April 2024

As I was updating my new website in reverse chronological order I started to look at all my embroideries and feeling a sense of sadness and grief (again). I decided stop feeling sorry for myself and to come up with a solution. That solution was to embroider something onto calico like I have always done, and then to add a patchwork border. I draw this on my ipad a while ago and decided to stitch this into a trio, adding a sewing needle alongside the mechanical pencil an red pencil. The needle is included for obvious reasons, but I like to include this kind of mechanical pencils in my artwork because they are my Grandma’s favourite. I also like the nostalgia of crayola like pencils and crayons as they remind me I have always made art throughout my life. I thought this would be a cute embroidery to start with. I chose to add a Log Cabin border after having fun with this style earlier in the year. This time I cut much thinner strips in a limited colour palette of blues and purple. Im really happy with how this turned out and Im excited to keep working on embroidery/patchwork combinations, developing my style as I go.

I had my first visit to Hampton Court Palace to go and see their Tulip Festival. Its a Royal Palace built in 1415 in Richmond-Upon-Thames by Thomas Wolsey. Wolsey was Henry VIII’s chief minister and when he fell in popularity he gifted the house to Henry. Funnily enough, on my Dad’s side of the family we are distantly related to Jane Seymour who gave birth to Edward VI at Hampton Court Palace. She is my 14th times Great Aunt. We are descended from her older brother Edward Seymour who was beheaded in the Tower of London. When I tweeted about being related to Edward Seymour and random person who follows me said they are too, which just goes to show how many thousand people are also distantly related to royalty too! Makes me laugh. 

Anyway, it was so beautiful and full of colourful arrangements of all different types of tulips. We went outside and saw a horse and carriage ride and decided to go on it. IT WAS SO WHOLESOME AND FUN! We sat in the front and the coachman was a lovely Irish man who was telling us all about the Shire Horses taking us around as well as about the Palace and grounds too. We learnt that there are around 2,000 Shire Horses remaining in the UK which makes them an endangered species. During a World War, 25,000 were taken to Europe and none of them were returned because it was apparently too costly. Last year the first Shire Fowl in living memory was born in a London stable, usually they are taken to other farms to give birth. We learnt that Yew trees touch the ground until they are more mature which is when they “lift their skirts”. You can see what I mean in my illustration. We walked around amongst children who were on an easter egg hunt around the grounds, it was sweet seeing them engage with the building and the gardens surrounding them. 

This month I made Tatreez cards for Princess Zaria which was the design of Palm Trees from Hebron, Palestine. I chose this design because shes a Caribbean Gyal from Jamaica and Antigua, so I thought it was perfect. I used four different colour variation threads ranging from dark red, bright red, orange, pink, pale pink and pale orange, all within a baby pink card. 

For Aunt Shil’s 60th birthday I wanted to repay her for all the cards she has made us over our lifetime. She always made us customised cards with all kinds of cool techniques and personalised details. I asked Gina what her favourite colours are and she told me green and pink so I chose this heart design from Beersheba, Palestine, to show her my love. Shes currently in South Korea with Dan and Gina having a big 60th Birthday celebration and Im soooo happy for them on their adventure. Shil loves K Pop and K Drama, has been learning Korean and its just her wildest dream to visit there. 

I have always been a fan of Stop-Frame Animation since I was a child. I even took part in two workshops, one we made a video about the Paralympics and it was shown in the Phoenix Cinema in North London. This love 100% stemmed from growing up watching the classic Aardman Animation’s Wallace and Gromit shows and this year The Wrong Trouser turned 30! I guess 1994 was pretty iconic because I also turn 30 later this year! To celebrate the event, the Cartoon Museum put on an exhibition showing the making of and behind the scenes from the short film. There were sketches, story boards, interviews, behind the scenes photos, clay models, props and Wallace and Gromit memorabilia, some of which we have had for decades. It was really cool to see those sketches, pencil ideas which would transform into the most incredible, detailed and personality filled clay models. Even as an adult, the sinister expressions and coldness of Feather McGraw give me chills. Its an amazing achievement to create such emotion from clay models, many of whom don’t speak with words. The sense of nostalgia was also heartwarming, as they not only remind me of my parents who introduced Wallace and Gromit to me but also my Grandma who enjoyed them too.

