The Journal for Weavers Spinners and Dyers

West of England Festival of Textiles: WEFT

This year’s WEFT will celebrate the cloth designers who worked in the Trowbridge mills between 1930-70s, showing for the first time a selection of Trowbridge Museum’s collection of cloth together with the story of the designers. The exhibition will also include new works by weavers in the west of England, inspired by the museum’s collection of cloth.

Venue: Trowbridge Museum, Bridge House, 10 Stallard Street, Trowbridge, Wiltshire, BA14 9AE

Website: http:// www.trowbridgemuseum.co.uk

Bizarre and Curious Silks: Hannah Robson

Hannah often combines weaving with techniques borrowed from lace-making or basketry. She thinks sculpturally about thread pathways to create technically ambitious surfaces and forms. Bizarre and Curious Silks is shown in collaboration with the Huguenot Museum where Hannah will present work inspired by the texile heritage and techniques of the Huguenots.

Venue: Rochester Art Gallery & Craft Case, 95 High Street, Rochester, Kent ME1 1LX

Website: https://www.medway.gov.uk/info/200182/arts_and_heritage/303/arts_in_medway/2

Heallreaf 3: An exhibition of contemporary tapestries

Heallreaf 3 is the third biennial featuring tapestry from artists around the world. Tapestries are all about narrative; they have told stories since their heyday in the Middle Ages and this exhibition of contemporary work is no different. Each piece captures a moment in the story, but a moment that is fixed slowly by the artist as each layer of weft threads lay down the image held in the tapestry. In the age of accelerated technologies and instant gratification, it is encouraging that some artists are still willing to sit at a loom for weeks, months, or even years to produce such remarkable works of art.

Venue: Surface Gallery, 16 Southwell Road, Nottingham NG1 1DL

Website: http://www.surfacegallery.org

Out of Synch

An exhibition of new work by weaver Theo Wright.

http://www.theowright.co.uk/outofsynch.html

Venue: Handweavers Studio, 140 Seven Sisters Road, London N7 7NS

Website: http://www.handweavers.co.uk

Intertwined: And All Around The Forest Grew

In this new exhibition, two of Scotland’s leading textile artists Rose Campbell and Alison King take inspiration from the beautiful forests that surround the Border town of Peebles; tracing their ancient history through hunting and cultivation to their use in modern day mountain biking.

Venue: Tweeddale Mueum, Chambers Institution, High Street, Peebles EH45 5AG

Website: http://www.liveborders.org.uk

Woven Forms: Breaking the Boundaries

This exhibtion showcases a mesmerising sculptural installation by weaving artist Jan Bowman who is renowned for breaking the boundaries of weaving by creating woven spatial divides, panels and sculptural pieces that challenge the conventional limits of the discipline by transforming traditional woven forms into contemporary installations.

Venue: The Museum of Carpet, Stour Vale Mill, Green Street, Kidderminster DY10 1AZ

Website: http://www.museumofcarpet.org

Designed for Liberty

The summer's exhibition is "Designed for Liberty". The curator Stephanie Kemp under her label Stephanie Jane designed and manufactured separates and dresses for Liberty of London and their stores across the world during the late 1970's and through the 1980's. This exhibition is her story.

Check website for opening times.

Venue: Newtown Textile Museum, 5 - 7 Commercial Street Newtown Powys, SY16 2BL

Website: http://newtowntextilemuseum.co.uk/

Devon Open Studios: Riverside Gallery

Showcasing the work of six Devon Guild of Craftsmen Members & Associates.

Venue: Riverside Mill, Bovey Tracey, Devon TQ13 9AF

Website: http://www.crafts.org.uk

Multaka: Connecting Threads

The Collection: Textiles from the Arab World

Multaka volunteers at the Pitt Rivers Museum have worked closely with staff to add new perspectives to a collection of textiles, recently donated by Dr Jenny Balfour-Paul. Jenny is a researcher, collector of worldwide textiles and a renowned expert on indigo dye. In 2016, she offered the Museum a selection of textiles purchased during her travels around the Middle East and North Africa during the 1970s and 1980s.

Venue: Pitt Rivers Museum, South Parks Rd Oxford OX1 3PP

Website: http://www.prm.ox.ac.uk/event/multaka-connecting-threads

Woman's Work

A new exhibition on the work of craftswomen who turned their practice’s into successful businesses between the two World Wars. Women’s Work will focus on pieces made by textile artists, weavers, ceramicists and silversmiths. Featuring over 100 pieces, Women’s Work will focus on a core group of makers – Ethel Mairet, Alice Hindson, Phyllis Barron & Dorothy Larcher, Enid Marx, Catherine ‘Casty’ Cobb, Katharine Pleydell- Bouverie, Denise Wren and Elizabeth Peacock – some of whom are relatively unknown yet hugely significant to the development of the Arts and Crafts movement.

