Cultural Threads Symposium

Following on from the great success of our November Clothes, Cloth and Culture Group focusing on the new publication Cultural Threads we’re pleased to share details of the official book launch at Central Saint Martins on Saturday the 7^th of February.

07 Feb 2015

11:00 to 16:30

A day-long symposium about contemporary textile practices and multiple cultural influences to mark the launch of Cultural Threads (Bloomsbury: 2015).

Speakers include: Christine Checinska, Godfried Donkor, Françoisé Dupre, Jessica Hemmings, Toril Johannessen, Jasleen Kaur, Sarat Maharaj and Sarah Rhodes.

The event is free and open to the public although it is essential that bookings are made in advance:

bookings@jessicahemmings.com

The book features a chapter from Christine Checinska, currently Library Animateur at the Stuart Hall Library. Recordings of our November event can be found here. 

'Cultural Threads' listen to the panel discussion at the Clothes Cloth & Culture Group

Jasleen Kaur

Dr. Jessica Hemmings, editor of
'Cultural Threads: transnational textiles today'

The November 2014 Clothes Cloth & Culture Group meeting was a panel discussion to mark the publication of  'Cultural Threads: transnational textiles today'. The panel consisted of the editor Dr. Jessica Hemmings, contributors to the book and the featured artists and designers : Dr. Christine Checinska, Sarah Rhodes and Jasleen Kaur. Curator Dr. Jenny Doussan responded to the publication as an external voice.

Audio recordings of the of event are available to stream at the bottom of the page.

Cultural Threads considers contemporary artists and designers who work at the intersection of cultures and use textiles as their vehicle. Ideas about belonging to multiple cultures, which can result in a sense of connection to everywhere and nowhere, are more pertinent to society today than ever. So too are the layers of history - often overlooked - behind the objects that make up our material world.

The publication closely mirrors many of the aims and interests of the Clothes, Cloth and Culture Group. For example, in seeking to demystify postcolonial theory and show how it is embodied and articulated through textiles. The emphasis on textiles as a record of lived experience also recalls the ‘conversationals' or items of clothing or cloth that our presenters have used to introduce themselves and which exemplify their interest in and human connection to the subject.

Sarah Rhodes

Dr Jenny Doussan  & Dr Christine Checinska