TEXTILE WORKS GALLERY 

Canberra Region Feltmakers open their exhibition Rapt in Felt: Reflections to the public on the June long weekend. The exhibition showcases the best new work of members and their interpretation of the theme Reflections. In addition, a retrospective display showcases pieces representing innovations in felt making over recent decades. Finer wool, technical innovation and sharing of ideas across the world has made a big difference.

The much loved exhibition shop will be open alongside the exhibition. Visitors will be able to choose from hand felted garments, accessories, gifts and homewares made by a variety of local felt makers. 

A map for the location for the Exhibition can be found at the end of this entry.

More about some of the work in the exhibition

The pieces chosen for the retrospective part of the exhibition include pieces made by members in the early 1990s as well as significant pieces that show the progressive development of felt making techniques and skills. Some of the changes were possible because of Australian wool industry research and innovation including production of finer micron wool. Mohair, alpaca and other fibres have also become available for use in felting. 

Sharyn Steel has been making felt for 10 years, learning both from online workshops and felting workshops and activities run locally. Her sculptural work ‘Reflecting Woman’ made for the exhibition shows a voluptuous figure deep in thought and was created using wet felting techniques where wool fibre is transformed into felt using water, soap and friction. This work is an exploration of how memories change slightly over time. With each retelling, embellishments may be added and other details fade until the new telling is subconsciously embedded into the memory. 

One example on exhibition is ‘Never Felt So Good’, made by Philippa Leask and Shirley Capon in the mid 1990s using their knowledge of garment construction and sewing in addition to felt making to piece together their version of a stockman’s coat when other felt makers were making garments all in one piece with no cutting or sewing. The coat was made for an exhibition Classy Clobber held at Treadles Gallery held in Kingston in 1998. It features a pictorial depiction of station life in Australia made with locally produced wool in colours of the Australian landscape. The coat is lined and extremely heavy in contrast to modern felt garments made with fine Merino, viscose fibre and silk.

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