Venue: Ditchling Museum of Art & Craft, Lodge Hill Lane, Ditchling, East Sussex, BN6 8SP

Website: http://www.ditchlingmuseumartcraft.org.uk/

Strands of Place and Time

  A new exhibition exploring and sharing new perspectives on cultural heritage and migration in response to world textiles in the Gawthorpe Textiles Collection.

A National Trust property.

Venue: Gawthorpe Hall, Burnley Road, Padiham, near Burnley, Lancashire, BB12 8UA

Website: https://www.nationaltrust.org.uk/gawthorpe-hall

Luxury on the Nile: Late Antique Attire from Egypt

Lavishly decorated clothes played an important role in society even 1500 years ago.  Dress could be used to express dignity, rank and high standards. This special exhibition presents several tunics of the 5th - 7th centuries and numerous small woven panels which once decorated tunics.

Venue: Abegg-Stiftung, Werner Abeggstrasse 67, CH-3132 Riggisberg Switzerland

Website: http://www.abegg-stiftung.ch

Indian Threads

An exhibition of works resulting from a Wales / India exchange programme by textile artists. Includes weaving, digital print on cloth and stitched work.

Venue: Aberystwyth Arts Centre, penglais Campus, Aberystwyth SY23 3DE

Website: http://www.aberystwythartscentre.co.uk

A Considered Place

Drum Castle hosts five leading contemporary British artists who work across a variety of media to express a considered sense of place and experience.

Join us to experience the beauty of contemporary woven tapestries by Jo Barker, Sara Brennan and Susan Mowatt; the exquisite glass and ceramics of Andrea Walsh; and Jane Bustin’s intriguing combinations of paint, metal, ceramics and cloth.

Venue: Drum Castle, Drumoak, by Banchory, Aberdeenshire AB31 5EY

Website: http://www.nts.org.uk/visit/places/drum-castle/events

Four Corners of One Cloth: Textiles from the Islamic World

From Syria, Iraq, Turkey & Yemen - the four corners of the Ka'bah - textiles from the Whitworth's collection will be brought together, extending to the widest reaches of influence of the Islamic world.

Venue: The Whitworth, Oxford Road, Manchester M15 6ER

Website: http://http://www.whitworth.manchester.ac.uk

The Wonders of Wool

The landscape, flora and fauna of Scotland provide inspiration for these vibrant felt art works and other wool felt creations.

Venue: Borders Textile Towerhouse, 1 Tower Knowe, Hawick TD9 9EN

Website: http://www.liveborders.org.uk

"Fabrics of a Decorative Character"

Introducing the University of Leeds International Textile Collection (formery known as ULITA) at a new venue.

The display presents highlights of the geographically diverse collections and how these incredible international textiles came to the University of Leeds. It also tells the story of how the collection came about as an early teaching museum in the Yorkshire College over 120 years ago.

On show will be some of the most exquisite and colourful items in the collection—so discover this rich resource today.

Venue: The Stanley and Audrey Burton Gallery, Parkinson Building, Woodhouse Lane, University of Leeds, Leeds LS2 9JT

Website: https://library.leeds.ac.uk/events/event/1900/galleries/234/fabrics-of-a-decorative-character-introducing-the-international-textile-collection

Our Linen Stories

The final venue for an exhibition which toured a number of venues in Scotland in 2018.

Linking art, design and industry, the exhibition explores a rich heritage, new work and insights into contemporary materials and manufacturing at home and abroad. Five Storybooks, printed on linen paper, are available to read at the exhibition stations: Featured Designers: Linen Journeys in Design, European Unions, Art & Acquisition, Plant & Production and Supply & Sustainability. Our Exhibition Design is in collaboration with artist Nick Sargent. Our Linen Storybooks are created in collaboration with Alison Newman of PULP.

Venue: The Dovecot Gallery, 10 Infirmary St, Edinburgh EH1 1LT

Website: http://www.dovecotstudios.com

Barbara Rae CBE RA: Tapestries and Rugs

Marking 25 years of collaborative working, Dovecot Studios are excited to be working with Royal Academician painter and master printmaker Barbara Rae CBE RSA on a significant new tapestry titled Peel Sound Ice.

This new tapestry celebrates the artist’s critically acclaimed recent body of work exploring the Northwest Passage in the Arctic region, which was shown at the Royal Scottish Academy (RSA) in 2018 for the first time.

