All about colour

The exhibition ‘Zeven x weven’ [Seven x weaving] at the Katoendrukkerij in Amersfoort continues this month. There have been positive responses and much interest, which is great to hear. I have three pieces on display: ‘Into the blue I and II’ and ‘Compilation IV’ shown above. The Katoendrukkerij occupies De Volmolen in Amersfoort; if you are able to, this beautiful city is definitely worth a visit. The work of myself, Daisy van Groningen (guest curator), Theo Rooden, Christiane Maurer, Mirjam Hagoort, Babs van den Thillart and Marieke Kranenburg will be on display there until 10th July. Please do check the website of the Katoendrukkerij for opening times if you are planning a visit. On Saturday 18th June from 13.30 I’ll be joining Christiane, Babs and Theo in a meet the artist event. A chance to hear more about our work, see samples and gain an insight into the process, talking on a one-to-one basis with the artists. Keep an eye on my Instagram for more images of the exhibition.

Original woven wall panels

I seek out and collect old, unwanted and waste materials with their own inherent memories, such as vintage maps, old newspapers and cassette tapes to use in my weaving. I am intrigued that memories can be invoked by a snippet of text, a fragment of music, a feature of the landscape, transporting us back in time. Our memories shape us, constantly lingering in our subconscious. Connecting with the unwanted and waste materials through the process of weaving, I subtly confer them with value, integrity, depth and character, combining colour, texture and pattern in abstract woven form.  

Above you can see a collection of paper weavings made over the past few years. The paper is cut into strips using a paper shredder and carefully inserted into the warp on the loom. As I weave, the memories that the materials hold flow through my mind. Below is one of my sample weaves made as research for the pieces on show as part of Zeven x weven.

Abstract mixed media collage and embroidery, such as the canvas top middle, also form part of my process, with the colours and textures being reflected in my woven work. The two disciplines inform one another and one cannot exist without the other.

Art and craft spring fair at Tess Keramiek

The first weekend of May saw me taking part in the Spring fair organised by the very talented ceramicist Tessa Droog. Joined by eight other artists and craftspeople, and hosted by Tessa in her beautiful ‘living room gallery’ and garden, this event was a real pleasure to be part of. Below you can see the work of Tessa, jewellery by Tonke Joppe and some of my handwoven purses and handmade artist’s sketchbooks.

New scarves for spring in lambswool, British wool, linen, hemp and silk

For lighter scarves suitable for spring/summer, I’ve been experimenting with a combination of hemp and linen in the warp combined with Merino lambswool or a British wool from Uppingham Yarns and Shantung silk. These scarves are lightweight with a fairly open weave which makes them perfect for the unpredictable spring weather. Some similar scarves are available now in my online store LiminalWEAVE.

Gallery visits: Voorlinden

I am very lucky to live close to the Voorlinden art gallery and visiting this month made me realise just how much I’ve missed having gallery visits in my life over the past two years. Perhaps Voorlinden had this in mind with their exhibition ‘Art is the antidote’. Featuring works of Sean Scully, Etel Adnan and Pascale Marthine Tayou, to name but a few, this was a blast of colour to reawaken the senses.

‘One and one is three’ offers yet more colour – I particularly liked the work of Anouk Kruithof, whose wall consists of around 3500 books, bought in Antiquarian book stores in Berlin and mostly written during the DDR. The individual stories combine to evoke an abstract landscape. It brings to mind strata, layer upon layer of history, memories and stories. The mesmerising work of Olafur Eliasson explores colour theory and spatial perception. Three transparent discs rotate slowly, each disc holding a colour filter in cyan, magenta and yellow. Elliptical patterns meander and dance along the walls, constantly changing and poetically combining to make a performance I could watch all day.

Finally Beat Zoderer’s ‘Less is more’ exhibition of constructivist art again provides a vibrant journey through colour, made using anything from wool to concrete to strip lights. The artist sets the framework of his art with the choice of materials, but there is no formula or method that guides the work; it is purely intuitive, a spontaneous process in an attempt to create order out of chaos. In may ways a similar process to weaving.

Kunstuitleen Voorburg: 40 year anniversary

Celebrating its 40th anniversary, the Kunstuitleen Voorburg has taken us to the artist’s gardens with its Lustrum exhibition, running throughout May. My most recent work, ‘Night garden’, is part of this exhibition. Combining collage and painting techniques on canvas, which is then further embellished with embroidery, this piece is available to rent or buy from the gallery.

Until next time…

Thank you for your interest and support; I wish you all the very best and hope to see you again for my next blog in June. If you’d like to see more of my work and inspirations, I post regularly on Instagram @veronicapock and my work is available online at LiminalWEAVE on Etsy.