2023-12 Talk for Cork Textiles Network
Watch Chloë Briggs’ talk about drawing and stitching, given to the Cork Textile Network.
Published: December 2023
Published: December 2023
Chloë Briggs was recently invited to talk to the Cork Textile Network - a real privilege.
Chloe trained as a fine artist, and drawing remains her most immediate way of working. But lockdown gave her time and permission to try something new. First quilts, then repair, and now more ambitious pieces: capes made from found parasols, a kimono from vintage silk, and portraits stitched onto a secondhand bomber jacket.
The two practices turn out to be less different than they might seem. Couching, where you lay a thread on the surface and stitch it down, feels exactly like making a line. A fellow artist watching her work put it well: they were drawing in slow motion.
A key figure in Chloë's textile work is Welsh artist Angela Maddock, whom she met during lockdown after Angela generously made and distributed repair kits and offered workshops to go with them. They’ve become friends and collaborators, running a two-week residency together in Paris exploring nature in the city, and combining drawing and stitch in workshops that Chloë describes as giving as much back to her as she puts in.
Chloë also spoke about working with constraints and found materials — a parasol frame from the streets of Rotterdam, threads from a charity shop bag, her son's old jeans turned into an apron — and why she finds that the tighter the constraint, the more interesting the work becomes.
Working with textiles is about working things out for the good.
The talk is about an hour long and covers drawing, textiles, repair, and the connections between them all.
The Cork Textiles Network, established in 1998, offers support to all who have an interest in textiles. CTN aims to promote exchange with other textile Networks and artists in Ireland and across Europe. CTN has made significant inroads in bringing fibre art to children both in libraries and in the classroom. Skills are shared between members. CTN organises and promotes leading edge workshops and classes in Cork.
Help support me to create more opportunities for drawing
If you enjoy the work of Drawing is Free, and find it valuable, I would be honoured if you’d consider supporting Drawing is Free at Patreon, where I create new drawing prompt booklets every month and run online drawing sessions for supporters. Your support helps create time for me to develop new ideas and projects to benefit everyone.
"No one's asked me to do that before. I feel honoured that I'm in this kind of context with lots of textile artists and people who work that way."
Chloe trained as a fine artist, and drawing remains her most immediate way of working. But lockdown gave her time and permission to try something new. First quilts, then repair, and now more ambitious pieces: capes made from found parasols, a kimono from vintage silk, and portraits stitched onto a secondhand bomber jacket.
The two practices turn out to be less different than they might seem. Couching, where you lay a thread on the surface and stitch it down, feels exactly like making a line. A fellow artist watching her work put it well: they were drawing in slow motion.
A key figure in Chloë's textile work is Welsh artist Angela Maddock, whom she met during lockdown after Angela generously made and distributed repair kits and offered workshops to go with them. They’ve become friends and collaborators, running a two-week residency together in Paris exploring nature in the city, and combining drawing and stitch in workshops that Chloë describes as giving as much back to her as she puts in.
Chloë also spoke about working with constraints and found materials — a parasol frame from the streets of Rotterdam, threads from a charity shop bag, her son's old jeans turned into an apron — and why she finds that the tighter the constraint, the more interesting the work becomes.
Working with textiles is about working things out for the good.
“This repairing has a connection to mental health. Certainly for me it’s something that helps me, that calms and centers me. When I work with repetitive stitching my thoughts unravel and I’m present."
The talk is about an hour long and covers drawing, textiles, repair, and the connections between them all.
About Cork Textiles Network
The Cork Textiles Network, established in 1998, offers support to all who have an interest in textiles. CTN aims to promote exchange with other textile Networks and artists in Ireland and across Europe. CTN has made significant inroads in bringing fibre art to children both in libraries and in the classroom. Skills are shared between members. CTN organises and promotes leading edge workshops and classes in Cork.
Help support me to create more opportunities for drawing
If you enjoy the work of Drawing is Free, and find it valuable, I would be honoured if you’d consider supporting Drawing is Free at Patreon, where I create new drawing prompt booklets every month and run online drawing sessions for supporters. Your support helps create time for me to develop new ideas and projects to benefit everyone.
Support Drawing is Free at ︎Patreon︎︎︎