Connections – Kōrero

Textiles are part of the fabric of human history.  Textiles clothe us, comfort us, keep us warm. Textile have kept generations of homes warm, reduced noise, and also provided decoration.

Textiles also connect us to our past.

A few weeks ago, you may have seen ASAP Rocky, (Rihanna’s partner at the Met Gala in New York).  He wore a quilt.  

It was simple, warm, and brilliant in it’s reference to all those who have picked up needle, thread, and recycled fabric, to create beauty over the years. 

Did you know that Sewing pieces of fabric together was believed to endow the pieced cloth with spiritual power.  The needles magical strength permeating every join, the more joins, the greater the power. 

In many cultures it is believed that patch work and pieced quilts made from peoples’ clothes transferred energy between generations, the dead and the living, parent and child. 

Creating a collective human power, each piece transmitting it’s own force of identity.

It is not only joined patches of cloth that can bind human spirits together to create denser energy; Layers of cloth stitched together are also thought to strengthen the energy connection.

Inspirations / Influences  

• Nature – rhythm / colour of water, texture bark, mud, algae, colour of flowers, clouds, everyday, all around me.

• Colour: I love colours and texture. Paint was too flat for me, 

• I like the dimensional appeal of textiles and stitch. Tactile.  I like to touch it.

• The fabric leads me. The colours, shapes, motifs.  I have no idea what the end result will be. I just start, I try things, experiment, ask “What if …

My largest influence is the world around me and how everything is connected

I explore the theme of human influence on the environment and how this affects the relationships between the land, the sea, and the people.  I created these works as a response to events happening around the world. 

With the covid pandemic, and the climate crisis, many people are feeling anxious and unsure for their future, (and their grandchildrens future).  Many of us have found comfort in wrapping ourselves in soft textiles. Being snug and cosy, helps us cope with the external pressures in our lives.  That’s why I created these quilts.

Climate Chaos

In January 2020,  in the bush, enjoying nature in the Pureora Forest. 

The sky turned beige, and the sun red. 

The day felt weird.  

The Australian bush fires were impacting on us in New Zealand, thousands of kilometres away. 

All of the planet is connected, what we do in New Zealand impacts on the rest of the world.

Droughts, wild fires, floods, heat waves, rising seas.  The impact of climate change is being felt across the world 

After the storm

So many storms this year. Weather bombs they are called now.

Floods in Wellington, Marlborough, Canterbury, Westport, Ashburton, and West Auckland, and the year isn’t over yet. 

Access to food supplies, uncontaminated drinking water, and energy supplies were all effected.  

Many people lost their homes and security to the extreme wind and rain.

Our society faces growing threats from climate change. With an increase in these stronger storms, damages and disruptions will continue in the future  

Our survival will require fundamental transformations in all aspects of society — how we grow food, use land, transport goods, and power our economies.

Lost Paradise

A large percentage of the world’s population doesn’t feel the effects of climate change.

One of the consequences of urban lifestyles,industrialization, capitalism, nationalism, the global economy. Forests have been cleared, water polluted, habitats lost.

We have lost our connection to the natural world. 

Because of our carelessness and neglect of our planet, climate change has become the greatest threat to future generations. 

It is still possible to do somethingto protect the world that sustains us, and that climate change is an opportunityfor us to change our relationship with nature.

Spirit of the butterflies

I love butterflies.  Fortunate to have monarch butterflies winter over in my garden.

Sadly, worldwide,  Monarch butterfly populations have diminished by 81% in the past 25 years.The loss of the butterfly population was behind the work “Spirit of the butterflies”.

Butterflies are pollinators, and need the same habitats as many other pollinators, and even other wildlife. 

As the butterflies are well known and their decline is easy to see, they are the ‘canary in the coal mine’ for pollinators. 

The declining monarch population corresponds to other declining pollinator populations, which in turn impacts on human food systems. 

When we take care of the eco system that supports pollinators, we take care of our food system.

Where have all the insects gone         

Have you noticed the lack of splattered insects on your windscreen?

We need insects.  Bugs, and creepy crawlies.

