

remember many hours sat around the dining

table cutting out patterns, learning to use

the sewing machine, painting and drawing,

embroidering or doing tapestry. The skills

my grandmother and mother passed onto

me and are now being passed on to my

daughter; they go back generations, my

great grandmother was a dressmaker, my

great, great grandfather a tailor and his

brother a shoemaker. I feel sometimes there

must be something in the genes.

In previous generations, at a time when

‘craft’ was part of everyday life, the skills of

sewing, knitting, repairing were a necessity

for girls to learn to clothe their family. But in

this necessity I think women especially have

found companionship and joy in learning,

completing and passing on these skills.

Pleasure too, in the personal touch that

could be brought to them with a special

care in the stitching or the embroidery of

a flower or name. Julie Arkell’s mother was

a skilled needle-woman, knitter, cook and

gardener “..from dresses to my doll’s clothes,

my father’s socks, jumpers and gloves and

hats all made with love and perfection.” All

these skills she passed on to Julie who has

combined them into her own unique style.

Garments and clothing are central to this

tradition of domestic inheritance, of skills

and techniques learnt from our mothers

and grandmothers. Little girls would make

clothes for cloth dolls, learning those

first dressmaking skills. Perhaps it is of no

surprise then that many of the makers in Kate Jenkins

this exhibition use clothing as a conduit

for their thoughts and ideas. Clothes are,

at their most basic an essential for warmth

and protection, but are also very personal,

they speak not only of the maker but most

especially the wearer, their occupation

perhaps, their social position, their tastes.

Clothes were and still are handed down

from one generation to another either

through need or more significantly because

they hold special value or meaning.

Ruth Singer is particularly interested in

the hidden aspects of women’s history and

uses the apron, that most utilitarian piece

of clothing and transforms it into an object

which can represent the lives of the makers

and owners whose stories are hidden from

us. Jessie Chorley uses clothes too, finding

beauty and inspiration in things that have

been discarded or put to one side, Jessie

brings alive their decaying beauty through

the embroidering of text and narrative.

Coming from a family of makers with a

strong belief in make do and mend, Jessie

is passionate about continuing to use

traditional techniques that have been shown

to her from a very young age by her mother

and grandmother.

Recycling and reusing, nothing wasted was

a concept common to most households

until well after WWII and has seen a massive

resurgence of interest in recent years. Julie

Arkell remembers. “Last year’s dress would

be altered to fit, nothing was wasted.” That

ethos has continued amongst many makers,

perhaps less from a sense of necessity but

one of getting back to basics, nostalgia and

personal connection with the work produced.

Kirsty Anderson creates pieces from textiles

her mother designed and printed in the

1960s while Lynn Setterington uses fabric

from a dress once worn by her mother in her

piece “A patchwork of memories”. Precious

objects too are often passed from mother

to daughter, a ring, a sewing or jewellery

box, a bridal veil, letters, linens, christening

gown, photographs. Makers such as Louise

Frances Evans frequently incorporate found

objects and vintage clothing to create Julie Arkell

pieces which naturally make us think of

family connections, identity and loss. Her

work shows that the things we wear or keep

close to us also have an inexorable link to

our thoughts, feelings and memories.

Sewing has a social aspect that is also very

important, today makers work mainly in

isolation, alone in studios or spare rooms

but the tradition of the sewing circle or

sewing bee has a long history. Groups of

neighbours, family and friends came together

to sew, gossip, laugh and drink tea. In these

groups essential skills and new tricks were

exchanged. My mother remembers as a

little girl going with her mother to visit her

great aunts, where a large group of ladies

would meet, talk and sew. Louise Frances

Evans says “I was taught to sew and to knit,

mainly by my Nan, and to cook and bake

by my mother, plus I undoubtedly absorbed

much whilst drinking tea.”

For thousands of years the production of

cloth and clothing has not only been central

to woman’s role in the home but also as a

source of income when few others were

open to them. Before industrialisation the

production of cloth was done in the home

either for your own family or as a ‘cottage

industry’. Mothers and daughters worked

together sewing, knitting, lace-making,

spinning (the origin of the word spinster).

Women all over the world still make objects

from cloth, passing the skills of embroidery,

applique, batik etc from mother to daughter.

