Linen, Natural Dyes
30” x 120
2017
This piece was exhibited at the Craft Ontario Gallery in Toronto, ON as part of Chromatic Geography, and at the Living Arts Center in Mississauga, ON as part of fête, This piece is part of an ongoing design project that explores sustainable screen printing techniques for natural fabrics. This method of producing textile yardage can be unpredictable and produces outcomes that do not conform to traditional design norms. Printing with natural dyes varies depending on the fiber content, how the dye was created and what the growing season of the plant was like. This results in unique yardage that cannot be replicated but instead produces variable outcomes.
Organic Cotton, Natural Dyes
51” x 25”
2018
Sunrise Sundown is a functional garment series that is focused on the debate around environmental issues in textile design and the designer’s role and responsibility in relation to these. The selection of raw material, the impact of production, and the product life cycle are all considered in the design process. The fashion industry’s industrial cut-and-sew techniques produce a garment so polished that it seems complete as it is, closed to improvisation from the ‘outside’. The design and construction of home-made garments are more like a work in process, open to adaptation and repair, and to building understanding about how garments are made.
This piece was created during my time at the Banff Center for Arts and Creativity while participating in the Wardrobe Technician Practicum Program. My colleagues and I worked as members of the Wardrobe Team, learning the core skills required to become a Wardrobe Technician.
Wool Crepe, Wool Delaine, Cotton Cording, Wool, Pillow 1: 17” x 20,” Pillow 2: 20” x 20,”
Screen Printed with Natural Dyes
2017
These pillows are designed through small-scale production, creating high-quality products meant to be enjoyed in the home. These pieces are inspired by ‘slow textile design’ which focuses on the designer being involved in every stage of the creation. This way of working supports the belief that the process is as important as the end product.
Cotton Gauze, Fiber Reactive Dyes, Screen Print, 105” x 39,”
2016- Ongoing
This scarf was designed from a collection of historic buildings located in Toronto, Ontario. The commission based, hand printed nature of the work allows flexibility to think past the machine-made, mass produced textile and instead fit the design into a different purpose. This work re-personalizes how a textile piece is produced by understanding the community between maker and consumer.
Silk, Natural Dyes, Food Waste, Plant Litter, 25” x 25,”
2016- Ongoing
A series exploring how food waste and plant litter can be used to create unique surface designs on natural fabrics. These foraged plants are used to create dye baths to colour the textile. The outcomes are affected by the seasonal availability of the different dye materials.
Cotton Gauze, Fiber Reactive Dyes, Screen Printed, 22” x 55,”
2016- Ongoing
This piece explores intricate watercolour designs and how to translate these painterly techniques onto fabric. This work can be seen as eccentric, obsessive and oddly handmade in a world of increasingly mechanized production. The finished textile hopes that the bold colours and quality catches the viewers eye.
These large scale repeat patterns have been hand-drawn and screen printed onto woven silk and wool fabrics.
2020
Natural Dye Study screen printed onto linen.
2015
