Alison Willoughby is best known for making one-off, elaborately patterned skirts. They are as much works of art as pieces of clothing, but she is reluctant to be described as either a fashion designer or a fine artist, preferring to call herself a textile designer. ‘It’s annoying being put in a strict category,’ she says. ‘But I trained as a textile designer and my material is fabric and for me, fabric is where the excitement lies.’
Textile artist Dawn Dupree creates evocative, semi-abstract urban landscapes by building up printed layers of colour and images. They are full of unexpected surprises and juxtapositions each telling a separate narrative often slightly unsettling undertones. ‘I like to make things that are attractive, colourful and have a visual richness so that people are forced to look a bit more closely at them and see unexpected things,’ she says.
Textile artist Alice Kettle creates dramatic figurative panels built up using free machine embroidery. She says, ‘I find embroidery really liberating as it is both a drawing tool and constructional tool.’ She is currently working on a large-scale commission at Winchester Discovery Centre (due to be installed in September) where visitors can watch her at work during gallery opening hours.
Yorkshire-based artist Samantha Bryan makes fantastical wire and mixed media sculptures. Her quirky – often humorous and always highly individual – figures depict long-limbed fairies manning bizarre, machine-like contraptions. They are characterised by an off-beat, zany charm which is realised by Bryan’s imaginative and skilful making technique. She says, ‘my objective is to realise the necessities and requirements involved in fairy life – to provide everything a fairy would need during its daily existence.’
Visit Samantha's website at www.brainsfairies.co.uk