I made this illustration as part of my Daily Drawings project where I try to doodle on my ipad every day. It pretty much explains itself and is just a pure expression of my frustration and pain. I recently compiled all my random lists of Art Ideas into one Mega List, and then I got upset because I probably wont have enough energy or break from my pain to be able to make much of it. Thats not even to mention all the new ideas I will have and want to make too. Drawing ideas onto my ipad is one thing, but not being able to bring them to life, in the real world through textiles is where my pain and grief comes from. Im a textile artist, that is what is important to me, so although Im grateful for my ipad it never feels like enough for me. It never gives me the same satisfaction of making something from thread and fabric. I will keep trying to adapt, keep trying to find ways to pace myself but its a hard journey and Im still struggling with it after five years. 

I wanted to give a shoutout to Tabitha Arnold who creates incredible tapestries, many of them about protest and workers rights. After 224 hours she just finished a piece called These Hands, which supports Volkswagen workers whose UAW union were about to vote. These Hands references a quote by Philip Agnew from 2020 “With these hands we will rebuild our communities. With these hands we will free our people from prison. With these hands we will fight for a nation that makes our grandparents and our grandchildren proud. With these hands we will build power and transformation. With these hands we will do miracles.” As well as a campaign video made by other UAW workers from Missouri Toyota “our hands, our backs, our knees, our work”. I find Tabitha’s work extremely inspiring and energising, it makes sense of workers needs and goals. You can read more about These Hands HERE.

These other two works are called Picket, 2021 and Hot Labor Summer, 2023. I love the style, medium and vibrancy of the colour palettes Tabitha chooses. 

“Palestinian Prisoners' Day Is commemorated every year on April 17. carries an even heavier weight amidst the harrowing reports of brutality and inhumanity inflicted upon Palestinian detainees within Israeli prisons.

As Palestinians and the world commemorates the struggles and sacrifices of these prisoners, the chilling reality of torture, loss of limbs, and tragic deaths within the confines of Israeli detention facilities casts a dark shadow over the day. Each account of suffering serves as a poignant reminder of the ongoing injustices faced by Palestinians, igniting global calls for justice and accountability. Amidst the pain and despair, the resilience of Palestinian prisoners and their unwavering resolve to endure such atrocities stand as a testament to the enduring spirit of resistance in the face of oppression. On this day, the world bears witness not only to the atrocities committed but also to the unwavering determination of the Palestinian people to reclaim their dignity and rights.” - Quoted directly from Sliman’s Instagram. 

1) Prisoners' Day , egg tempera, 1980

2) Colors of Hope, egg tempera, 1980

3) Prison, oil on canvas, 1982

In January I shared my post about the Threads of Solidarity digital tapestry project where names of those killed in Gaza are being embroidered to commemorate the tragic, unjust and premature end to their lives. Im so proud of my community because so many of you reached out to them to request names, to use your embroidery skills for an important cause. They reached out to me and thanked me because you not only asked for names but i think some offered other skills to help how you could. Im so proud to have grown a community of such caring and empathetic people who want to do an action, even of it feels small, but represents so much love and passion for justice. For these people to not be forgotten, for them not to be another statistic in Israels relentless violence and Apartheid, for love, sorrow, pain, anger and compassion to be poured into the memories of these people we don’t know but feel so deeply disgusted and heartbroken for their loss of life. For these names I used black thread and for the first time I used waste canvas to put Tatreez red gradient hearts next to each one. I wanted to put extra love and care alongside each persons name. Its so heartbreaking sitting and sewing these.
RIP to Rawan Saeed Youssef Al-Mutawq aged 14, Youssef Saeed Youssef Al-Mutawq aged 12, Zakaria Khabbab Muhammad Nabil Al-Mutawq aged 9 and Raneed Abdul Rahman Maher Al-Mutawq aged 8. Their lives were stolen from them by an Apartheid State and their international backers. 

Threads of Solidarity is a memorial project organised by Indu, Kamil, Rahi and Taab to embroider the names of people Martyred in Gaza and put together in the form of a digital tapestry. You can contact them via threadsofsolidarity@gmail.com to be given names and information about the format to submit. They want us to use gauze (medical material originating in Gaza) and thread the colours of the Palestinian flag.

