Artist statement
My work explores textiles as a surface for drawing and print. Each piece is a response to changing materials, density and texture. Image and composition are generated through spontaneous mark-making and photography, and translated as layers of densely pigmented and printed surfaces.
Through museum research, deep 'black' cloths originating from different cultures are being surveyed. Investigations are focusing particularly on the plainer cloths that result in a pure darkness made of many-coloured blacks, which, through their making, become 'living' cloths that evolve in response to organic material, climatic change, minerals, and human interaction – that is, transient cloths that change over time. Often, the work references the repetitive motion associated with their making – the rhythm of coating, beating, burnishing and polishing.
In parallel, other works are a response to the material qualities left behind in the aftermath of fire on the heathland of southern England - a moment in time between destruction and regeneration, when burnt structures reveal traces of dormant plants above and below the surface. The density of earth and ash is expressed through multiple layers of drawing and print on cloth.
Ideas are expressed in abstract form, sometimes imagined as a dark void, sometimes as dense matter, a tensioned line or punctured space.
Qualifications and training
- 2009 Fellow, Royal Society of Arts, UK
- 2006 Fellow, Higher Education Academy, UK
- 2004 MA Museums and Galleries in Education, Institute of Education, University of London, UK
- 1978 Postgraduate Art Teacher's Certificate, Goldsmiths College, University of London, UK
- 1976 BA (Hons) Textiles, First Class, West Surrey College of Art and Design, Farnham, Surrey, UK
Employment
- 2012 Visiting Tutor, BA (Hons) Hand Embroidery, Royal School of Needlework, Hampton Court Palace, UK
- 2010 Visiting Tutor, BA (Hons) Visual Studies, Norwich University College of the Arts, UK
- 2009 Visiting Tutor, BA (Hons) Textiles for Fashion and Interiors, University for the Creative Arts, Farnham, Surrey, UK
- 1997 - 2000 External Examiner, BA (Hons) Fine Art, Chichester Institute of Higher Education, UK
- 1996 - 1998 Crafts Adviser, South East Arts, UK
- 1994 - 2004 Programme Leader, BA (Hons) Textiles, University for the Creative Arts, Farnham, Surrey, UK
- 1987 - 1990 External Assessor of Textile Design Studies, Diploma in Higher Education, Bath College of Higher Education, UK
- 1985 - 2009 Senior Lecturer, Printed Textiles, University for the Creative Arts, Farnham, Surrey, UK
Group exhibitions
- 2013 International Baltic Minitextile Triennial, Museum of the City of Gdynia, Poland
- 2013 International Mini Textile Art, Scythia Textiles, Kherson, Ukraine
- 2013 Hand/Hand made/Made in, International Miniature Textiles, Slovak Textile Artists Association, Bratislava, Slovakia
- 2012 Banality and Grace, University Library Gallery, Bratislava, Slovakia
- 2012 Small Expressions, Long Beach Museum and Art Gallery, California, US
- 2012 Journeys through the Light, Hungate Contemporary Art, Norwich, UK
- 2012 Energy Nexus, Foshan Zumiao Ancestral Temple Museum, China
- 2011 Energy Nexus: International Shibori Exhibition, Visual Arts Centre, Hong Kong
- 2011 Art in a Box, One Church Street, Missenden, Bucks, UK
- 2010 Tomorrow, Centre de Recherche et de Design en Impression Textile, Montreal, Canada
- 2010 Open Drawing Exhibition, One Church Street, Missenden, Bucks, UK
- 2010 Fabric of the Land: Origin of Colour, School of Geosciences, University of Aberdeen, UK
- 2005 Transformations, Crafts Study Centre, Farnham, Surrey, UK
- 1990 Patterns in Print: modern textile printing from Omega to now, Hove Museum and Art Gallery, Sussex, UK
- 1988 British Designer Craftsmen 1888-1988, Centennial Exhibition of the Society of Designer Craftsmen, Knapp Gallery, Regents Park, London, UK
- 1988 Texstyles, Smith's Galleries, Covent Garden, London, UK
- 1986 Interior Context, Kensington Olympia, London, UK
- 1986 New Faces, V&A, London, UK
- 1985 Designer Craftsmen '85, Smith's Galleries, Covent Garden, London, UK
- 1984 Designer Craftsmen '84, Smith's Galleries, Covent Garden, London, UK
- 1984 Black and White, British Crafts Centre, Covent Garden, London, UK
- 1984 Makers, British Crafts Centre, Covent Garden, London, UK
