Art to Wear

ART

Art to Wear

interview by Karolina Barnes, photography and images by Jilli Blackwood

With an impressive portfolio to her name, which includes projects featured in the United States Consulate in Edinburgh, the Scottish Government, Standard Life Aberdeen plc, and Biocon in Bangalore as well as in many private collections around the world, while also being the Director of Costume for the 2010 Commonwealth Games Flag Handover Ceremony in Delhi, Jilli Blackwood is a globally celebrated textile artist and designer. Her unique embroidery signature style is defined by continually experimenting with the interrelationships of the traditional textile processes of weaving, dying and embroidery.

In this exclusive interview we talk to Jilli about her unique style, pattern play, inspiration and the way she approaches her design work.

“Rhythm” 183 cm x 244cm, photo credit Gregor Reid

1. When did you realise you have passion for art?

At school, my strengths lay in cookery and art. I realised some years ago when giving a talk to 16 year old school students that having a narrow band of strengths was actually a plus and not a minus as it helped me to focus on what I was good at from a young age.

I attended the world-renowned Glasgow School of Art and specialised in Embroidery and Weaving. This department was unique as it taught students skills in the areas of fine art textiles, interior fabric design, fashion fabric design and product design.

I graduated with a First Class Honours degree and a thirst to get my work out into the world. I have worked on many different projects throughout my 30 year career. I began by working with couturier designers and interior designers, creating short lengths of labour intensive embroidered and woven fabrics. In the late 1980s I was invited to exhibit my work at the Craft Council “Chelsea Craft Fair” in London which pushed me in the direction of making products. I created hats, “Art to Wear” pieces, cushions and bed throws. At this point I was producing items for American interior designers, an agent in Japan and an independent store in Berlin.

In 1998, I received my first public art commission. This was for British Telecom (BT) headquarters in Edinburgh. For the following ten years I focussed my attention on creating art and textiles for this market. My work is featured in many collections, among them the United States Consulate in Edinburgh, the Scottish Government, Standard Life Aberdeen plc, and Biocon in Bangalore. My work is also found in many private collections around the world.

The economic climate changed in 2008 and I moved my attention to design. I was invited to be the Director of Costume for the 2010 Commonwealth Games Flag Handover Ceremony in Delhi, where I dressed 350 Scots men and women in a contemporary, digitally-printed, embroidered tartan. Seeing my work on such a scale and the impact that it created was an unforgettable moment.

“Nirvana” 133cm x 136cm, photo credit Gregor Reid

Another global design project I have spearheaded was the design of the parade uniforms for Team Scotland’s entrance to the 2014 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow. I designed a tartan inspired by the colours of Scotland to create a high-impact statement which would make Team Scotland iconic in memory and appearance. My designs and colour palette ruffled a few feathers as the outfits were striking, but, if everyone had simply seen the uni-forms and said “That’s nice.”, I would have felt I had got it very wrong. I wanted to create something that would go down in history and be remembered.

As to what I am doing now, I have launched my new website, re-branded my company and created a limited edition book of my work. After years of hoping social media would just go away, I have turned my attention to it. I am facing what I fear, always the best way forward for me and now I am embracing it all!

It’s the variety of projects which I work on that keeps my interest and energy alive for what I do. Working on a one-to-one base with a client to create a bespoke piece of “Art to Wear”, designing for a company such as Heathrow Airport, or working on an “unpainted painting”, for a corporate client is the inspiration that drives me every day.

2. How would you describe your style in life and your work? How did you find it?

My style in life is very simple. I rise early and go to bed early. I eat well, I bake my own bread, I have porridge every morning. I practice meditation and yoga daily. This way of life suits my creative energy and keeps me balanced in everything I face during the day.

As to my own look and style, I laugh at myself when it comes to what I wear when I am working in the studio as it definitely couldn’t be described as chic. I put on comfortable clothes as I am either dying fabric and yarn, working on a piece on my studio floor, or hauling a heavily embroidered work to the wall to have some space to stand back and consider where I am with it before I put it back under the sewing machine. Therefore, I need to wear something that isn’t restrictive.