Students in over 120 universities in America and many more across the world have set up encampments and protests on campus to demand their universities divest from investments in weapons manufacturers and surveillance technology, for them to stop profiting off wars and genocide across the world. Why the fuck are these institutions invested in those things anyway? Might be connected to why STEM has been pushed so much while Arts and Humanities departments have been cut and destroyed. While students are being attacked by media, police and zionist antagonists for protesting against this genocide, mass graves have been uncovered with over 400 bodies of women, men, children and elderly people. Many restrained and tortured. Many wearing hospital scrubs or still with drips and medical equipment attached to them. While the media classes and politicians talk about the “violence of protest and encampments” on college campuses, Palestinians face the worst, targeted violence from IOF and Settlers alike. We are living in an upside down reality. When I saw these pictures of students protesting against South African Apartheid, side by side with students of the present protesting against the Israeli Apartheid, I cant think of a better illustration for the situation at hand. 

Disgusting Zionist antagonists are allowed to beat up student protestors, pepper spraying them and sending fireworks into the encampment, wishing death and rape on people while disgusting cops in riot gear, with shields, batons and rubber bullets, beat up students and faculty alike. The media demonises them, labelling Pro-Palestine protestors as violent and Antisemitic when they are the victims of racism and violence from the state but also Zionists. Professors, many of them Professors of History, and even a previous head of Jewish Studies at Dartmouth, Annelise Orlick was arrested and banned from campus (her place of work). A tenured Black, Queer and Disabled professor I follow called Sami Schalk was dragged to the ground by riot police and they ripped her dress. Another professor somewhere else had 9 broken ribs and a broken hand from police brutality. Over 2,000 people, mostly students have been arrested since April 19th. One student was shot in the face with a rubber bullet and had staples and stitches. Its a disgusting world we live in where people can be slaughtered, starved and displaced on their own land, and the people who stand up for them on the other side of the world are called evil and violent. The violence arrived when the riot police arrived. The violence arrived when Pro-Israel antagonists arrived. If people cant see this fuckery for what it is, students have been arrested for protesting when ZERO IOF soldiers or Israeli government have faced consequences for their slaughter of Palestinians. This is an unjust, fascist, racist and imperialist world we live in. Zionists are saying these students are worse than the racist thugs who marched in Charlottesville, saying theyre worse than Nazis. Words dont have meaning anymore when they are thrown around and weaponised like this. 

I cried when I found out that my favourite artist Faith Ringgold died. She lived till 93, having a career spanning over 50 years. She was born in 1930, during the Harlem Renaissance, a time in the NY suburb where African American’s including musicians, writers and artists were making and thriving. She created so much over the decades but it still feels surreal that she is gone. It sounds silly but I wish I could’ve met her and told her how much she meant to me. I know she was greatly appreciated, loved and adored but that wasn’t always the case. She faced so much racism and sexism throughout her career, so many set backs but she never gave up and she never took no for an answer. Instead she pioneered her Story/Narrative Quilts, which featured her painting skills alongside the patchwork skills she inherited from her maternal family. She wrote and illustrated children’s books, she painted, made textiles, made sculptures and even created a quilt inspired sudoku app. 

She was so unappreciated by the wider Western Art world, that her first European retrospective was as recently as 2019! You can look at some of the pictures I HERE. How insulting for such a prolific artist who made powerful and important works throughout the Civil Rights and Women’s Liberation Movements. I wrote my final essay in my Fine Art Degree on how she was under-appreciated due to Racism and Sexism. Im so grateful I got to see her exhibition in London in 2019. It was an honour to experience her paintings and mostly textiles up close and personal. I stood and stared, breath-taken by the details and raw stories she was telling. Stories of loss, death, joy, pain, racism, sexism, childhood and maternal bonds to name a few. Shes not only my favourite artist but a massive inspiration to me on so many levels. I hope to be able to find my own iconic visual language combining embroidery, illustration and patchwork in the same way that she created her painted Narrative Quilts. 

