Developed since 2013, these yarn installations explore themes of memory, space, and sensory experience, inviting tactile and visual engagement with layered histories and environments.
Yumoto House’ Floor to ceiling Silver Yarn /sound/ drawing installation Japan 2015
In 2015, an invitation was extended to exhibit at the Nakanojo Contemporary Art Biennale in Japan, whose theme focused on creating links between local traditions and contemporary art. Working closely with the community and assisted by Megumi Baba and Dale McGuiness, a yarn installation was created within a 200-year-old Yumoto House, a site with a layered history as a silk farm and hospital.
Through careful observation of the environment, surfaces, and the placement of objects, the installation retraces and tracks the movements of previous inhabitants. The yarn weaves through the space, creating forms that interact with the internal support structures. By arranging the space into sculptural forms and planes, the audience is invited to explore various pathways, looking into the in-between spaces. The yarn’s reflective surface captures changes in daylight, accentuating the drawn lines throughout the space. This delicate material creates an illusion of mass and presence.
Audience reactions to the environment were observed, noting how the work engaged their senses and influenced body language. Ambient sound guided visitors through the installation, directing movement and focus. The varying lengths of yarn strings were translated into audio pitches spanning the spectrum—from high harp notes to low bass frequencies—creating a multisensory experience linking sight, sound, and space.
Site specific yarn installation Wilson Gallery Cheltenham 2014-15 11m
One of the largest installations took place at the Wilson Gallery, featuring 4,000 meters of black viscose yarn spanning three stories of the building and linking the new gallery to the old museum. Exhibited for a year, viewers interacted with the work by running their hands across the threads, often remarking that it evoked the feeling of a harp. This response led to a collaboration with composer Toby Bricheno, resulting in a sound piece that was produced alongside an accompanying video.
In Tug of War (Ginestrelle, Assisi, Italy, 2014), a silver yarn installation was anchored between a vertical tree and a horizontally lying log, creating a curved form that symbolised a connection between the living and the dead, reflecting on relationships with ancestors. As natural light shifted throughout the day, the work produced the illusion of shafts of light filtering through the trees. Lines, shimmers, and rhythms were developed through a range of drawing techniques, incorporating ink, charcoal, gouache, and silver leaf.
‘The Palace Curve’ site-specific installatio Palazzo Ducale in Atina, Italy 2013.
During this residency, a response was developed to the old town of Atina by delicately threading black yarn along the tops of gates. This work explored how contemporary art can be negotiated within a ‘non-art’ site, creating a spatial curve inspired by the structure of the gates and surrounding architecture. Viewers were invited to walk beneath the curve, positioned above head height, and engage tactilely by touching the yarns.