The display will be held on the Tapestry Studio Viewing Balcony. The viewing times are as follows:

Mon-Fri:               12.00-15.00

Saturday:             10.30-17:30

Open Sunday during August: 10.30-17.30

Venue: Dovecot Studios, 10 Infirmary Street, Edinburgh EH1 1LT

Website: http://www.dovecotstudios.com

Tokyo Spinning Party : Hand Weaving

Tokyo Spinning Party has Exhibitors and Trade Stands covering all aspects of Dyeing, Spinning, Weaving, Braiding, Knitting, Crochet, Felting along with Textile Art with raw materials, equipments, books. There are also demonstrations, workshops and lectures. This is the 17th Tokyo Spinning Party.

OPEN : 10:00-17:00
ADMISSION FEE : 1000yen/each day
Please pay at Hall.
Admission for those under 15 years of age is free.

Email:info@tokyo-spinningparty.org

Venue: 3-9-10 Koutoubashi, Sumida-ku, Tokyo 130-0022 Japan

Website: http://tokyo-spinningparty.org/

Lucienne Day: Living Design

An exhibition celebrating the life and work of one of Britain's most influential post-war designers.

Venue: Willis Museum, Market Place, Basingstoke, RG21 7QD

Website: http://www.hampshireculture.org.uk/willis-museum-and-sainsbury-gallery

Zandra Rhodes: 50 Years of Fabulous

In celebration of fifty years of the Zandra Rhodes’ label. This retrospective will highlight 100 key looks, as well as 50 original textiles. This comprehensive exhibition will explore five decades of the distinguished career of a British design legend.

Venue: 83 Bermondsey Street, London SE1 3XF

Website: https://www.ftmlondon.org

Shetland Wool Week

Shetland Wool Week is a world renowned celebration of Britain’s most northerly native sheep, the Shetland textile industry and the rural farming community on these islands. This year there will be an extensive range of exhibitions, classes and events, which will cover many different subjects. These will include; weaving, spinning, dyeing, Fair Isle and lace knitting as well as many other fascinating subject areas. Events will take place from the most southern tip of the Shetland, right up to the most northerly island of Unst, famous for its beautiful lacework, with many locations in between.

See website for full details.

Venue: Various venues in the Shetland Isles

Website: http://www.shetlandwoolweek.com

British Textile Biennial

A programme of textile-related events / exhibitions at various venues in Lancashire. See website for details. Includes Alice Kettle's large scale works: Threads Bearing Witness at Gawthorpe Hall.

Venue: Various

Website: https://britishtextilebiennial.co.uk/programme/

Flax, Fibres and Plant Dyes

Kent Cloth textile works by Francesca Baur.  This approach advocates a slower approach to creating natural local textiles with a story that employs traditional skills, from growing the flax for linen to making natural plant dyes. It is a botanical journey from the flax fields of Belgium and Normandy to the White Cliffs of Dover, and around the 'Garden of England'.

Venue: Rochester Art Gallery & Craft Case, 95 High Street, Rochester, ME1 1LX

Website: https://www.medway.gov.uk/info/200182/arts_and_heritage/303/arts_in_medway/2

West Wales Wool Show 2019

The West Wales Wool Show in Narberth is a celebration of all things woolly. From beautifully hand crafted items, clothing and footwear to knitting wool, fleece and all the equipment needed to make at home. Demonstrations run throughout the day with stall holders sharing their skills and knowledge with visitors plus wool skill workshops such as felting.

Venue: Queens Hall & Hyfrid Hotel, Narberth, Pembrokeshire

Website: http://www.westwaleswoolshow.weebly.com

African Textiles

By Hali Publications and Karun Thakar

Venue: Brunei Gallery, SOAS, Thornhaugh Street, Russell Square, London WC1H 0XG

Website: http://www.soas.ac.uk/gallery/

The Knitting & Stitching Show: Alexandra Palace, London

See website for details.

Venue: Alexandra Palace, London

Website: http://www.theknittingandstitchingshow.com

All-Wales Event 2019

The All-Wales Event for Spinners, Weavers and Dyers - suppliers stands, exhibitions of work by the Welsh Guilds, the Guild Challenge, raffle and sales table. Riitta Sinkkonen Davies will give a talk on My Weaving Life.

Venue: Minerva Arts Centre, Llanidloes, Powys SY18 6BY

Website: https://allwalesevent.wordpress.com/2019-event/

Wild About Wool

A knitting and wool craft event

Knitting is a traditional craft that has been dated back to the 11th century in Eygpt. A special Wild About Wool knitting event and discover different types of wool and help solve your knitting conundrums by talking to friendly experts.

This event is suitable for all ages and levels, from beginners to experienced knitters.

