Click here to purchase a full-colour printed A4 copy of the catalogue. Available to UK addresses ONLY - £15.99 + Postage & Packing
ALL profits on catalogue sales are donated to MIND
This is a downloadable copy of the project notes. It is provided FREE for use by teachers and tutors.
A Penny For Your Thoughts
Member's work is shown below in alphabetical order by surname. If you click on an individual's information you will be taken to a page which allows you to magnify the images, and which also contains the working notes from each member. The work is not for sale. Please do not attempt to contact any of our members privately. If you would like to get in touch, please use the CONTACT section of this website, OR email untangledthreads@aol.com
The Collective (Untangled Threads) is a new and innovative group where members can share, learn and engage with each others creativity in a genuinely meaningful and mindful way. We have over 60 fully subscribed members from all over the UK, with a wide range of experiences, ages and expertise. The group is led by Helen Birmingham.
This is the initial exhibition in an ongoing series of 4 projects.
A Penny For Your Thoughts: wool pennies were a traditional way of creating blankets from scraps of tweed and felted wool. Members take a contemporary look at this sometimes overlooked technique.
Each member was sent a selection of offcuts from recycled woollen blankets, fabric and threads, together with project notes and access to an online workshop video. The work in this exhibition shows the vast range of individual research, thought, focus and experimentation undertaken by our members. It should be seen as WORK IN PROGRESS and none of the work is for sale.
Being asked to write about their work was a completely new experience for many of our members, and I have to admit that the exercise was entered into with a mixture of enthusiasm and resignation! Ultimately, it could be argued that a fully realised and consolidated artwork should be able to speak for itself, but in the context of learning to communicate with other, correct spelling, grammar and the 'ubiquitous artspeak' are neither essential to understanding, nor wanted. Notes which accompany the images in the exhibition are written by members 'in their own style' and are as honest and open as individuals felt was appropriate (given that the intention was to publish them outside the group, as part of this project). Members were subsequently provided with individual, written feedback and suggestions. 'A good teacher may show you where to look, but never what to see.' It is hoped that, over the course of the projects discussion groups may form naturally, but it is important to the practice that 'social media' is not the main method of communication.
'Never underestimate your own work and the value of your unique voice. This process is about letting the authentic you begin to emerge, and trusting yourself to find your own answers to your own questions.' Helen Birmingham