The beauty, value and importance of cloth

and sewing has quite often been overlooked

until recent times mainly due to its relatively

low perceived status within the arts but also

due to its perishable nature, few examples

survive before even a few hundred years ago.

Technology and conservation techniques

now allow much better preservation and

the work of seamstresses, embroiderers and

quilters is appreciated by a wider audience.

During the social turmoil of the post

war period, women’s work and roles were

questioned with traditionally ‘feminine’ tasks

often being rejected. Gradually from the

1970s onwards there has been a revaluation

of these occupations and especially within

the last twenty years there has been a huge

resurgence in artists and makers using

cloth. There is also a significantly wider

appreciation of what makers have been

producing and of its historical contexts.

The defining line between craft and art has

become increasingly blurred and more and

more makers see textiles as a valid form of

expression, and one which can tackle the

most serious of subjects. Makers such as

Caren Garfen, use textiles to create pieces

which are often humorous but with stark

social statements relating to women’s issues,

such as domesticity, work/life balance, and

the body.

Whilst the makers in this exhibition may not

talk about inheritance directly in their work, all

of them come from a very distinct background

where craft, creativity and skills were things to

be used, treasured and passed on. Kate Jenkins

remembers being taught from an early age to

knit and crochet by her mother and grandmother

and is greatly influenced by her family. However I

am sure many rebelled in their youth, Julie Arkell

mentions going out to buy a Jeff Banks jersey

dress. “My mother thought it looked cheap and

was very unimpressed. I tried to hold my own,

but secretly knew she was right!” Eventually

most of us give up our rebellion and as artist

Janet Ruttenburg writes “I tried so very hard to

be different in any way I could from my mother,

and now I give up. I want to be just like her.” In

turn too perhaps mothers have been influenced

by their daughters, reviving their sense of

adventure, to be more original and creative.

So this is where it all began, the comfort

and wonder found in piles of fabric, boxes of

buttons, braids and ribbons enthralled these

makers as children. There could be nothing

more natural than for them to create work which

forever connects them to their childhood and

the people who influenced them. Techniques

learnt ‘on their mother’s knee’ give these

makers a unique identity and a shared past;

sewing the experiences, events and secrets

of their family’s lives. Their pieces speak of

women’s work and domestic heritage and are

imbued with beauty, history and meaning.

Kirsty Anderson

“Having grown up in a creative environment

it was never really a decision, it’s been in

our family for generations. My gran always

talks about her mother recycling bits and

bobs around the house to make trinkets.

My mother studied printed textiles at

Duncan of Jordanstone and spent most of

her life as a designer, my Dad is a chef and

Lucy, my sister, is a fashion designer so it

was always on the cards - I can’t imagine

doing anything else. I have a drawing from

primary school where we had to draw the

past, present and future. The future was

me sitting at a big drawing board designing

dresses - so I am kind of close.

My sister and I have been influenced

creatively by our family from a young age,

especially our mother. Having went to art

school she has always had the tools to

create lying around. I want to show both

sides of my work and my mother’s for this

exhibition.

Some of the fabric used was designed by

my mother at art school. I have had the

pattern digitally printed for some patterns

and others are the original material, other

pieces of fabric have been handed down

like the napkins in the mobile’s wings. I find

it interesting to have a part of us reflected

in the pieces I make.”

Kirsty Anderson

Kirsty Anderson grew up in Burntisland, a

seaside town in Fife. She has been involved

in making, teaching and showing art and

textiles ever since graduating and now

lives in Edinburgh. Kirsty’s work centres on

the deconstruction and transformation of

found and unwanted textiles, turning the

undesirable or discarded into unique works

that have a new life and create fresh memories

with her textile animals. Her work takes

inspiration from the past, wildlife, family

and eclectic items which hold history.

Kirsty Anderson

Kirsty Anderson

Kirsty Anderson

1 “Me, my mum and my dad’s mum”

2 Vintage fabric detail

1 2

Julie Arkell

“I grow up in the 1950’s and 60’s in a home

where the handmade was very important.

My mother was a skilled needle-woman,

knitter, cook and gardener. She knitted and

sewed for all her family – from dresses to

my doll’s clothes, my father’s socks, jumpers

and gloves and hats all made with love and

perfection. She showed me all these skills.

