Don’t expect to find Amish quilts and sunflower-themed tapestry at Hard Twist, the Gladstone Hotel’s sixth annual textile and fibre-based art show. Instead, there’ll be perverse-looking doilies and wall coverings made from woven strands of acrylic paint, all part of this year’s obsession-themed line up. Over the weekend, we’ll be profiling a few of the participating Hard Twist artists.
First up is Kate Busby. She strives to apply traditional craft practices, such as quilting and embroidery, to a more contemporary aesthetic. A graduate of the Crafts and Design Program at Sheridan College, Busby also holds an Honours B.A. from UofT and currently works out of the Contemporary Textile Studio Co-operative in Toronto which she co founded. She also owns and operates kate B. Textile Design, creating interior based work for both retail and gallery exhibitions.
Describe the work you’re exhibiting as part of Hard Twist.
The piece I’m exhibiting is a quilt created using only red fabrics. The theme of ‘Obsession’ has a strong tie to quilting. I hoard fabric. I get bogged down in the precision of measurements, and the perfection of seam joins. I scrutinize the placement of each fabric, and the balance of repeated fabrics throughout the top. But more than anything, quilting is formed by the obsession of repeated identical acts – pieces come together to form a block, blocks come together to form a top, thousands of small, precise stitches are repeated to form the quilt – layers of pattern built through repetition. I wanted this quilt to push my limit of obsessive acts, at least to the extent that time would allow.
Why did you choose textiles and/or fibres as a medium?
Textiles are my passion. I love the element of touch, and am interested in how people relate to the fabric of their daily lives and personal histories. The quilt will be displayed as a wall hanging, but it could also be used as a functional blanket.
Describe the process for creating your work.
A rough description of the process would begin with cutting around 360 1.5” x 10.5” strips of all the various red fabrics in my collection. The strips were sewn into 36 groups of ten, and then cut to make ten strips of ten squares. The strips were then pieced into 36 blocks of 100 squares, and then assembled as the quilt top. The layers were basted, and then hand-quilted using 3600 french knots.
Textile-based art is typically very time consuming. How long did this installation take you?
I’ve been working on it since the start of the summer, but I’d say around 140 hours of sewing.
What is your favorite textile-based possession? Why?
I have a beautiful vintage textile I found in Turkey. It has fabulous colours and mirrors and buttons and embroidery – I believe it’s part of a belt from a female Turkish costume. I keep it on top of my dresser and it makes me smile every morning.
Name one Canadian contemporary art show or artist that really made an impact on you this year.
I’ve always had an interest in Land Art, or art that explores the beauty of the physical landscape. Recently, I have been inspired by the work of the Canadian artist Marlene Creates.
What’s next?
A nap! Just kidding. I do commission quilt work and I’m beginning a project where I’m designing a custom printed fabric for the client.
