New Necklace

Over the summer I put a lot of effort into some new textile necklaces. I recently sold the one I was most pleased with but I thought I would share a couple of images of the piece.

Textile necklace

Detail

Devon Guild Summer Show

The Summer Show, the annual exhibition of work by the Devon Guild of Craftsmen membership is on at their Bovey Tracey gallery until 4th September 2016.

This year’s show has no specific theme and features a particularly wide range of exciting work. Wai-Yuk is represented by her “Taunton Kimono”.

The Summer Show Private View

If you have the chance to be in South Devon over the next month, try to get along to see a very fine selection of the best in contemporary craft.

The Devon Guild of Craftsmen, Riverside Mill, Bovey Tracey, Devon TQ13 9AF
Open seven days a week – 10.00am to 5.30pm.

A New Necklace

One of my recent necklaces was a new design (though based on an earlier style.) I was very pleased with how it turned out and think that the gold/white colours work really well.

Japan 1 – Nishijin Textile Centre

Japan

This summer we spent a glorious two weeks travelling in Japan. This was a trip my husband and I had been planning for years and we had reached the point where we just had to make it happen. In addition to visiting many of Japan’s historic craft textile areas we also saw many examples of other traditional crafts; also beautiful scenery, exotic gardens, ancient castles and temples, plus lots of fabulous food!

Sadly the best textile museums we visited did not allow photography which limits my ability to share all I saw.

Nishijin Textile Centre

The Nishijin district of Kyoto has been home to fine fabric weavers since the fifteenth century. The Nishijin Textile Centre is dedicated to this great woven textile tradition.

One of the many beautiful looms on display at the Nishijin Textile Centre

An exhibit showing the life cycle of the silkworm

The museum also has models of many types of loom

Clearly this was a venture that was set up with a grand vision but there is now a slight air of a place that has seen better days. The Centre has some good educational exhibits, examples and models of many types of loom and a gallery with examples of traditional Kyoto weaving (no photography).

This is a commercial machine-embroidered kimono in the style of traditional Nishijin weaving

Detail of the modern kimono fabric

There are also a large number of looms used for teaching and demonstrations but these have a sense of being squashed into a corner by the large sales area stocked with very expensive but not always high quality Nishjin weaving souvenirs.

Demonstration of weaving on a Jacquard (punched-card) loom

The Centre has many interesting machines and exhibits but they are crammed together to make space for the large souvenir shop

Rather than people interested in woven textiles the Centre now seems heavily focussed on the endless stream of coach tours that disembark for twenty minutes, take a few photos of the “Kimono Fashion Show”, buy some gifts then depart to make way for the next coach. So far as we could tell, at least 95% of the visitors did not bother visiting the gallery and museum floor at all.

Sadly, the “Kimono Fashion Show” did not feature traditional Nishijin weaving. Many kimono were in commercial printed fabrics

Another model in the kimono show

A Nishijin weaving loom

If you manage to visit Kyoto you will never be short of places to see there but if you are interested in textiles The Nishijin Centre is worth a visit despite its slightly over-commercialized atmosphere.

Some New jewellery Work

Hi, I have not been posting here for a while but I hope to get back to adding regular updates soon.

Meantime here are a few of my recent textile jewellery pieces.

A cuff bracelet

Matching textile necklace

Another, distinctly asymmetric necklace

Brooches are not the fastest sellers but are still my favourite objects

And this winter I have been making a lot of earrings!

More earrings

Yet more earrings!

I have made many more – It has been a long (wet) winter!

Manila Shawl in the V&A

This is a post about a fabulous “Spanish” or “Manila” shawl on display in the Chinese section of the V&A Museum in London.

The beautiful Spanish shawl in the V&A

One of the things that I love best about revisiting my favourite museums is the possibility of noticing and then focussing on an object that one has previously passed by. I know that I have walked past this shawl many times and I have even stopped to look at it, yet it was only on my last visit that the full beauty and quality of this item fully struck home.

