A PLACE for the ARTS
presents
Flora, Fauna, Fibres
Colleen Thomson, Diana Kennedy, Ester Grav, Heather Lawrie, Jackie Sylvester
From July 29th to August 30th in the Annex Gallery
About the Exhibit
This exhibition is the result of a shared vision among five friends brought together by their deep appreciation for nature and natural materials. Working with wool, silk, cotton, and linen as their base, they each create distinctive and expressive art pieces.
Some members of the group have collaborated for over 30 years, while others joined within the past five, bringing fresh perspectives to a long-standing creative bond. Together, they travel to study with master felters and botanical printers, and have also invited international instructors to lead workshops in Eastern Ontario.
While this marks their first exhibition as a collective gallery group, they have previously shown their work together through weaving and spinning guilds, as well as individually in galleries and shops. They are excited to unite their diverse talents in this exhibition, offering a rich and eclectic showcase of their artistry.
Some members of the group have collaborated for over 30 years, while others joined within the past five, bringing fresh perspectives to a long-standing creative bond. Together, they travel to study with master felters and botanical printers, and have also invited international instructors to lead workshops in Eastern Ontario.
While this marks their first exhibition as a collective gallery group, they have previously shown their work together through weaving and spinning guilds, as well as individually in galleries and shops. They are excited to unite their diverse talents in this exhibition, offering a rich and eclectic showcase of their artistry.
About the Artists
Colleen Thomson
Fabric and fibre has been in her life since she was old enough to treadle her mother’s sewing machine.
A trip to New Zealand in 1971 opened her eyes to the World of Wool in all its glorious capabilities. On her return to Canada she enrolled in weaving classes at Loyalist College. Since then she has expanded her skills by taking courses with local, Canadian and International tutors. She has studied : weaving, spinning, felting, silk painting, natural dyeing and botanical printing. All of these influence and appear in many of her works.
Colleen says:
Wool is an integral part of my life. It’s renewable. It’s warm. It’s fire resistant. It’s a great insulator. It’s water repellent. It’s malleable. It’s readily available. It comes in many natural shades. Sheep provide us with food, fertilizer, lawnmowers.
Then came other natural fibres, silk, linen, cotton, and hemp. All of these provide similar benefits. Then natural rather than chemical dyes entered my life. I’ve learned to spin, weave, knit, felt, dye and print. I use all of these to inform my art. I pick and choose which fibre and which technique will best express my ideas best. In this exhibition I’m focusing on felting and botanical printing to interpret my natural world, both plant and animal life.
Fabric and fibre has been in her life since she was old enough to treadle her mother’s sewing machine.
A trip to New Zealand in 1971 opened her eyes to the World of Wool in all its glorious capabilities. On her return to Canada she enrolled in weaving classes at Loyalist College. Since then she has expanded her skills by taking courses with local, Canadian and International tutors. She has studied : weaving, spinning, felting, silk painting, natural dyeing and botanical printing. All of these influence and appear in many of her works.
Colleen says:
Wool is an integral part of my life. It’s renewable. It’s warm. It’s fire resistant. It’s a great insulator. It’s water repellent. It’s malleable. It’s readily available. It comes in many natural shades. Sheep provide us with food, fertilizer, lawnmowers.
Then came other natural fibres, silk, linen, cotton, and hemp. All of these provide similar benefits. Then natural rather than chemical dyes entered my life. I’ve learned to spin, weave, knit, felt, dye and print. I use all of these to inform my art. I pick and choose which fibre and which technique will best express my ideas best. In this exhibition I’m focusing on felting and botanical printing to interpret my natural world, both plant and animal life.
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Diana Kennedy
Creating, imagining, playing have always been a part of my life. Art is a beautiful way of connecting and interpreting the world we live in. A walk through the forest, beside the lake, through a snowstorm is always an inspiration. I try to express my interpretations through the use of fibres and flora in this time-honoured tradition.