I remember the excitement of going to

Liberty and choosing fabric and a pattern

for a new summer frock. Last year’s dress

would be altered to fit, nothing was wasted.

As a teenager I rebelled, and with some

saved money went and bought a Jeff Banks

jersey dress. My mother thought it looked

cheap and was very unimpressed. I tried

to hold my own, but secretly knew she was

right! Knitting was more of a challenge for

me to learn – hot sticky fingers trying to

understand where the wool should go. My

tension was dreadful, everything came out

enormous, where as hers was so neat and

perfect. Over the years it has improved.

Since my mother died 18 months ago, I have

found knitting a particular source of comfort.

A friend of mine, on seeing the red pixie hat,

asked me if my mother had knitted it. I so

wish I could show her my achievements.”

Julie Arkell is one of the country’s best

recognised contemporary folk artists. After

studying fashion at St Martin’s, she began

selling her work at a stall in Covent Garden

and now shows her wonderful creatures in

Julie Arkell

galleries around the world. Working from

her London studio, she forms and paints

their paper-mache bodies, hand sewing and

embroidering their clothes and knitting the

accessories. Julie regularly holds workshops

both in the UK and abroad.

Julie Arkell

Julie Arkell

1 2 “In these two photographs my mother is wearing the same style dress, both made by her. In the late 1980’s she made me the same dress in a black and white check. I own the pattern now and still wear the one she made me every summer. The coloured photograph is my favourite, taken in 1960 in our back garden. I loved the mauve and white check gingham dress I’m wearing in it. I’m holding a Swiss national costume doll my Auntie had bought home for me from holiday – I still have her. Sadly all my childhood dresses got worn out and torn with playing on the swings and slide in our local park. The black and white photo is about spring 1957.”

Julie Arkell

1 2

Jessie Chorley

Jessie finds beauty and inspiration in things

that have been discarded or put to one

side. The most familiar objects that she

works with are books, clothing and furniture

sometimes combining all three to create a

one of piece or small series of work.

Jessie and her brother were home schooled

by her parents both textile artists

themselves, learning through creativity.

Coming from a family of makers with a

strong belief in Make do and Mend, she

uses the techniques of tatting/lace making

hand embroidery and weaving. Jessie is

passionate about continuing to use these

traditional techniques, shown to her from

a very young age by her mother and

grandmother. She regularly still makes with

her Mum, Primmy Chorley and they also run

embroidery workshops together.

Jessie uses carefully chosen text and imagery

combined with simple hand embroidery

and the placing of her found fragments to

create scenes and narrative experiences for

an array of different works that can be for

interior spaces as well as items to be worn.

“I am passionate about giving life and a new

beginning back to a forgotten object. To see

someone using something that I have re-

created is like a completion to the story”

Jessie Chorley was born in Maidstone Kent

but grew up in Snowdonia, North Wales. She

Jessie Chorley

mainly works with paper and textiles most of

which are “found” this being her inspiration.

Jessie lives and works in East London and

co-runs J&B The Shop. Her work explores

narrative and story telling through the use

of simple and traditional textile techniques

combined with the use of found and re-

worked objects. She is passionate about

teaching and sharing her skills, she runs

workshops around the UK.

Jessie Chorley

Jessie Chorley

1 Jessie sewing

2 Primmy sewing

Jessie Chorley

1 2

Louise Frances Evans

“I come from a close family of mother and

father with me sandwiched between my

two brothers. My mother was ever present

and I saw my grandmother, nan, and great

grandmother, known as ‘Sweetheart Nan’,

frequently.

I was taught to sew and knit, mainly by my

Nan, and to cook and bake by my mother,

plus I undoubtedly absorbed much whilst

drinking tea. When I was quite small my

Nan made me a huge rag doll which I called

Rebecca. I remember that I adored exploring

the contents of the button box and was

allowed to play at dressing up in a beautiful

yellow dress that my Mom had worn for her

21st birthday party.

My Nan was always making dresses and my

passion for fabric and thread was picked up at

her side. Unfortunately I never met my paternal

grandmother, but she was a professional

seamstress. She made my mother’s wedding

dress in the early sixties whilst my Nan made

the younger bridesmaids. Making my own

wedding and bridesmaids dresses was a family

tradition that I happily followed.