The shawl features exquisitely embroidered flowers, insects and birds

The “Manton de Manila” has a long history in Spain. The shawls were made in South China but the name comes from the port of Manila in the Philippines. The Philippines became a Spanish colony in 1565 and was part of New Spain, administered from Mexico. This meant that Asian goods for the Spanish market were shipped on “Manila Galleons” to the west coast of Mexico, then transported overland to the port of Veracruz for shipment to Spain.

Bird detail

The early shawls were embroidered with native Chinese motifs but the dragons, pagodas, etc., were soon replaced by colourful flowers and other images more suited to the customers taste. The other big addition the Spanish made was the long swaying fringe which provided the movement that made the shawl such a classic piece of flamenco costume.

The shading on the flower petals is meticulously executed

This shawl is striking for the quality of the embroidery. This piece was made purely as a commercial export product, with no pretensions to being art, yet both the workmanship and the design are full of vitality. This design is also notable for the distinctly Chinese elements in the design, such as the “lion dogs”.

Unlike most shawls for the European market, this one features distinctly Chinese motifs

The shawl dates from the second half of the19th century when the “Spanish shawl” became an important fashion accessory throughout Europe and North America. In Britain they were frequently put to another use, commonly being employed as a decorative cover for grand pianos.

One of many quirky insects

One of many finely detailed butterflies

For some wonderful photographs of flamenco dancers and their shawls please see Ottoman Dandy’s post.

New Brooches

I thought I would share a few of the pieces I’ve been working on lately. With these brooches I have focussed on creating lines that flow and echo within the shapes.
We’ve been experimenting with different lighting when photographing, but it’s sometimes a struggle to reproduce the original colours in photos. Let me know what you think!

‘Empress Dowager’ Textile Sculpture

In my last post, I gave a sneak preview of a piece I made for an exhibition at the Bristol Guild Gallery. The exhibition was put together by the South West Textile Group, and was entitled, ‘Suspension.’ 

I was interested in the challenge of creating a three dimensional form, and the end result was ‘Empress Dowager’ – a 3D hanging textile sculpture. I used many of my original textile techniques to create it, but had the added challenge of making sure that the sculpture was interesting from every angle.

‘Empress Dowager.’ Detail.

The design was originally inspired by Buddhist parasols and by the ceremonial parasols that I saw in The Forbidden City, Beijing, many of which were embroidered with colourful, racing dragons. The parasols are traditionally a symbol of luck, royalty and protection, whilst dragons symbolise royalty and Imperial power.

Buddhist parasol

A ceremonial parasol in the Forbidden City

Although the Bristol exhibition is now closed, the South West Textile Group will be showing the ‘Suspension’ exhibition at The Town Mill Gallery, in Lyme Regis, from the 3rd – 30th October 2013.

You can find more of my large-scale textile work here:
Textile Sculpture: 4D Sphere
Textile Relief: Dragon

‘Empress Dowager’

Back to business!

Hello everyone!

Sorry for being a stranger – the months seem to have gotten away from me. I’m going to try to get back into good habits and update this blog more often, with help from my daughter, Isla. I’ve got lots to catch up on and share over the next few posts, including an exhibition at the Bristol Guild Gallery, visits to museums and the Eden Project, some textile experiments, and Isla’s graduation from Oxford!

To start off, here’s a sneak preview of the piece I made for the Bristol Guild Gallery exhibition, earlier this summer – stay tuned for more!

‘Suspension.’ Detail.

Merry Christmas

Hi everyone,

I would like to apologise for the lack of new posts here in the run up to Xmas. We will try to get back to normal in the New Year.

Merry Christmas from Cornwall.

Wishing everyone a safe, happy and prosperous 2013.