I have always been a tactile person, pursuing many different venues. Exploring textiles in painting, quilting, sewing, pottery, collage and floral art. As covid struck, I discovered the world of wool fibres and have continued to explore and enjoy the unlimited doors this has opened. The challenges of combining wool ,fibres and floral design are exciting. My skills are ever evolving, expanding in new ways. Many courses have been taken both locally and internationally. Zoom classes have been wonderful, opening the world in so many ways. Combining fibres and floral art is always an adventure
Creating, imagining, playing have always been a part of my life. Art is a beautiful way of connecting and interpreting the world we live in. A walk through the forest, beside the lake, through a snowstorm is always an inspiration. I try to express my interpretations through the use of fibres and flora in this time-honoured tradition.
I have always been a tactile person, pursuing many different venues. Exploring textiles in painting, quilting, sewing, pottery, collage and floral art. As covid struck, I discovered the world of wool fibres and have continued to explore and enjoy the unlimited doors this has opened. The challenges of combining wool ,fibres and floral design are exciting. My skills are ever evolving, expanding in new ways. Many courses have been taken both locally and internationally. Zoom classes have been wonderful, opening the world in so many ways. Combining fibres and floral art is always an adventure
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Esther Grav
Esther has been weaving, Spinning & dyeing since the mid 1970’s. She obtained the OHS Weaving certificate, in 1990. She has also taken the Spinning certificate course in Owen Sound. Over the last 20 years she has been actively pursuing her interest in Wet Felting and more recently learning about Botanical Printing on fabric and paper. She has travelled to many countries and taken courses from Master Felter’s and Botanical Printers
Esther is a member of the Belleville Weavers & Spinners Guild, the Kingston Handloom Weavers & Spinners Guild & the Ontario Handweavers & Spinners. Esther is an artist member of the Art’s on Main Gallery in Picton, since 2022.
Esther owns What’s Weft (since 1983). Which is a supplier of Ashford weaving & spinning equipment & fibre supplies. Other supplies include hand dyed silks, natural dye products & an assortment of accessories for felting, spinning & weaving.
As a Fibre Artist, Esther believes in preserving the traditions of Weaving, Spinning & Wet Felting, to ensure these techniques are passed onto future generations. Her work involves One-Of-A-Kind hand crafted items.
Esther has been weaving, Spinning & dyeing since the mid 1970’s. She obtained the OHS Weaving certificate, in 1990. She has also taken the Spinning certificate course in Owen Sound. Over the last 20 years she has been actively pursuing her interest in Wet Felting and more recently learning about Botanical Printing on fabric and paper. She has travelled to many countries and taken courses from Master Felter’s and Botanical Printers
Esther is a member of the Belleville Weavers & Spinners Guild, the Kingston Handloom Weavers & Spinners Guild & the Ontario Handweavers & Spinners. Esther is an artist member of the Art’s on Main Gallery in Picton, since 2022.
Esther owns What’s Weft (since 1983). Which is a supplier of Ashford weaving & spinning equipment & fibre supplies. Other supplies include hand dyed silks, natural dye products & an assortment of accessories for felting, spinning & weaving.
As a Fibre Artist, Esther believes in preserving the traditions of Weaving, Spinning & Wet Felting, to ensure these techniques are passed onto future generations. Her work involves One-Of-A-Kind hand crafted items.
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Heather Lawrie
Heather Lawrie returned to creating as rehabilitation after a serious concussion. She began her journey with felting and found the tactile nature therapeutic. In 2015 Heather experienced Marta Mouka’s Botanical Printing, and instantly fell in love with using leaves and natural dyes to create. The science of the dyes combined with nature was captivating. Utilizing her knowledge from her degree in Applied Fashion Design from Toronto Metropolitan University and 13 years of experience in the fashion industry she began creating garments. Heather has traveled worldwide to learn technical skills from a variety of textile artists enabling her to coax imprints from the leaves onto the fabrics or paper.
