art of the STITCH 2003 and SAMPLE

art of the STITCH

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"A very good exhibition - full of hope for the future - so much talent on show"
"Fabulous Show - exciting, beautiful and very inspirational!"
Visitors, Williamson Art Gallery, Birkenhead

"This is not embroidery as my Grandma knew it: it is a revelation in what can be done with a needle and thread but more than that, it is a visual treat!"
Colin Simpson, Williamson Art Gallery, Birkenhead

"This is one of the most invigorating contemporary art exhibitions of the year. If this show changes a few received views of what embroidery is and can be, then the exhibitors are helping the Guild do its job."
Michael Spender, Director, Embroiderers' Guild

An open international biennial exhibition selected by a panel of artists and museum curators, not only does art of the STITCH showcase contemporary embroidery as an expressive medium, it gives an insight into its diversity of production and perception today through the work of artists who use or reference this medium. In 2003 there were 647 submissions made by 430 artists from around the world, with 38 works selected for exhibition. From the 33 artists exhibiting, four were selected to receive awards for art of the STITCH, presented by Coats Crafts UK:

The Anchor Award for most outstanding exhibit: Audrey Walker No Evil
Anchor International Award for most outstanding exhibit by an artist who has not previously exhibited outside their country of residence: Helen Fletcher A Pretty Girl In Your Bathroom Checking Out Her Sex Appeal
Anchor Innovation Award for most outstanding exhibit developed through innovative use of stitch: Clare Proctor Well Felt
Anchor Student Award for most outstanding exhibit by an artist who has completed a FE/C&G course in 2002: Emer O'Brien De/Others

SAMPLE

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It has become the tradition to accompany art of the STITCH with an exhibition which provides a historical or wider contemporary context for the work on show. This year sees an exhibition entitled SAMPLE, developed by the Embroiderers' Guild and independent curator Jo Saunders.

Eleven contemporary artists were challenged to question and extend their existing practice, by producing provocative new work for an exhibition that confronts perceptions of contemporary art and embroidery, each developing their work through the theme of stitch, regardless of the methods of their current practice. For half of the artists involved in SAMPLE, as established fine art practitioners working in formats ranging from performance and installation to abstract painting and digital technology, stitch introduces an entirely new palette of references and methods. Of the five artists in SAMPLE already working with stitch, each has introduced a new dimension to this relationship, rediscovering the history and social significance of embroidery as a subject as well as a method of production.

A fully illustrated colour catalogue for art of the STITCH and SAMPLE is available from the Embroiderers' Guild, priced at £7.95.

art of the STITCH and SAMPLE was shown at

Williamson Art Gallery and Museum, Birkenhead, UK
30 August - 12 October 2003

Dutch Textile Museum, Tilburg, The Netherlands
8 November 2003 - 22 February 2004

Hall Place, Bexley, Kent, UK
13 March - 30 May 2004

For further information about art of the STITCH and SAMPLE, please contact the Embroiderers' Guild on +44 (0)20 8943 1229 or