#design Archives - Page 4 of 4

17th November 20144th July 2018

Kaffe Fassett Exhibition 2014 at the American Museum, Bath

The colourful collections of Kaffe Fassett have been on exhibition at the American Museum in Bath all summer, in a detached building set away from the main museum at Claverton Manor.
When I visited in early autumn, the building was partly hidden behind a large tree covered in textile ‘lanterns’ and shrouded in mist. It was a mystical treasure waiting to be discovered.
Entering the building I felt an immediate assault on my senses of COLOUR!
The main theme running through the entire exhibition was colour, colour and more colour detailing the knitting, needlework and patchwork of Kaffe. His mind must be in a constant whirlwind of colour.
Although I found his large pieces stunning and the level of stitch and design involved in their creation fascinating, some of my favourite pieces were his mood board displays, detailing his journey of ideas, from initial inspiration through to the final designs and collections.
Here are some of the photos from the day.

11th November 201430th June 2018

Poppies at the Tower of London 2014

Blood Swept Lands and Seas of Red.
Created by ceramic artist Paul Cummins, with setting by stage designer Tom Piper, 88,246 ceramic poppies have slowly filled the Tower’s famous moat over the summer, the last poppy being planted on the 11th November 2014 as part of the Armistice Remembrance Day. Each poppy representing a British and Commonwealth military fatality during WW1.

I visited on a day when the sun was shining. It was a sight to behold seeing a glinting sea of red. The expanse of the installation is breathtaking and quite moving when one thinks of its significance.

Dismantling of the display will start after Armistice. A portion of the installation will tour the UK and later go on display at London’s Imperial War Museum. Each poppy has been sold off to raise funds for Service and Military Charities.
Here are some of the images from the Tower of London.

Each poppy sits on a metal stake, placed firmly in the soft earth

The Wave Display

A glinting Sea of Red

The second of two Weeping displays

One of the two Weeping displays

Poppies laid on the ground

Volunteers laying the last few poppies

Here are some panoramic shots I took.

I wanted to remember the expanse of the display and the huge crowds of people.

29th September 20143rd September 2021

“Secret Messages” Bletchley Park Quilt Exhibiton 2012 – Enigma

For those in the know, Bletchley Park needs no explaining…..

For those who have yet to discover it, Bletchley Park (or Station X) was the hub of the British decoding and cipher unit in WW2 and it was here that the mathematical brains of many including the brilliant and gifted Alan Turing solved the puzzle of the German Enigma Machine and developed the first computer – Colossos.
I am a huge history buff and bore my family senseless with the facts and figures of historical events – it all fascinates me, particularly how one event leads and merges with another and why one occurrence is the catalyst to another larger event.

In 2012, Bletchley Park hosted a quilt exhibition – the theme was “Secret Messages” – celebrating Station X and the 100th anniversary of Turing’s birth. Anyone could submit work to the exhibition ….. so I did…..

This piece was inspired by the secret documentation used in operations and planning for the D-Day landings on 6th June 1944 – the ticker-tape design is taken from one used to feed into Colossos. The mathematical formula is part of Turing’s work in solving Enigma. The Union Flag was foundation pieced and formed the starting point of the design.
The piece was a joy to make – lots of surface design and messing about. I wanted it to look like a well used document….. Made using Irish Linen, the pillowcase method, top stitched edges by hand with no binding….. this is how I made it….. I wanted it to look like an old document.