The real Jilli Blackwood appears when I am going out – I like to put on one of my “Art to Wear” creations, a Jilli Blackwood top hat and a scarf. I love Autumn, Winter and Spring, as these seasons suit my wardrobe.

In 1985, I met with the iconic fashion designer, Miss Jean Muir. While appraising my work, she pointed to a small sample attached to the end of a piece and said, “I would like to see this in a metre square”. Her kind words about this sample set me thinking and I experimented further with the sample and, eventually, developed my signature “Slash and Show” style. Miss Muir had put me on my path!

As to how I keep coming up with new ideas, I put this down to understanding my inner self better and to recognising the moment when magic truly happens. My process of art and craft is a concentrated, complex and time-consuming practice. The working process is a constant re-evaluation of my decisions as my pieces evolve.

“Rhythm” 183 cm x 244cm, photo credit Gregor Reid

3. How important is colour and pattern in your art work?

I am a colourist at heart. I like to hand-dye my yarns and fabric, controlling the colour and not making do with what is available to buy. Colour is fundamental in everything that I do, it is one of my creative sparks! Colour has the power to resonate with the viewer on a deep level.

The fusion of colour, pattern and texture are the ingredients in the creation of all my work, be it a piece of “Art to Wear”, an “unpainted painting” or a throw for a bed. The combination of colour, pattern and texture allows for endless possibilities and outcomes.

4. You have a very unique way of creating your art? Can you describe the process?

My working practice involves different stages. The very first stage – the dye stage – involves colouring my natural fabrics and yarns. This is where the relationship starts to build between the textile and myself, and it is a hugely exciting part of the whole process of creation.

Drawing from within my memory of colour combinations and a little bit of happenstance, I build a body of fabric: silks, wools, linens and cottons in contrasting colours and soft hues which bleed into one another. Just as a painter mixes oil paints to create their palette, I create my palette in diverse fabrics and colours. I am the painter who paints with fabric.

The series of actions which follow continues and deepens my relationship with the piece. Every piece is unique – sometimes hand embroidery will follow, other times it will be machine embroidery and on other occasions I weave. Sometimes a combination of all three techniques is employed to create the textured surfaces.

I like to mount the piece on a wall in my studio and take a step back to assess where I am and to take a look at the work’s progression. This is the intuitive stage when the relationship is at its strongest. Here, I feel my way forward by listening to my heart.

“Millennium Kilt No.1” 61cm x 142cm, photo credit Debbie Pipe

5. Where do you find your inspiration? Have you got mentors or other artists you look up to?

I wish I could say my inspiration comes directly from nature, for example, as it would be so much easier to explain. However, it is more complicated than that. It’s all about a feeling I have for something. The inspiration for whatever I am working on is deep within me. I think the process for me is about looking at the world in an unconscious manner, letting influences come in and allowing them to filter through my being and then the idea comes forward at the most surprising moments.

The most inspirational part of creation is the beginning. The starting point, that moment when I begin a work of art is crucial. Sometimes the timing just isn’t right. It’s difficult to explain but delaying starting by a day or two can make all the difference as to how the piece progresses and evolves. Waiting for the right moment is such an important part of my creative process. I need the time to think thoroughly about what I am about to do, the time to hold the idea in my mind’s eye until I feel confident and comfortable with it. Then, and only then, it is the time to begin.

As regards artists, I think Barbara Hepworth is fascinating, both for her art and her life. I greatly admire Matisse for his sense of colour. I enjoy reading books about the lives of artists. I like to discover what was happening at the beginning, middle and end of their careers and to understand and appreciate their struggles artistically, mentally and personally. I am also interested to know how they maintained their creativity and, on a pragmatic note, how they generated commissions. I tend not to look at artists within my field as I don’t want to be influenced by them.

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