Every day, we come into contact with fabric art. It’s an art that can be both beautiful and practical, from the high-quality fabric we wear to the objects that decorate our homes. However, the fact that this field falls into these two categories should come as no surprise.
Fabrics were viewed as a utility rather as something with no clear function other than aesthetics from the start of the long existence of high-quality fabric. While this is still true today, visionary artists have helped the art form continue to evolve. With fabric manufacturer in United Kingdom rises, fabrics can come in different types and understanding how it became art is rooted from the past that is still known as of today.
Origins
Fabric art is one of humanity’s oldest ways of expression. High-quality fabric was created for practical uses, such as clothing or blankets to keep warm, rather than for aesthetic reasons. This can be traced back to prehistoric times, with anthropologists estimating it to be between 100,000 and 500,000 years old. Animal skins, furs, leaves, and other materials were used to create these items.
Clothing and other fabrics were difficult to make because everything had to be done by hand. Gathering fibers from plants or animals and turning them into yarn was part of the process. Making an article of clothing was not only a time-consuming operation, but it was also costly; tailors and seamstresses adjusted garments to guarantee that they lasted a long time. Imported high-quality fabric and vibrant dyes were available depending on one’s affluence. A high-quality fabric such as Silk from China was transported to India, Africa, and Europe via the Silk Road trade routes. While clothing remained the most popular form of fiber art, the elite could afford to have lush and bright works adorn their castle walls, floors, and furniture.
Popular Fabric Art Styles
Fabric art is a broad phrase that can refer to a variety of techniques. One of the earliest techniques is weaving. Threads are strung together at intersecting angles on a loom to make a high-quality fabric. Weavings are typically found in garments, but they can also be used to create exhibition artwork.
Modern weavers like Genevieve Griffiths are experimenting with yarn weight and stitch length to create extremely high-quality fabric pieces, which are commonly displayed as wall hangings. Fabric art is a broad phrase that can refer to a variety of techniques. One of the earliest techniques is weaving. Threads are strung together at intersecting angles on a loom to make a high-quality fabric.
Weavings are typically found in garments, but they can also be used to create exhibition artwork. Modern weavers like Genevieve Griffiths are experimenting with yarn weight and stitch length to create extremely textured pieces, which are commonly displayed as wall hangings.
Another common technique is embroidery, which involves artisans stitching ornamental designs onto fabric using thread. The images, which are commonly referred to as hoop art, typically keep inside the constraints of the circular frame. However, because there are no rules in contemporary stitching, it’s not uncommon for fabric and thread to leak from the hoop. Ana Teresa Barboza is an excellent illustration of this approach. She creates sceneries that reach way beyond the hoop and flow to the floor in her artwork.
Knitting and crocheting are two more fabric techniques. Large needles—double and single, respectively—are used in both to twist thread into distinct stitches, resulting in larger patterns. These techniques are very ubiquitous in your favorite sweater or blanket, yet they’ve been appropriated by artists as a way of expression. Joana Vasconcelos wraps animal figurines in vibrant crochet patterns. Similarly, the artist Olek “yarn bombs” structures, including a bright pink crocheted dwelling.
Art is beautiful
Fabrics aren’t entirely devoid of their origins. Its humble beginnings are still flourishing in the fashion world. Despite the fact that many high-quality fabric are still manufactured for simply practical reasons, avant-garde designers envision garments as stunning works of high-quality fabric art. Designers Viktor & Rolf take this concept to its logical conclusion with high-quality fabric that look like framed artworks. A clothing, too, becomes a movable canvas for artist Svetlana Lyalina, although one customized to the human body.