All the best

Wai-Yuk and Alex

A recently completed textile brooch

Threads of Silk and Gold

Last weekend we travelled to Oxford to see a groundbreaking new textiles exhibition at The Ashmolean Museum. “Threads of Silk and Gold – Ornamental Textiles from Meiji Japan”, presents textile pieces using traditional Japanese skills but made primarily for a Western audience. (Sadly, there was no photography allowed in the exhibition but I did sneak a couple of snaps to give a flavour of the show.)

Cover of the beautiful catalogue

Japanese art and crafts were hugely popular in the West between the 1870’s and the death of the Meiji Emperor in 1912. Textiles were part of this export trade but have been little studied until now.

Although there are token exhibits of weaving and Yuzen dyeing, this is an exhibition of Japanese embroidery. Ranging from superb exhibition pieces and large artworks to examples of what are frankly “tourist kitsch”, the craftsmanship is uniformly superb and shows a level of hand labour that is now unimaginable.

Detail of Cranes and Wisteria – Size 201cm x 279cm (Ashmolean collection)

This screen of cormorant fishing is the star of the show

Many of the largest pieces (up to nearly 4 metres high) were exhibition works for various World Fairs, or were produced for the richest foreign tourists to take home from their visits.

Detail of the Cormorant Fishing showing the free stitching technique

Detail showing the fire basket. This is painting with stitches!

I have long loved Japanese embroidery but always felt that there was a stiffness and very “rules-driven” approach to its execution. With the notable exception of the Cormorant screen, this is still visible here but where the designs are so grand and original the end-result totally escapes any limitation from the fact that every feather on every bird is executed using precisely the same stitch technique. Indeed, the whole exhibition is an object lesson in the possibilities and limitations of craft techniques;  the truly original works exceed the limitations of technique while even the best craft skills cannot rescue the dreadful pot-boilers.

Detail of the peacock shown on the catalogue cover. (Photo of catalogue illustration)

Outside the exhibition was an education exhibit on Japanese embroidery techniques (where photography was allowed) and on the day we visited there were also embroiderers staging demonstrations.

Many exhibits feature 3D embroidery. This is a modern imitation

Demonstration piece showing basic stitches

Techniques for couching gold thread

Modern, embroidered handling-piece

Silk-weaving is now the only affordable substitute for large fully-embroidered pieces

“Threads of Silk and Gold” runs at the Ashmolean until 27^th January 2013. For more information see the Ashmolean website

New Jewellery in Pink and Purple

Recently I have been producing a lot of work in pinks and purples.

Here are  images of just some of the pieces in this very pink theme.

A new choker with lots of pink velvet

A pink and purple version of the blue neckpiece I made a little while ago.

Close-up of the new neckpiece

Back view of the neckpiece

Matching earring for the above

Another pair of earrings in a style inspired by seashells

Embroidered Dragons

I love Chinese dragons! Unlike the fearsome dragons in the West, which must be battled and slain, the Chinese versions are, if not friendly, at least not threatening.  Here a few representations of Chinese dragons in embroidery.

Imperial court robe (V&A museum)

Most of the dragons here are imperial dragons, symbols of the Emperor himself. During the final Chinese dynasty, the Qing period from 1644 to 1911, the dragon could be found on almost every piece of Imperial clothing and regalia. This may have been due to the foreign Manchu rulers feeling that they had to constantly assert their legitimacy by using this very Chinese symbol of rule.

Dragons on an Imperial Parasol (Forbidden City, Beijing)

Many of these textile pieces are Imperial clothing and accoutrements from the V&A museum and the Forbidden City in Beijing. While these dragons vary in colour there is a sameness running through them as if the makers were very careful that the forms and expressions of their creatures matched the required type.

Imperial court robe (V&A museum)

Other dragons that are not from the Imperial household are much more varied, often with wonderful, mad expressions as they manically chase their flaming pearls.

