Royal College of Art – Part 2 Textile Design

So, now for the second part of the RCA final shows. The departments included here were Fashion & Textiles, Architecture, Automotive Design, Animation, Communication Art & Design, Innovative Design & Engineering, Design Interactions and Art History. I’ll focus on textiles for this blog but please contact me for information on any of the other departments.

Textiles was noticeably stronger this year in all aspects: design, innovation and technical ability. I wasn’t the only one to notice. Creativity flourishes in a recession; new ways of thinking and working must develop as the established ways are no longer effective. There is no safety or security so go for it and see where you end up.

It was good to see  that one of the NEWH Scholarship winners, Imogen Luddy from multimedia textiles, had made her  lasercut cross stitch table as hoped. Her sensitive use of the combination of traditional techniques with digital processes creates original yet accessible pieces.

Weave is an area where I find handle and drape is sometimes compromised for structure. Not so this year: all the weavers understood that their samples should feel as good as they look. Covetable wool throws and lengths by Mary Penny were sophisticated and very useable.

If rich colour is your thing then Emma Bradbury’s knitted silk scarves, inspired by the colours of Ladakh,  hit the mark. Nothing  revolutionary but the colours and combinations are sensual and rich. Her work grew on me the more I looked at  it.

I’ve never seen machine embroidered animal hide before. Grace du Prez’s woolly tasselled and stitched rug and trimmed embroidered armchair were the largest pieces on her display. I unfortunately don’t have any images of her work which was beautifully made and finished, no mean feat given her materials.

Oh, yes, I can’t forget Jane Bowler’s pvc rainwear collection; inspired by a mix of japanese straw raincoats and the british mackintosh, they are pieces of kinetic sculpture. Just don’t try riding a bike in one.

There were many more but I can’t include them all – I’ve betrayed my mixed media textile background – it’s the freedom of expression and unusual combinations of materials that resonates.

The show runs   from the 25th till the 4th July at the College Galleries at the RCA.