What was the Enlightenment

The launch and also the closing of the Enlightenment Project took place last Sunday - launched and closed by the Victorian Arts Minister Peter Bachelor. I now have two fabric cubbies in my car port - not sure really what to do with them now. Any cubby lovers out there?

Here is the Minister & also a Councillor of the Macedon Ranges - wouldn't it been lovely if they hopped into the cubby and grinned from in there?


The day before was a Children's craft anoon hosted by the generous and hard working volunteer friends of the Kyneton Museum.




Speaking of brilliant cubbies and textiles work check out these ones below & for more information follow this link


I also love this perminant cubby made by children from the Melbourne University Early Learning Centre, souced from the blog Let the Children Play.

The Story of the Signature Quilt at Kyneton Museum

My role as an artist in the Enlightenment Project is to provide a more lively engagement (through interpretation) with stories triggered by significant objects and collections at the museum - as opposed to the use of text information panels.

Working mostly in textiles at the moment I was immediately attracted to their enmormous textile collection and also inspired by the wonderful show, The Presence of Things: sense, veneer and guise, curated by Stephen Gallenger way back in 2005. (sorry could only find awful links to this show!) In this show fourteen Australian artists and crafts practitioners created new contemporary art works response to the embroidery and lace collections of the Embroiderers Guild, Victoria. Simply new sunning works were made in response to selected pieces from the guild's collection and they were exhibited together - making for a sensory joy of possible links, leaps and relationships.

On my first visit to the Kyneton Museum on my residency I fell in love with the signature quilt - for its age, quality of stitch and it's story. The story of the signature quilt was shared with me by an extraordinary woman called Pat who has volunteered at the Museum for many years and knows the collection very well.

Way back in 1905 women from a local church decided to fund raise for a charity by making a quilt - not only were women involved who had extra ordinary stitching skills but locals were invited to participate through purchasing a quilt section and writing some text to be included on this leaving the donation and the message to be embroidered at the local milk bar. (I like this touch).

So the notion of community quilt is the direction I have taken this project - inviting community members to both donate fabric to be included in the quilts, to donate a patch or their time stitching them together. I will be posting soon the very first collection of fabric and quilt stories that have so far been donated.

Here is the twist in the project the final quilts will be shown on cubby - house like frames referencing the story of the museum how its form documents story of Kyneton. The museum being an icon architectural monument documenting the towns journey from a small settlement to a rich booming town with a large and grand bank being built.

I hope also to touch on an include sampler embroidery works I have recently had the pleasure of viewing at the museum last week - but more about these later in a future post.

More details about the signature quilt is detailed below.

346.00 Object Name : Table - Cloth
"AUTO GRAPHED TABLECLOTH"
Brief Description: Linen cloth embroidered with Kyneton local organisation symbols and the names/autographs/signatures of donors, by the congregational church ladies guild as a fundraiser for a mission to India in 1905. The cloth comprises seventeen sections stitched together with torchen lace insertions and edging. Bought by Mr Albert Young at a Dutch auction. Full list of transcriptions of names from the signature embroider is stored with card.
Length 2220mmm
Width 1610

Donated by the Kyneton Historical Society




The signature quilt




detail : torchen lace insertion



detail : embroidery patch




The resulting works will be on show during September during the annual Kyneton Daffodil Arts Festival. I hope through viewing these new works that the audience appreciate the historical relevance of stitch in community life. Also accessing objects/items from the museum that are rarely shown due to the challenges of showing textiles - their fragility and also sheer space that is required to show them.

Lastly I wanted to acknowledge here an artist who has worked a great deal with museum collections in Victoria Malcolm Mackinon

And from the UK a research project that is within a university, rather than a museum that collects clothing stories from the local project local communities and every day people.

And finally a note about a contemporary community fundraiser quilt project I have just been invited to participate in called Project Patch Work - but more about this later

Card board city - made by father and son
Image from the book called Heads On and We Shoot: The Making of Where the Wild Things Are

Remember yonks ago I was carrying on about this cardboard city - that I saw in the film Where the Wild things Are - I dearly love this work for it sheer playfulness and joy in making - not to mention the colours.

The Enlightenment Project Needs your enlightenment

Taking place at the Kyneton Museum, Victoria, Australia the Enlightenment Project is about creating interpretive material to tell stories triggered by the museum site of the old bank building and significant collections and objects it holds.

Inspired by the abundant textiles collection of the Kyneton Museum I am seeking memorable fabric scraps; it could be a treasured t-shirts, jeans or perhaps a tea towel.

Donations will be patched worked into cubby play for the Kyneton Daffodil Arts Festival this September at the Museum.

