Keywords: australia, embroidered, etching, janie matthews, perth, printing, screenprinting, shibori, viscose, western australia, textiles

Memory Maps

Janie Matthews

Dimensions

2700 x 1050 mm (largest), 580 mm square (smallest)

Materials

Textiles (8): cupro-ammonium viscose and polyester viscose fabric, clamp resist dyed, mono-screen printed and block printed with layers of fibre reactive dyes; the fabrics were chain stitched and machine-embroidered, manipulated with shibori techniques (arashi pole wrapped, kumo spider web) then etched with devoré technique.

Artist statement

‘How can cloth, in particular a lace structure, be used to describe a sense of place?

The tactile, sometimes seductive, nature of cloth can be utilised to reflect the intimacy of a special time or place. Colour and pattern can imply the rough and smooth textures of the landscape, both physical and metaphysical. Stitch can represent the connections in life — those that support and reinforce us, or trace the path of a journey through life. To create a lace structure I have used an etching technique to reference erosion, decay and the passage of time. Layers of imagery, layers of meaning, some exposed, some hidden.’

Behind the scenes

Explanation of Lace Techniques

Interview with Durbach Block