Wagga women reclaiming craft on International Women’s Day

A new International Women’s Day exhibition in Wagga is reclaiming the ‘c-word’ (craft!) and bringing together emerging artists from the Riverina to tackle the marginalisation of craft as an art form.

The C(raft) Word: Craft in response to gender and representation opens tonight (Friday 8 March) at the newly established Ambo Gallery and features the work of a handful of local female artists who were invited to explore the association of crafts with the feminine and the undervaluing of these traditional skills.

“The title was kind of a play on the idea of craft being a bit of a dirty word in the art world,” explained Eastern Riverina Arts’ Ashleigh Baxter.

“We wanted to create an opportunity for local artists who work in craft and design to come together and respond to some of those themes around the value of craft being diminished in the broader art world.

“It was something that I wanted to explore through this exhibition because I think that a lot of emerging regional artists don’t necessarily get an opportunity to respond to some of those broader issues.”

Georgia Crowden, Tina De Jong, Mary Egan, Penny King, Emily Shannon and Jacquie Tinkler were commissioned to create works that challenge conventional notions of craft.

Mary Egan’s fingers were given a workout completing her knitted piece Ahh Crumbs (Bread and Roses) which comprises a pair of rustic woollen jumpers with tendrilled oversized sleeves that entangle on the floor.

She explained that the work was inspired by the Bread and Roses strike which occurred in the United States in the textile mill town of Lawrence in 1912.

“It was a strike that was largely led by the women and a lot of them were immigrants, so they didn’t know each other’s language, but they still managed to organise and win this amazing victory,” Mary said.

“Their slogan was, give us bread. Yes, but give us roses too. And that captured their demand of wanting to be paid fairly for their work, but also wanting to be able to have enough so that they could have the roses of life, like art, community and pleasure.

“That story inspired me to make these jumpers because I think, in a lot of ways, a lot of us feel like we are still fighting for bread and roses and, at the moment, we’re just getting the crumbs.”

While the subject matter is serious, Mary said she wanted to capture a sense of the fun and joy that came from creative pursuits while also paying tribute to the struggle of the historic strike.

“When I make a knitted jumper or scarf or something for someone, it’s a real act of care and love, so I wanted to bring that across as well,” she said.

“The whole provocation for this exhibition is how craft is marginalised and I wanted to highlight that there are so many ways that we work as artists and as craftspeople that show care and love for our communities.

“There can be a little bit of a separation between what’s considered fine art and what is considered craft, but I think it’s really beautiful the way that craft is accessible to everybody and it’s great to see an exhibition with such a diverse array of craft practices.”

As part of the exhibition program, local creatives Jacquie Tinkler and Peita Vincent will lead a ‘Craftivist’ workshop on Saturday (9 March) exploring the history of ‘craftivism’ (craft + activism) and ultimately working together to create an artwork based on something that is important to the participants.

“I think it’s great to see how many different people in our community are engaged with craft activity,” said Mary.

“They really are making beautiful art that’s really meaningful and speaks to relevant things in all of our lives.”

For more on the exhibition and the workshop, visit Eastern Riverina Arts.