Stitched Nature Still Life Workshop with Emily Jo GibbS
18th and 19th September 2021
£130
Emily is a British Artist who over the last two decades has established an international reputation for her delicate textiles.
Emily has received significant critical acclaim and examples of her work are in The Victoria and Albert Museum, The Crafts Council Collection and The Museum of Fine Art, Houston. She is a member of Contemporary Applied Arts, The 62 Group of Textile Artists, and is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Arts.
Emily became interested in the idea of nature tables that give gravitas and reference to collections of knobbly sticks, grass and other natural treasures. She started making hand embroidered drawings of sticks in Jam Jars, enjoying the quiet beauty of these everyday items.
Alongside her commission based Art practice Emily regularly teaches short courses and gives talks; for a variety of clients including: The V&A, Art in Action, Embroiderers Guilds, Rochester Art Gallery, Oxfordshire Museum and West Dean College.
Emily Jo Gibbs’ work has frequently appeared in national and international press and publications including: Crafts, Elle, Embroidery, Marie Claire, Period Living, Tatler, The Financial Times, The Telegraph, The Independent and Vogue.
WORKSHOPS: Working from sticks or cuttings in pots and jam jars you will create a delicate textile collage using layering and hand stitch.
With an emphasis on really looking at the subject, studying shape, colour, shadows and refraction and using drawing and photography to experiment with composition, you will build an appliqué. This will become the basis for your stitch and you will learn Emily’s intricate looking but actually extremely simple style. You will use long and short stitches to bring your work to life with texture and colour.
Please read the covid guidelines below before booking
Where will the workshops take place?
Unless social distancing rules change we will be embracing the outdoors and working between gazebos and where necessary the studio space. Outside the studio is a large patio area which houses the outdoor classrooms. The format is 2 people spaced apart at the end of the tables. All tables are separated and at the edges of the space. The tutor will have a teaching desk to work from. Students will be mostly outdoors and asked to wear a mask indoors. Common sense will be applied at all times but even outdoors some may feel more comfortable wearing a mask. Visors are also provided for anybody who wishes to wear them. All students are expected to respect each other’s space and safety at all times.
You are advised to bring layers of clothing as the Welsh weather is a little unpredictable.
I will update this nearer to the time.
What happens if the pandemic is ongoing and government restrictions do not allow workshops at the allocated time?
The workshops will adhere to ALL guidelines and will absolutely only take place if it is safe to do so. No risks will be taken. Please read the T’s and C;s and Covid Guidelines below.
Should I book a workshop if I am unsure what will be happening in 2021 with the pandemic?
This is a difficult one. I can give my opinion and explain my experiences if it helps. I cannot control lockdowns, travel restrictions, and the potential for us to need to postpone a workshop. In 2020 I postponed many guest workshops, but my team and I ran lots of regular classes via zoom and returned to small in person workshops in mid-September. We worked with Welsh Government to keep creative classes running safely as they are so important for wellbeing.
In the first term of 2021 in the second lockdown, we held all workshops online. From May onwards all in-person workshops have taken place in the outdoor classrooms. The students and tutors have adapted together and enjoyed the experience. The studio is accessible for use of machinery and materials. The students enter in small numbers to work in the studio, but are based under the gazebos just outside. I believe we are now more prepared than ever with distancing measures, PPE etc and in general people are more willing to take part in organised activities that they deem safe - whereas initially nothing felt safe! It has been so good for everybody’s mental health to get creating again at the studio and outdoors. If booking a workshop gives you something to look forward to, then it can only be a good thing. We all need a bit of hope and I sincerely hope the guest workshops will see these incredible tutors share their talents with the Beth Morris Workshops community.