At the Art Gallery of Bancroft's Annual Juried Show Heather has earned Honourable Mention Fibre, Multimedia for her upcycled botanical printed linen dress in 2018, won First Place for her Still Life framed print titled “Every Leaf a Hallelujah” in 2022 and First Place again for her Abstract Surrealist wallhanging “Evening Sun” in 2023.
You can find her work at Art Gallery of Bancroft, A Place for the Arts, Art on 62, and Old Hastings Mercantile & Gallery.
Heather now lives in Gilmour, an ideal location to explore nature and collect specimens for her art. To reduce environmental impact, Heather often upcycles fabric, and is keen to work with clients to renew preloved textiles and garments or create memories of their cherished gardens.
Heather Lawrie returned to creating as rehabilitation after a serious concussion. She began her journey with felting and found the tactile nature therapeutic. In 2015 Heather experienced Marta Mouka’s Botanical Printing, and instantly fell in love with using leaves and natural dyes to create. The science of the dyes combined with nature was captivating. Utilizing her knowledge from her degree in Applied Fashion Design from Toronto Metropolitan University and 13 years of experience in the fashion industry she began creating garments. Heather has traveled worldwide to learn technical skills from a variety of textile artists enabling her to coax imprints from the leaves onto the fabrics or paper.
At the Art Gallery of Bancroft's Annual Juried Show Heather has earned Honourable Mention Fibre, Multimedia for her upcycled botanical printed linen dress in 2018, won First Place for her Still Life framed print titled “Every Leaf a Hallelujah” in 2022 and First Place again for her Abstract Surrealist wallhanging “Evening Sun” in 2023.
You can find her work at Art Gallery of Bancroft, A Place for the Arts, Art on 62, and Old Hastings Mercantile & Gallery.
Heather now lives in Gilmour, an ideal location to explore nature and collect specimens for her art. To reduce environmental impact, Heather often upcycles fabric, and is keen to work with clients to renew preloved textiles and garments or create memories of their cherished gardens.
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Jackie Sylvester
Ranging from woven art textiles, sculptural felt to botanical prints her eclectic practice explores the relationship between the constant changes in water, waves, wind and the clouds viewed from her home on the shore of Lake Ontario. Closely attuned to the rain and vegetative growth around her they influence the dense layering of the raw materials she works with. She uses local leaves, bio-degradable wool, natural silk and cottons to express texture, colour and movement.
Her interest in texture, shape, colour and textiles developed from her work as a Studio Artist with Design Senior in the early 70’s. Segueing out of her career in residential design, she joined the Kingston Handloom Weavers and Spinners 21 years ago, teaches at Conferences and Guild workshops, and further explores her medium studying with international artists in Felt and Botanical Printing. She has been fortunate to study under Fiona Duthie, Liz Clay, Caroline Nixon, Marjolein Dallinga, Pam de Groot among many who helped hone her interests.
Her fibre pieces are unique; the layering techniques giving ethereal dimensions or strong tangible forms. Her textiles shout with colour, structure, and originality, conveying emotion and rhythm. Her Botanical prints have a delicate definition.
Ranging from woven art textiles, sculptural felt to botanical prints her eclectic practice explores the relationship between the constant changes in water, waves, wind and the clouds viewed from her home on the shore of Lake Ontario. Closely attuned to the rain and vegetative growth around her they influence the dense layering of the raw materials she works with. She uses local leaves, bio-degradable wool, natural silk and cottons to express texture, colour and movement.
Her interest in texture, shape, colour and textiles developed from her work as a Studio Artist with Design Senior in the early 70’s. Segueing out of her career in residential design, she joined the Kingston Handloom Weavers and Spinners 21 years ago, teaches at Conferences and Guild workshops, and further explores her medium studying with international artists in Felt and Botanical Printing. She has been fortunate to study under Fiona Duthie, Liz Clay, Caroline Nixon, Marjolein Dallinga, Pam de Groot among many who helped hone her interests.
Her fibre pieces are unique; the layering techniques giving ethereal dimensions or strong tangible forms. Her textiles shout with colour, structure, and originality, conveying emotion and rhythm. Her Botanical prints have a delicate definition.
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