Venue: Chilterns Open Air Museum, Newland Park, Gorelands Lane, Chalfont St Giles, Buckinghamshire HP8 4AB

Website: http:///www.coam.org.uk/events/wild-about-wool-knitting-event/

Heallreaf 3: An exhibition of contemporary tapestries

The Heallreaf 3 exhibition of international juried tapestry art.

Venue: Espacio Gallery, 159 Bethnal Green Rd, London E2 7DG

Website: http://www.espaciogallery.com

Made by Pringle

Pringle of Scotland, knitwear producers, was at one time the largest employer in Hawick, with a worldwide reputation. As part of the celebrations to mark the tenth anniversary of Borders Textile Towerhouse, we have drawn from the largest collection in our archives to chart the company’s design history in the 20th century.

Venue: Borders Textile Towerhouse, 1 Tower Knowe, Hawick TD9 9EN

Website: http://www.liveborders.org.uk

Captivating Colour

East Sussex Guild exhibition with trade stalls, demonstrations, scarf raffle & refreshments.

Venue: Lewes Town Hall, Lewes, East Sussex BN7 2QS

Website: http://www.esgwsd.org.uk

Wandering Thread

The biennial exhibition by Peter Tavy Guild of WSD. Our members have been taking inspiration from the work and influences of Bobbie Cox our founding President. Some of Bobbie's own work will also be on show.

The exhibition is open 10am to 4pm.

Venue: Peter Tavy Village Hall and Chapel

Website: http://www.petertavywsdguild.org.uk

Weaving Water/Woven Land

An exhibition by the Scottish Regional Group of the British Tapestry Group. As artists we are often inspired by place and the incredible landscape that surrounds us. Beautiful rolling hills, dramatic seascapes, the textures and colours of where we come from gives endless inspiration to artists who weave.  Surrounded by water, with over 6000 miles of coastline, Scotland has more than 790 islands and over 30,000 lochs and lochans and almost 500 Munroes and Corbetts.  How could we not be inspired by what is around us!

Venue: Farfield Mill, Garsdale Road, Sedbergh, Cumbria LA10 5LW

Website: http://www.farfieldmill.org

Dyes in History and Archaeology 2019

The biennial conference focussing on historic dyeing technques. The 2019 conference will be held in Amsterdam - details to follow.

Knitting & Stitching Show: Dublin

See website for details.

Venue: RDS, Simmonscourt Road, Ballsbridge, Dublin 4

Website: http://www.theknittingandstitchingshow.com/dublin/

Guild Gathering / Open Day

Dumfries and Galloway Guild of Weavers, Spinners & Dyers

Guild Challenge exhibition, sales table / suppliers, spinning circle / knit and natter. Refreshments.

10.00 - 15.00.  Entry £2.00

Venue: Dumfries Baptist Church, Gillbrae Road, Dumfries DG1 4EJ

Website: http://dgguildwsd.org.uk

Knitting & Stitching Show: Harrogate

See website for details.

Venue: Harrogate Convention Centre, Kings Road, Harrogate, HG1 5LA

Website: http://www.theknittingandstitchingshow.com/harrogate/

Spinning a Yarn, Weaving a Thread

An exhibition of work by members of the Hampshire Guild of Weavers, Spinners & Dyers.

Venue: Whitchurch Silk Mill, 28 Winchester Street, Whitchurch, hampshire RG28 7AL

Website: http://www.whitchurchsilkmill.org.uk

Hidden Fabric: Women; Textiles: Collectors

This exhibition will highlight exceptional textiles held in seven regional museum collections in England, all originally collected in the twentieth century by pioneering women.

Venue: 2 Temple Place, London WC2R 3BD

Website: http://twotempleplace.org/exhibitions/hidden-fabric/

Guild Gathering: Colour - The Full Spectrum

Residential and non-residential weekend event with keynote speakers, practical sessions, demonstrations, talks and a Saturday evening dinner.

Further details from: guildsgathering@wsd.org.uk

Venue: University of Worcester

Website: http://wipagwsd.wordpress.com/colour-the-full-spectrum/

National Exhibition 2020: Coal, Cotton, Canals

The biennial exhibition of the Association of Guilds of Weavers, Spinners & Dyers, organised by the North West and Online guilds.

The theme for the juried section will be 'Coal, Cotton, Canals'. The theme for the unjuried section will be 'Still Waters'.

The exhibition will coincide with the opening of the Leigh branch of the Leeds to Liverpool canal, which will be celebrated during Heritage Weekend.

Venue: Leigh Spinners Mill, Park Lane, Leigh WN7 2LB

Website: http://www.wsd.org.uk