I have just returned from a very exciting Textile event in Lithuania, which I would like to share with OCA textile students and tutors. The European Textile Network holds an International Conference on Textiles in a different country every two years, the last one being in Austria. Four years ago, it took place in London […]
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Often, in the making of a piece of wall hung textile art, the finishing off stage can be surprisingly sticky. It will catch you out if you let it; everything goes so swimmingly well, and then, just as you come to nearly the end – what to do with those edges? Ideally, this is something […]
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Almost eight months into the four year part time masters degree in Fine Art, James Kowacz, one of OCA’s current MA students, is embarking on a fascinating participative project, ‘A Seat in the Memory’. He is looking for people to contribute to it. Whether you are a photographer, artist or creative writer, you can contribute […]
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I come back to Rosalind Wyatt’s work once more, because quite simply, her textile art illustrates so many ideas and themes. For the moment, I want to focus on her use of text on fabric, something which often causes concern to students and much sampling and trying out of expensive supplies. I would always encourage […]
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There are two gems of exhibitions coming up which will form the basis of a study visit on 19th November. Designed with textiles students in mind, it may also appeal to other visual arts students because of the breadth of coverage in these exhibitions. Grayson Perry has curated ‘The Tomb of the Unknown Craftsman’ which […]
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One question which often crops up in student learning logs and beyond is – where does art begin and function end? Yes, lines have converged in recent years so this is a valid discussion point. Clearly, if you’re designing a product for commercial purposes the aims throughout the design process are focussed on questions of fashion, […]
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I make no apology for highlighting here two works with minimal actual textile content; none at all in the case of the first – a drawing which I’d like to show you because it has strong personal meaning and was instrumental in many ways in my own development as a textile artist. It’s a drawing […]
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The creative urge just won’t go away….. that’s what brings many people in mid life to OCA. Here Jane Perkins tells the story of her mid life conversion to achieve her creative dreams. ‘As a young child, I always enjoyed being creative; drawing, embroidery and ‘making things’. From school, I trained as a nurse and […]
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Pat Moloney talks about Linda Beadle’s Textiles 1 learning logs and the role of learning logs in general.
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A new OCA Textiles course at level 2 (HE 5) was launched this week. I think it’s the most exciting course in the OCA textiles degree pathway suite, since it challenges students in all sorts of ways, both practically and philosophically. Called Contemporary Textiles, the course focuses on tactile and visual design ideas and a […]
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