"Migration is the defining issue of our time. How each individual, group, industry and family choose to respond to this subject will shape the foundations of our future communities".
Sky, 2018
I haven't been to an exhibition of Alice Kettle's textile work for a while. The last time was in Greenwich (here), so whilst on a visit to Manchester it was a pleasure to catch this latest exhibition at the Whitworth. Kettle truly has a magical way with thread, and this new series of embroidered works have been executed on an epic scale and are dense with both texture and colour. So vast is the scale of the pieces, and so skilful and painterly are Kettle's ways with thread, that on walking into the exhibition space the initial impact of the three major pieces that constitute Thread Bearing Witness was reminiscent of that of walking into the lower room of the Orangerie in Paris and encountering Monet's Nymphéas series of paintings. The preoccupying theme of the exhibition is migration, as the artist has been working with various groups of refugees encouraging them to depict their stories in paint and thread, and a good deal of the exhibition space has been given over to the display of the refugees own artistic endeavours. The three large pieces of artwork upon which the exhibition is centred are entitled Sky, Sea, and Ground, depicting the various means by which the refugees journeyed. Sky, and Ground, cleverly include Kettle's embroidered interpretations of the refugee's original drawings as well as text, giving the feeling of a collaged wall of graffiti dense with imagery. Sky also contains a variety of bird forms and kites all pertaining to the air on a light aerial backdrop. Ground has some wonderful details including the homes we build on its surface, as well as a mixture of flora and fauna on a suitably earthy ground of fiery terracotta and ochre hues. Sea, though, is the most emotive as we see the many disembodied heads of figures, literally out of their depth trying to keep their heads above water. There are also many bodies desperately swimming, and others lifeless, having failed and succumbed to the deep, unable through exhaustion in their endeavours against the power of the sea, to complete the journey and the hope of a new beginning. Kettle has created a series of powerful works on a huge scale which relate a compelling narrative in thread in a similar way to that of the Bayeux Tapestry.
This balloon floats behind and references the Sky embroidery panel.
Ground, 2018
Sea, 2018
These are images from the Stitch a Tree (2017-18) collaborative project with other artists and organisations and features 3,000 individual hand-stitched trees sewn in support of the plight of refugees. They occupy the wall space of one end of the gallery in the exhibition. The individual trees beocme a forest. A vast forest planted on the walls of the gallery. I enjoyed seeing the varying levels of skills with needlework - from amateur to professional, and how the embroiders experimented with different types of stitch and knot to depict their own individual tree. The contributing groups have also created a variety of textile sculptures for the exhibition. You can also read about another artist who worked with textiles and other personal effects to create an exhibition based on migration and the refugee experience here.
Alice Kettle: Thread Bearing Witness
until 24th February 2019
Whitworth Art Gallery
Oxford Road
Manchester