- 1983 Printed and Painted Textiles, British Crafts Centre, Covent Garden, London
Curated projects
- 2013 Selector, 'Pinpoint', exhibition of small scale textile works, One Church Street Gallery, Great Missenden, Buckinghamshire, UK
- 2013 Selector, 'The University as Collector', exhibition of textiles and ceramics, Crafts Study Centre, University for the Creative Arts, Farnham, Surrey UK
- 1990 'Czech Patterns', exhibition in association with 'The Charleston Festival: Bloomsbury Looks East', Charleston House, Sussex, UK
- 1987 'Modrotlac: Indigo Country Cloths and Artefacts from Czechoslovakia', exhibition at the James Hockey Gallery, Farnham, Surrey and the Glyn Vivian Gallery, Swansea, UK
Projects
- 2012 Committee Member, Textile Society, UK
- 2004 JISC-funded digitisation project to develop an online teaching and learning resource, The Textiles Collection, University for the Creative Arts at Farnham, UK
- 1994 Technical researcher and adviser to the exhibition, 'Colour into Cloth: Britain's finest hand-coloured textiles 1900-1994', Crafts Council, UK
- 1990 Commission to produce a limited edition of hand-printed linen by Enid Marx using the artist's original printing blocks for the exhibition, 'Eric Ravilious', Decorative Arts Group, London, UK
- 1989 Design consultant in block-printed textiles, Jaipur, India, commissioned by the Indian Trade Mission to the EU, Brussels
Competitions, prizes and awards
- 2013 Research Award, Pasold Research Fund, UK
- 2009 Professional Development Award, Textile Society, UK
- 2006 Museum, Archive and Repository Award, Textile Society, UK
- 1987 Research Award, British Council, UK
- 1986 Research Award, British Council, UK
- 1985 Churchill Fellowship to research resist-printed and indigo-dyed textiles in Czechoslovakia, Winston Churchill Memorial Trust, London, UK
- 1983 Bursary, Southern Arts, UK
- 1983 Selected, Crafts Council Index, UK
Educational experience - secondary
- 1997 Workshop, 'Making in Design and Technology at Key Stages 3 and 4: professional development for teachers', Crafts Council and Northamptonshire Inspection and Advisory Service, UK
- 1987 Assistant Examiner, GCE 'O' level Art and Design, Associated Examining Board, UK
- 1984 Teacher of Art, Oaklands Community School, Southampton, UK
- 1981 Teacher of Textiles, Oak Park Community School, Havant, Hampshire
Educational experience - tertiary
- 2013 Verifier, BA (Hons) Textiles, Open College of the Arts, UK
- 1994 Workshop, 'Exploring the 3rd Dimension: resourcing crafts activity Post-16', Crafts Council and the V&A, UK
- 1987 Open College of the Arts pilot project for distance learning course in Textiles, West Surrey College of Art and Design, Farnham, Surrey, UK
Publications
- 2010 Brassington, L. 'If all the earth were paper white...' In: TEXT for the study of Textile Art, Design and History, Vol. 38: pp.61-64
- 2007 Brassington, L. 'Unwrapping the Senses: textiles as a digital resource' In: Beautiful and Useful? Supporting the Arts and Crafts in the 21st Century. Art Librarians Society (ARLIS)
- 2007 Brassington, L. 'The Textiles Collection: a teaching and learning resource'. In: TEXT for the study of Textile Art, Design and History, Vol. 35: pp.63-65
- 2006 Brassington, L. 'The Muriel Rose Bequest'. In: Vacher, J (Ed) Muriel Rose: a modern crafts legacy, Farnham: Crafts Study Centre ISBN 0-9554374-0-7
- 2006 Brassington L. 'Subjects and Objects: archives and collections as narratives in the crafts'. In: Re-thinking the Past: Experimental Histories in the Arts. UTS, Sydney, AU
- 1995 Brassington, L. Factfile: Printed, Painted and Dyed Textiles. London: Crafts Council ISBN 1- 870145-31-3
- 1994 Brassington, L. 'Sharon Ting'. In: Crafts Council and authors (Eds), Colour into Cloth. London: Crafts Council ISBN 1-870145-30-5
- 1994 Brassington, L. Techniques in Printed, Painted and Resist-Patterned Textiles. London: Crafts Council ISBN 1-870145-31-3
- 1992 'New Printed Textiles from India'. In: The Textile Society Magazine, Vol. 17: pp.17-20
- 1987 Brassington, L. Modrotlac: Indigo Country Cloths and Artefacts from Czechoslovakia. Farnham: West Surrey College of Art and Design
- 1986 'Resist Printing and Indigo Dyeing in Czechoslovakia'. In: The Textile Society Magazine, Vol. 5: pp.12-16
Web links - gallery/work/projects
