Farsley’s Sunny Bank Mills will later this month exhibit a collection of work led by weaver and artist, Hannah Robson. The series of dynamic woven textiles was produced using an industrial loom that was in disrepair at Bradford College until 2021.
Arts Council England, Bradford College and Leeds Inspired are supporting The Jacquard Project, enabling a team led by Hannah to bring the machine back to life. Local loom tuners and weavers have replaced parts, serviced the loom and offered advice. Other local artists* have developed the fabrics.
Hannah: “I wanted to work with other artists* to open up the process of weaving, which can be very technical and hard to access outside of an industrial setting. Weaving is a magical process that offers infinite possibilities in terms of design, colour, and surface. It has been stimulating for me to see how each collaboration has unfolded, and the results are distinct and surprising.”
The Jacquard Project celebrates the weaving heritage of West Yorkshire through creative exchange and collaboration. These new textiles have a contemporary and conceptual edge, presented as large panels on wooden frames. The cloths carry evidence of the making process – the experimentation and exploration, colour and scale variations, yarn testing, and the glitches of the loom. Visitors to the exhibition can literally follow the threads to see how the work of one artist blends into another’s, and so on.
The show will take place on the first floor of the iconic 1912 Mill at Sunny Bank Mills, in Farsley near Leeds – itself a former worsted mill and weaver of fine cloth. The year 2023 marks ten years of arts and culture at the Mills, and this exhibition forms part of that year-long celebration.
The Jacquard Project Exhibition 22-26th March
Sunny Bank Mills, 1912 Mill, Leeds
Opening Hours 10 am – 4 pm; Entrance is free.
www.sunnybankmills.co.uk
*Alice Chandler (jeweller), Anna Ray (mixed-media artist), James Thompson (sculptor), and Jodie Posen (weaver).
Cover photograph: Fruit fabric on the loom, designed by Anna Ray and developed by Hannah Robson.