More recently I have discovered that both my

mother and grandmother’s teenage diaries

are full of entries saying ‘stayed in and sewed’,

‘made blouse’ or references to creating

something for the bottom drawer in preparation

for a future home. I now treasure my Mom and

Nan’s sewing machines and I am lucky to have

Louise Frances Evans

been given my Sweetheart Nan’s thimble in its

beautiful worn green velvet case.”

Louise Frances Evans creates jewellery,

textile and installation pieces which

frequently incorporate found objects

and vintage clothing Her work seeks to

highlight what we carry on the body and in

our minds - thus garments, shoes, jewellery,

flowers and dolls become sites for memory

traces, exploring identity, commentary on

the ideals of femininity or representing an

absent person. Louise studied Jewellery

at Birmingham City University, has worked

widely in the gallery sector and exhibits

internationally.

Louise Frances Evans

Louise Frances Evans

1 “Mom, nan, brother and me on pier”

2 “Me, Mom, Nan, Sweetheart Nan and brothers at Christmas”

Louise Frances Evans

1 2

Caren Garfen

Caren painstakingly hand stitches

memories of growing up in a household

where making was an inherent way of living.

“In my childhood home, cupboards were

overflowing with yards of cloth, spools of

thread and tins of buttons. Boxes were filled

with sewing tools, zips and tape measures.

Knitting wools and knitting needles had

their places on the shelves. It is no wonder

that textiles and stitching have become the

heart of my practice.”

‘Addressing the Past’ is an investigation

into the childhood of twin girls who had

the same upbringing, and it examines their

recollections, exploring whether their

memories converge or deviate as these

women bravely reveal their past. This

artwork takes the form of two dresses in the

style of summer frocks once worn by the

twins when they were about eight years old.

Now adults, they look back, delving into

memories from their childhood. The account

by Twin I was hand stitched onto the front

of the first dress before any memories from

Twin II were revealed. The twins had no hint

of what the other was writing. The hand

stitched sentence ‘I don’t remember sitting

on my mother’s knee’ gives an intimation

of the troubled relationship between the

young girls and their mother; the viewer will

need to read between the lines!

Caren Garfen uses textiles to create pieces

Caren Garfen

relating to women’s issues in the 21st

century. Painstaking hand stitch is used

to convey messages on gender politics,

and themes such as domesticity, work/life

balance, and the body. Caren has exhibited

widely in the UK and overseas including at

the V&A and the Royal Academy. She has

appeared in many articles and books and

is a member of The 62 Group of Textile

Artists.

Caren Garfen

Caren Garfen

1 2 “It is of me as a child (holding the bucket!) surrounded by my sisters and with my mother. My mother made all of the trousers that we were wearing at the time and knitted the jumpers too!”

Caren Garfen

1 2

Kate Jenkins

Taught from an early age to Crochet and

Knit by her Mother and Grandmother, Kate

has been described as a ‘crocheting genius’

and one of our most original innovative UK

artists. Famous for her unique crocheted

food, Kate takes a nostalgic look at everyday

items, re-invented in wool and yarn with wry,

comic touches.

She has crocheted art pieces of the nation’s

favourite food, transformed spaces into

a knitted and crocheted garden, knitted

a fantasy dinner party setting complete

with crocheted bottles of champagne, re-

imagined iconic branded supermarket items.

She has exhibited in London, Brighton and

the United States and her work is collected

worldwide. Kate works from her studio in

Brighton and has plans to show in Paris in

2014.

Kate Jenkins was born in Cwmbran and grew

up in Tir-y-berth, Rhymney Valley. She was

educated in Cardiff and later graduated

from The University of Brighton with a

BA Honours Degree in Fashion Textiles. In

her previous life as a successful knitting

consultant, she sold her designs to fashion

labels Marc Jacobs, Missoni, Sonia Rykiel

and Donna Karan. Alongside her art projects

she produces fashion and homewares under

her own label ‘Cardigan’.

