Drawing with Thread - Work in Progress

Development - The Working Woman - Silhouette and Shape

The work of students at Central St Martins in 'Shirt Futures' recontextualises  the traditional shirt, proposing new forms and shapes.  I considered the evolving shape of the working woman in terms of her clothing.  I researched some current fashion magazines  and noted the often masculine shapes adopted by many designers.

Ideas and Development

Main themes arising from research and analysis

Symbolism of the Shirt - Made by women, worn by men

Creativity versus mechanisation/industrialisation

Sewing and stiching as metaphors - joining/holding/binding together

Constant repetitive action in the making of the garment

Past and present  - historical and contemporary - what does the past bring to the present

 Below:  Notes from Log

Proposal for final outcome of this module

 Proposal for Final Outcome - Six Paintings

In contemplating what interests me enough to sustain a prolonged period of study, I have concluded that the lives of women interests me most of all - this does not exclude my interest in magic and folklore but rather connects in many ways to that.

I'm a history graduate and as such, enjoy reading about and researching the lives of women - both famous and unknown. As the past informs the present, both historical and contemporary issues attract me.  One prominent aspect of the lives of the women of my own town of Derry was their involvement in the shirt making industry.  From the mid-Victorian period, Derry grew to become the shirt making capital of the world and employed thousands of women.  The women worked but many men did not - particularly in the 1950's and 1960's.

The inevitable decline of the industry took place in the twentieth century but the mark of this era can still be seen in the industrial architecture of the city and heard in the legacy of stories from women, including my own aunts and grandmothers, who were all involved to some extent in this process of 'making'.   I also worked in the office of one of these factories for a couple of years after I left college. 

The 'shirt' itself is a very symbolic garment - made almost exclusively by women and worn almost exclusively by men.

I do not want to illustrate a history of this city but I would like to draw upon what I know of  these women to produce works that evoke their stories without being literal in any way.

Through current research, one of the many artists I have looked at is Paula Rego.  I love her storytelling ability and her approach to the drawing and painting of the female figure.  Her work will be a reference throughout this module.  Rita Duffy's "Arctic Circus" and the work of textile artists Alice Kettle and Elizabeth Tarr (62 Group) also attracts me - although their medium is textiles, their work is distinctly painterly.

In conclusion, I do not want to pre-empt what format or even medium I might ultimately use  for this final assignment but my intention is to focus on the lives of women.  For this 'homage' to women, I will take inspiration from the lives of historical figures and the unknown and unsung heroines of today.

Directions

I have now 'nailed down' some ideas about how I want my work to develop and what the final outcome for this module might be.  A series of paintings are planned based on the lives of women but particularly the lives of women in my home town of Derry.

My proposal describes  how the shirt making industry made a huge impact on the social and economic history of this town from the mid-Victorian era until the 1990's. There were up to 20,000 women employed around the 1940's.  The legacy of this industry is woven into the very fabric and oral history of Derry.

 I'm also looking at the symbolism of 'the shirt'  and how it was made primarily by women and worn almost exclusively by men.  I'm playing around with the shirt itself and the idea of the women 'claiming' the shirt as their own and putting it on.

I'm also exploring issues around creativity, the home and how this industry, by its repetitive piecemeal nature denys creativity.

  Interior of a shirt factory

Source:  http://cain.ulst.ac.uk/othelem/fox.htm