Drop off your fabric, clothing item, or table-cloth/tea towel with a 20 word memory statement to the Kyneton Museum. Please note donations will not be returned to the owner!

I am also seeking some stitches to stitch their hearts warm doing some English Paper Piercing - please leave a comment or email me info(at)tamaramarwood.com

Last night at the studio

Last night at my Tuesday night studio evening I finished off some packaging for a recent commission by the local government - possum costumes!

Then I did a bit of procrastination - from my last post you will see that I am starting a new project and just a bit reluctant to take that first big bite - come on MUMMA you can do it!


But I did turn my procrastination into something productive a little sewing project from a fantastic op shopped tea towel for me - covering my journal and my daily to do list book.

Other side projects I have on the go include sorting my business out and making business cards for my mum - check this fantastic sewing design idea for cards.

Here is my daughter's first sewing project I also mentioned in my last post - she is 3 and half - we did it next to the camp fire whilst camping last week - her brother did one - but his still is a work in progress - I made his a little more complicated. Wish I got some shots of them sewing - but really had to keep them focused and pour all of my attention onto them.

Gearing up for a new commission

This isn't my work - but from rubycrownkinglette, whom I often admire on flickr

I am collecting some images, some works that are propelling me into my next commission - The Enlightenment Project.

What I am liking here is the use of found material, whimsy and joy. I like the out door-i-ness and the collection of material to become.

Other works of mine that are ticking over include this little collection of oddments (which really what a museum is all about is it not - oddments?) Like these lovely little bits of rolled up paper.





When watching Where the Wild Things Are I nearly passed out to see in the little boy's bed room a city structure of some sort made up out of rolled up cardboard - oh to have a still of that scene.

This Friday on my visit to the museum again I need to take some additional shots of the outside collection of machines and sheds - full of inventions for men to make order of agriculture. All rusting and mostly weighing a tonne - but I like the idea of these bits and bobs complementing the shadow houses.

Actually it was a camping boredom distraction activity that I planned for the kids that has also fueled my need to make stuffed things. More about these creatures soon...

Introducing the Enlightenment Project

This year I am working as an artist on a variety of Central Victorian Projects, including the THE ENLIGHTENMENT PROJECT, with the Kyneton Museum and Macedon Ranges Shire Council

On Sunday I made my first visit to the museum and was taken by their amazing collecting of objects and also textiles. (not to mention the wonderful staff who I will really enjoy working with) This post documents the very beginning of my research and relationship with this venue.




The Enlightenment project is about creating interpretive material to tell stories triggered by the museum site of the old bank building and significant collections and objects it holds.

I was fortunate to be approached by another local artist Tara Gilbee to work on this project,.

Through collaboration between Kyneton Museum and the artist the Enlightenment Project 2009/2010 aims to;
• use multi-media to provide a more lively engagement with the museum site and its collections, rather than simply static artifact displays
• make Kyneton Museum collection and stories more accessible to the community
• increase Kynton Museums engagement with its local community

I think the staff at the Museum are doing a pretty good job engaging the local community - the day I attended the museum was very busy with lots of people of varying ages coming and also an exhibition taking place as well as a garden party. The collection is well displayed, with a variety of existing interpretation materials for adults and also children.

The first object that stole my heart was this lamp shade. I was taken by its whimsical shape and daring nature.

This shape has completely made me smitten and I can see it coming into another body of work I am creating at the moment for the City of Bendigo Art in the Conservatory Project - but more about this later.

My role is to create textile shelters and surfaces. I am hopeful that this form and method of construction might some how feed into this process. My sister gave me a book on making lamp shades from wire - I wonder if I still have it or did I pitch it in the move to our new home?

I am booking in more time to go through their catalogue cards for textiles, however I was fortunate to view their signature quilt, made back in 1905. This quilt is huge, perhaps 2m by 3m white thread on white linen with hand made lace. Completely breath taking, and I am looking forward to researching all the stitches used in this work. Stitching words, can seem to be very easy, but it isn't and I have always struggled with choice of stitch.

The signature quilt was made by the women on Kyneton as a fund raiser for children in India. Local families purchased squares of the quilt, then the women donated their time to make the work.

I think this method of representation, piecing of fabric together to make a whole is also something I would like to draw from as well. Interestingly the local milk bar facilitated the donating of money and documenting people's names to be embroidered.


A blind took my fancy too for its pattern and use of mono tone and shape through light play.






I liked also the picnic rugs and blankets in the cabinet about Picnics at Hanging Rock. I believe the final work will be exhibited outdoors in the evening - kinda nice idea of people sitting on textiles as well and also reflecting in the mystery around famous picnics at Hanging Rock.