I am an artist who is interested in the transformative power of quilting. Be it the transformation of an otherwise “superficial” object into one with soul and depth when quilted together or the personal transformation that occurs through the meditative process of its creation. I am interested in people who resist trends and over consumption. The people who in essence wear the same outfit day in and day out until the garments are too thread barren, too paint stained, too ripped & torn to be re-patched and are, at last, un-wearable. I’ve been saving these masterpieces from the trash heap by collecting them from their makers and am stitching them into patchwork wall hangings and meshing them with icons of popular culture
Hayley Brookes
As a textile artist I am inspired by tradition. However, in today's market all artists aspire to look for something diffrent.
I have taken inspiration from New York based textile artist Julie Floersch, and have begun producing my own patchwork and quilted items, which incorporate both vintage and contemporary fabrics, often featuring my own illustrative prints.
The two denim items, created with recycled jeans, use traditional patchwork methods and combine with my own printed fabrics to create a vibrant piece of functional art. Both were exhibited in the 'Denim ID' Exhibition at Urban Outfitters, Birmingham in April 2010. My aims with the jewellery piece were to produce a piece of traditional patchwork that functions in a new way - a wearable piece of patchwork that functions outside the traditional throw or quilt.
I am now moving my quilted work forward, and am beginning to produce large-scale digital prints of my illustrations which are embellished through quilting and embroidery.