When I first saw her artwork called Dancing at the Louvre, it perfectly illustrated my politics and attitudes toward to “Fine Art World” as I was working in Tate’s Young People’s Programme. Our goal was to bring in young people of diverse backgrounds who have been alienated and pushed out of art institutions, and to create engaging, fun and interesting events. We had DJ sets amongst the oldest art in Tate’s collection at Tate Britain. This brought my love of historical paintings and my love for Black Underground Music (Grime) together is such a meaningful way. Dancing at the Louvre (middle bottom row) has this same energy, while a group of African American girls and women dance in front of the Mona Lisa and other classics. It shows that art galleries are for life, for joy and not meant to be boring and exclusionary, despite them being built by old european colonial wealth. They belong to us all now. 

If you are able to watch BBC iPlayer, its well worth checking out this documentary from 2019 when her exhibition was at the Serpentine in London. Faith Ringgold: Tell It Like It Is, about her and her life’s work.

Before the holiday had even begun, I woke up in the morning crying to Mum and saying I dont think i will leave the country again. The pains, aches, fears and anxiety was too much to deal with. This was me being dramatic but not really, its just how I felt in the moment. 

On the first full day of experiencing Matera in the South of Italy, we started the looking right out over this whole side of the Sasso Caveoso. Amy is a tour guide so she gave me the whole history of the area which I loved and appreciated, she made the whole place explode with life and history. The following points are paraphrased from her poetry book called Se I Sassi Potessero Reccontare (Is Stones Could Tell) which I have included her youtube video narration of below. In the hills are caves which were used 150,000 years ago by Nomadic Palaeolithic people while they were moving and herding their animals. In the Neolithic Period 8,000 years ago humans began to build homes and domesticate animals. In the Bronze Age 4,000 years ago humans were using metal tools to dig and further construct and develop these caves into homes and buildings. This area was influenced by Greeks, Romans, Lombards, Byzantines, Saracens and Normans from the 8th Century BC to 11th Century AD. 150 Rupestrian Churches were built into the rocks, including the Santa Lucia alle Malve the first female monastic settlement of the Benedictine Order. It was really cool to go inside and see remnants of religious artworks painted on the stone walls over centuries. When Italy was Unified in 1861, Matera alongside much of Southern Italy were experiencing stagnation and poverty in comparison to the Industrial Revolution in the North. In 1872, Archeologist Domenico Ridola proved that there has been a human presence in Matera since the Palaeolithic Period. In 1945, Painter, Writer, Doctor and Anti-Fascist Carlo Levi wrote a book called Christ Stopped At Eboli” Eboli being a town South of Naples. He was saying that the Church and State had neglected the South of Italy causing extreme poverty and high infant mortality rate. By 1952 it had gotten so bad that the Prime Minister Alcide de Gasperi signed a law which meant the Sassi were evacuated and most of the population moved into new homes with the help of grants. In 1986 another law is passed, this time allowing for the restoration and rebuilding of the Sassi so much so that in 1993 the Sassi of Matera is declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site.

It felt like something out of Game of Thrones, with churches and houses built into the rocks. We walked around and I noticed how many beautiful details there were in the light stone walls, my favourite being ones that look like woven structures. The winding streets and alleyways were covered in cacti, beautiful ceramic pots, cats and dappled sunlight. There were many small museums which were created from the cave houses, showing how people lived there with their families and live stock. The people worked with the caves and created cisterns for water consumption. We stopped by Amy’s friend Lela’s shop/gallery/studio called Materia. She makes cool jewellery and her husband who died a few years ago made art from wood, both studios set up on the ground floor. Me and Mum showed our art to her and Mum bought some of her jewellery, stylised girls made from silver with a brass heart and a brass cat above head. Lela is Amy’s longest friend in Matera and you could feel the love they have for

For lunch I tried some different types of pasta (as seen in my illustration), cheese and cured meats which were delicious. Wandering around was a challenge for my hips but I had a disposable heated pad on which alleviated some of my pain. Amy said we were going to look at the skull and cross bones church so I was intrigued. We turned a corner and there it was, the Chiesa del Purgatoria (The Church of Purgatory) where the massive wooden front door had skulls with crowns and religious wear. This showed that no matter who you are in life, death and judgement comes to us all. After we checked out the contemporary art museum called Tower Art Museum which was showing an exhibition across many spaces called Everything Went Fine, a tongue in cheek use of the phrase commonly used during Lockdown. The video flashed footage of historical events throughout Italy’s history. I liked the graphic design elements of the artworks as well as the use of inspiration from Ghanaian Asafo flags. I pointed to the boulder crying and said that was me this morning and Francesco looked so empathetic. Bless him, what a good kid and a great first day it ended up being despite the fears and tears.