Dragons chasing a flaming pearl (Taoist priest’s robe, V&A museum)

Dragons on a tubular banner (Forbidden City, Beijing)

Dragon chasing a flaming pearl (Taoist priest’s robe, V&A museum)

Dragon chasing a flaming pearl (Taoist priest’s robe, V&A museum)

Dragon on a court robe (V&A museum)

Dragon (Taoist priest’s robe, V&A museum)

Dragons on an Imperial Parasol (Forbidden City, Beijing)

A strange little dragon on a wall-hanging (V&A museum)

Dragons chasing a flaming pearl (Taoist priest’s robe, V&A museum)

Dragon on an Imperial wall-hanging (V&A museum)

Imperial court robe (V&A museum)

Imperial court robe (V&A museum)

Imperial court robe (V&A museum)

Objects in the Forbidden City

Apart from being the greatest example of late Chinese dynastic architecture, the Forbidden City is also a very fine museum. Or rather; there are a whole series of museums devoted to different types of objects, scattered over the vast site; some being permanent displays and others being for temporary exhibitions.

Large vase with fish decoration – Qing dynasty

One of the best displays is the Palace Ceramics Collection, which is situated in a building well off to the side of the main tourist route and therefore very quiet. The building is very dark with only the ceramic objects themselves being strongly lit. While this should produce ideal viewing conditions it fails because the objects are displayed behind glass which catches lots of distracting reflections and rather spoils the experience.

Tang dynasty horse sculpture – note the reflections from the display opposite

The ceramics display features work from all periods of Chinese history but the bulk of the pottery is from the Qing dynasty (not surprising in a Qing dynasty palace.) Although the Manchu dynasty is not the greatest period in Chinese ceramic history, the display has many fine examples.

Qing dynasty pot in the form of a gourd

Much bigger crowds are encountered at the Imperial Jewellery Collection where a degree of pushing and elbowing can be required to get a good view. Most of the visitors are Chinese, however, and they are mostly preoccupied with “oohing” and “aaahing” at the biggest precious stones and the biggest lumps of gold, leaving lots of pieces of interesting design relatively ignored. In fact much of the jewellery is fairly uninspiring, design-wise, consisting of many (large) precious stones formed into naturalistic arrangements of flower or fruit shapes. Some of the most unusual and interesting items are not the grand jewellery pieces but the accessories such as decorated belts.

Silk belt decorated with pearls and precious stones

Torque necklace in silver with gilding and coral inlay

The Forbidden City has many other displays, such as one with European clocks and scientific instruments from the Imperial collections and another with objects connected to the day to day life and rituals of the Qing Imperial household. These included some nice textile objects, though it is impossible to say whether these were originals or reproductions.

Phoenix embroidery on a large long-handled fan

Ceremonial parasol

Apart from the buildings converted into modern exhibition spaces, beautiful objects can be seen in many other parts of the Palace. My favourite is a “connoisseur’s wall” which displays many beautiful ceramic treasures.

Wall display of ceramics (photographed against the sun!)

Finally, there is beautiful design to be found in many out of the way corners. While the main facades dazzle with their clashing gold and polychromatic extravaganza, other parts of the buildings have much more subtle decoration, including some fine window grill designs.

Window grill design

Related post: The Forbidden City, Beijing

New-style Necklace

I finished a new necklace a couple of nights ago that is a little bit different from any I have done before. Instead of one main textile form, this one has repeated elements going most of the way round the choker wire.

Here I am wearing my latest creation

The individual textile elements are based on an earring design. The size of the fabric pieces gets smaller towards the back though this is hardly noticeable looking at the finished item. At first I just planned to use beads between the textile shapes but then I thought that a little bit of variation was needed, so I added some elements embroidered on soluble fabric just like my experiments at the Sue Rangeley workshop I attended.

The complete necklace

This was just a simple idea that I decided was worth trying but it has already got me thinking about how I could develop it further – watch this space!

A detail view showing the strands made using soluble fabric

A view of the reverse side of the neckpiece

This necklace has just been added to my Etsy shop

If you have any thoughts on this new piece I would love to hear them.