Crafts Council Pattern Cutting Party

Opening in January 2012, Block Party: Contemporary craft inspired by the art of the tailor will celebrate the centuries-old skill of tailoring by exploring new creative possibilities of pattern-cutting.

The touring exhibition will first be staged at contemporary art gallery Smiths Row in Bury St Edmunds until March. It will then travel to Ireland’s National Craft Gallery in Kilkenny and the New Walk Museum and Art Gallery in Leicester.  

Curated by Lucy Orta of the London College of Fashion, the exhibition will feature the work of 15 UK and international artists, who manipulate pattern-cutting to craft sculpture, ceramics, textiles, moving image and collage.

Block Party is divided into three parts. In Storytelling, pattern-cutting is a means of expression. Here, visitors can explore the work of Italian artist Claudia Losi, who used the fabric of a 24m cashmere whale to create jackets with fashion designer Antonio Marras. 

The Embracing the Future section shows how artists challenge traditional pattern-cutting techniques through the use of new technologies. For example, Philip Delamore of Digital Fashion Studio at University of the Arts uses 3D digital design in the garment-making process.

Source: Photo Rohan Chhabra

Hunter Jacket Embodying Ethics, Rohan Chhabra, 2010

Source: Photo Tia-Calli Borlase

Leg Black ribbons and stays Tia-Calli Borlase 2011

The aim of the national tour is ‘to increase access to craft and enable as many people as possible to see [the pieces],’ the Crafts Council says.

The organisation will announce further UK tour venues in due course.

Block Party runs from 14 January-10 March at Smiths Row, Bury St Edmunds, IP33; 31 March-9 May at National Craft Gallery, Kilkenny, Ireland; 16 June-2 September at New Walk Museum and Art Gallery, 53 New Walk, Leicester, LE1