The second full day we checked out the other side of the Sassi known as Sasso Barisano. I had my first cream cornetto pastry for breakfast and then we walked around taking in the beautiful streets, houses and details. Matera Cathedral was where we began our walk and by the end of the day we could see it in the distance from the other side of town. We went to Amy’s friend’s restaurant called Malatesta, named after an Anarchist and Revolutionary Socialist, Ericco Malatesta who was exiled numerous times in his life for his work with unions and workers strikes. I loved seeing the different anti-fascist stickers on the door outside. We were at the “family table” so random family friends showed up and the tradition is to bring bags of olives and a bag of roasted almonds and pistachio for the table which were so damn tasty! After we got gelato (pistachio for me) and then headed home as the weather was quite cold and windy!

After an hour and a half drive we arrived at Polignano A Mare, a beautiful seaside town in the heel part of Italy. I have never seen such crystal clear yet turquoise blue water before in my life. It was stunning! We walked along a lovely trail surrounded by cacti to a small cove, framed by a beautiful stone arched bridge. There was a cave which you could walk through a puddle to get to the sea, me and Francesco braved the cold water to go have a look. I actually put my crocs to good use! We headed up to the town and walked around the beautiful streets filled with restaurants, plants, pottery and shops. I was craving some seafood pasta so we found a place to eat outside (a bit chilly as we were in the shadows by that point) but it was just what I needed. I got a seafood pasta and the type of pasta was called Strozza Preti meaning (strangle the priest), we had some delicious friend seafood and then for dessert I finally had a tiramisu. I was stuffed and so happy. We carried on walking around town, the blue waters drawing us in as we passed by street after street. 

Amy took us back home via a scenic route driving past really old olive tree farms, and after seeing wildflower patches and rolling green hills, we arrived at a town called Alberobello. This town is distinctive because it is made up mostly of Trulli, which were circular buildings, originally built without mortar so that they could be deconstructed and moved easily. This was in the 1400s and for tax purposes. The sun was setting and this town looked surreal, like a model village. It truly looked like a postcard around every corner. there were ancient symbols, some for fertility painted in white on the roofs, pretty flowers and cacti outside and we even saw two ginger cats chilling too. There were Indian people in beautiful saris doing photoshoots during golden hour. It was just a spectacular end to an already beautiful day. Before we got home we stopped off to get some more food, mozzarella with prosciutto inside and Panzerotto, a folded bread with ham and cheese inside. The Panzerotto was soooo good, and it was fresh and warm too. 

On our final day, Amy was working so Francesco took us on a tour of his local park and for a picnic. He made us triple cheese and double prosciutto sandwiches before we set off. Parco Regionale della Murgia Materana is about five minutes from where they live. Immediately Francesco took as to a cave, where we were going to have our picnic but we werent ready to eat yet and it was sunnier outside. The cave was cool, you could tell people hang out smoking and drinking up there with the amazing view. We carried on our walk along the edge of the cliff, stopping to look at the different wild flowers and even saw a small green lizard and a kestrel flying above trying to find some lunch of their own. We picked Amy up from work and then went back for more prosciutto and cheeses before it was time to head to the airport. It was hard to say goodbye, but made easier by Francesco’s smile and him saying “I wont be sad because I know we’ll see you again soon”. Its such a blessing to be united with family, we only met for the first time last July, and have had four visits in total in less than a year. Francesco is such a sweet and smart kid, seeing him and Dad bond is so heartwarming. Even though I struggled with pain I cant wait to go back to Italy and see some more beautiful sights with our wonderful cousins. 

HERE is Amy’s website with her narrations and below is her reading her book Se I Sassi Potessero Reccontare (If Stones Could Tell).