Emily Beckmann

Method: Crockery pieces stitched into crocheted lace, linked with woven links and adorned with glass-like beads.  The tea-cup and crocheted doily where bought at a second-hand shop in Queanbyan, near Canberra in Australia.  (The date in the title is when these items were bought).  This piece refers to notions of British traditions and colonialism.  The neckpiece has the effect of an old-fashioned lace collar, while also having associations of animal tooth pendants, linking back to bone china.  The fragments of crockery and beads of glass also suggest a violent action, in contrast to the connotations of polite society.  The binding and stitching imply mending, resolution and transformation.  The title Queanbyan sounds regal (especially within the context of Australia with its mixed Royalist and Republican ideals) but is actually derived from an Australian aboriginal name for the place.