Kate Jenkins

Kate Jenkins

Kate Jenkins

1 “This is a very old picture of me and my sister Helen (in Welsh costume). Me on the right”

2 “Me as a baby”

Kate Jenkins

1 2

Lynn Setterington

“Looking back I think my family influenced

me in their passion for making rather than

sewing or textiles in particular. My mum

was a wonderful inventive cook, my dad a

teacher and passionate gardener and my

older brother was forever in the garage

mending things and working as a woodwork

teacher.

The patchwork incorporated into this piece

is one I started as a teenager. It is made up

fragments of garments belonging to myself,

my mum, and my sister. It lay dormant, (like

many patchworks) in a wardrobe for thirty

years and reappeared when my mum died

and her/our home was cleared. Revisiting it

after all this time and seeing the material

again, evokes happy memories of my

childhood and takes me back to my early

life in Yorkshire. I can still see my mum in

the pink dress found in the top row centre

house.

In meshing together the fabrics in the house

blocks, this piece offers a reminder of the

impact our upbringing can have on our

identity and future. The upside down house

references the fact that not all memories and

upbringings leave such a positive imprint.”

Lynn Setterington is an internationally

recognised textile artist who celebrates the

ordinary and overlooked in society. Born

in Yorkshire, Lynn trained at York College

Lynn Setterington

of Arts and Technology and Goldsmiths

College London. She is a Senior Lecturer at

Manchester Metropolitan University and an

Associate Fellow of the International Quilt

Study Center in the US. She is a member of

the 62 Group and exhibits internationally.

Her work is held in many major public

museums including the V&A, the Crafts

Council of Great Britain and the Whitworth

Art Gallery Manchester.

Lynn Setterington

Lynn Setterington

1 “Me, my mum and cousin John”

2 “Me, my mum and brother”

Lynn Setterington

1 2

Ruth Singer

“Grandad’s tool shed: These pieces are based

on the household and garden tools from

my Grandad’s shed. He was a professional

gardener from the age of 14 and carried on

growing his own vegetables until his death in

2012 at the age of 96. His numerous sheds

contained years of carefully-maintained and

well-used tools and the essence of him. His

second wife’s family ran a small laundry and

their house was full of traditional linens,

all bleached, starched and ironed. I have

combined the linens and the tool sheds to

create a series of inter-related pieces which

are made from Grandad’s handkerchiefs

alongside new fabrics. Techniques include

trapunto quilting, shadow embroidery and

reverse appliqué.

Aprons - Time Bubble 1 & Time Bubble

2: This series of aprons inspired by the

hidden aspects of women’s history and

the enigmatic, owner-less aprons that have

survived in museums. Aprons are an under-

appreciated art form, which are often left

languishing in museum collections without

any in-depth study. For me they represent

the lives of the makers and owners of those

aprons, whose stories are hidden from us,

inside a bubble of time.”

Ruth Singer creates intriguing artworks

inspired by historical textiles, museum

objects, personal heritage, memory and

stories. She uses natural and recycled

textiles combined with hand stitching as

Ruth Singer

well as fabric manipulation techniques to

create detailed surface texture. Many of

her techniques are developed from the

study of historical textiles, based on her

own research and first career in museums.

She exhibits in the UK and abroad and has

been commissioned to make work for Derby

Museums and Shire Hall Gallery.

Ruth Singer

Ruth Singer

Ruth Singer

1 “Me and my granddad”

2 “My stepmother who taught me sew, my step-grandmother (Grandad’s second wife), Grandad and me”

1 2

Julie Arkell

“On My Mother’s Knee” a Llantarnam Grange Arts Centre Touring Exhibition.

We would like to thank all the makers who have allowed us to exhibit their work in “On My Mother’s Knee”.

Exhibition Curator: Louise Jones WilliamsTranslator: Heddwen Pugh-Evans Design: Hillview Design

Published by Llantarnam Grange Arts Centre. Text ©The Authors and LGAC 2013Llantarnam Grange Arts Centre St.David’s Road Cwmbran Torfaen NP441PDT: +44(0)1633 483321 E: info@lgac.org.uk W: www.lgac.org.uk

Llantarnam Grange Arts Centre is part of the Arts Council of Wales portfolio of Revenue Funded Organisations.Registered Charity no: 1006933

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Llantarnam Grange Arts Centre is funded by the Arts Council of Wales, Torfaen County Borough Council and Monmouthshire County Council.

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