SARAH WATERS
BEFORE WARP AND WEFT
9 May - 13 July 2019
Sarah Waters is a textile artist with a passion for feltmaking that originates from her love of sheep. Living in the New Forest in southern England her work reflects her desire to connect with nature and the importance of sustainability. Earliest childhood memories are of collecting pieces of wool caught on fences and twisting into long threads. Sheep, wool and farming are in her blood.
Using both traditional and innovative techniques Sarah aims to show the diversity and qualities feltmaking can be taken to. Embracing British wool at its core she likes pushing the boundaries with her work, constantly using sketchbooks to draw from nature.
Feltmaking is considered the oldest know textile, predating woven and knitted fabrics. Felt is made from matted and compressed fibres using warmth, moisture and friction. It has amazing properties- a very good insulator, fire retardant and can even be used for sound proofing. Sarah takes her many of her inspirations from the world around her. Her 2019 touring exhibition entitled ‘Before Warp and Weft’ embodies the textures and feelings that fibres create.
