Festival of Lace

 

Festival of Lace at Gallery 76 in Concord West NSW was held by the Embroiderer’s Guild of NSW from Jan 30 - March 4 2021. The exhibition honoured the history of lace making and its evolution through time to present day contemporary works.  Workshops and a 2 day symposium titled Lace Looking Forward- Lace Looking Back highlighted the evolution of lace over the years and its prospect for the future.  If you have a spare 15 minutes click here to enjoy a walk though of the exhibit by the gallery coordinator and curator of the exhibit April Spiers.  And below, enjoy a couple of images featuring antique laces and contemporary works of Maggie Hensel-Brown and Nell (Elyn Bray).

 

Thanks to the support of City of Canada Bay, the Festival was able to support a public art component coordinated by Lindy de WIjn together with fellow lace maker Vicki Taylor.

 

There were three components to the public art element.  The first were stencils designed by Vicki.

 

The second was titled Circles of Friendship and Exploration.  The lace community is like a circle of friends who encourage each other, share knowledge and experiment.  Some circles were created as a collage of contributions, while others were designed for the provided circles. The overall piece represented the diversity of the lace community and the lace they make.  It captured the beauty and diversity in traditional and contemporary lace techniques and design.

Contributors:   Mardie Akers, Mary Campbell, Pam Cork, Lindy de Wijn, Annemieke English, Julie Foster, Margaret Hedges, Dawn Howell, Diane Lowther,  Isabel Navarro Marote, Elizabeth May,  Megan Robinson, Margaret Small, Rosemary Shepherd,  Vicki Taylor, Friederike Wiebke

 

The final piece titled Some Days Are Diamonds And Some Days Are Circles was a site specific piece created for the facade of Gallery 76.  The 3 level metal armature of the gallery entrance provided the perfect location for lace enabling it to be viewed up close from the 2^nd and 3^rd  floors while being a statement piece at the entry that welcomed all to the Festival of Lace Exhibition.  

 

A series of 25 panels were designed for the space, varying from 60cm to 2 metres in length. Each design was sent, with accompanying threads and working notes, to one of 15 lacemakers who contributed to making the lace for the artwork.

 

The title of the work reflects the journey taken to complete this large-scale lace installation during a pandemic.  Each contribution was completed at the home of the lace maker and the full impact of their individual banner was only truly seen once installed.   The project has been a journey in design, creation, modification, and adaption.  Many thanks go to the lace makers who contributed and to the Embroiderer’s Guild of NSW and City of Canada Bay for embracing an idea and nurturing its creation.  

 

Contributors Margaret Abbey, Diane Bishop, Mary Campbell, Pam Cork, Lindy de Wijn, Annemieke English, Margaret Hedges, Dawn Howell,  Hillary MacKay, Elizabeth May,   Leonie Mc Neill, Megan Robinson. Isabel Navarro Marote, Vicki Taylor, Patsy Thorpe

 

For more information on the public art aspect of Festival of Lace click here