Insects are part of a natural food web and ecosystem. Providing enough habitat, maintaining a balanced food web within the ecosystems is critical in sustaining us.   

We need to make our own small changes to give nature (and us) a better chance of surviving and thriving. 

Planting natives, controlling predators, protecting forest remnants, attacking weeds, and cleaning up waterways.

The use of household pesticides and insecticides impact on the eco-system. 

What about my household garden? Mine’s an eco system, insects don’t die, so I can have pretty flowers and grow vegetables  

Ice Melts 

You might think that Antarctica and NZ are a long way apart, and geographically they are.

That big ocean separates us, but that ocean also connects us.

Antarctica is at the bottom of the world, and it is forgotten about in everyday life, until there is a cold southerly wind. Then we put on warmer clothes, turn the heater on, drive in our car, and are not aware our everyday actions are impacting on Antarctica.

 What we do to the planet , we do to ourselves

The science conducted in Antarctica tell us there are connections between human behaviour and environmental changes.

We see this asthe weather change. There will be more extreme heat waves, heavy rain, drought, and sea level rise 

Communities and infrastructure are already under pressure from coastal flooding and erosion. 

Changing environmental conditions in Antarctica will affect New Zealanders, particularly fisheries and our agricultural industries.  

Sea Rises  1 & 2

Climate scientists predict a global sea rise of about a 1/3 of a metre in the next 25 years, and a metre in 50 years.

How does that impact us?

NZ has about 17,000 kilometres of coastline. 

65 % of our communities and major infrastructure lie within 5km of the sea 

12 of our 15 largest towns and cities are coastal. 

Some parts of NZ will become less live able over time.

Some parts of the country will just disappear with sea level rise.

Climate change affects all of us. With the rise in sea levels, this affects not just our coastal whanau, but also the large populations living in flood plains near rivers will also be affected. ( 1/5^thof NZ). 

There is also coastal flooding and erosion, changing weather patterns, and altered ocean conditions as a result of the seas rising.

Warm Waters

In July 2021, a heatwave turned Canada’s Pacific waters into a graveyard.  Tens of thousands of fish and shellfish were found cooked to death. This led to the creation of “Warm waters”. 

Fish species respond to climate change by moving to more favourable regions, with populations shifting, to find their preferred range of water temperatures or oxygen levels. 

This impacts on marine ecosystems, economies and societies, especially those most dependent upon natural resources.  

Climate change is an opportunity for us to change our relationship with nature.

We need to consume less, destroy less, conserve more, and embrace renewable energy resources. 

Adaptation

Humans have adapted to live at sea level, at altitude, on ice sheets, in the tropics, and in deserts.

As in the past, humans will again adapt to any future climate coolings or warmings.

We will survive.

Corporate choices 

 “Corporate Choices” reminds us, all of our consumer power.  

Where are we spending our money? 

How are the products made?

Support the brands and companies that you feel will make a positive impact on the environment.

I have noticed a change in company brand advertising, caring for the planet, good for the environment etc.

There are a lot of brands who are doing great things and your money stretches a lot further in the impact you can have by supporting these brands. As the brand grows, so does their reach, which ultimately helps to grow their impact across the industry

You can make a positive impact on the environment by making small changes your household routine. This can add up to a significant reduction in emissions over a year, and reduce the size of your own Carbon Footprint. 

Over the past 30 years, I have made a commitment to reduce my footprint on the planet.  The majority of my artwork is created from at least 65 percent recycled materials. Some are 100 percent recycled.

The textile industry is the second largest polluter on the planet.  

In parts of the world, the locals know what colours the next fashion season will be, because of the colour of the river. The chemical process for colouring textiles make up 20% of the worlds water pollution. Our colourful fashion is killing the environment.

I use recycled textiles from second hand shops, and online charities, saving the fabric from landfill.  

I think it is:

• still possible to do something to protect the world that sustains us

• climate change is an opportunity for us to change our relationship with nature.

I ask that you be aware of personal consequences, and of your actions impacting the environment.

I’m just trying to save the planet, one stitch at a time.