Description
Reading the Thread brings together artists, theorists and designers to explore the nature and use of cloth as a means of record and communication. Cloth is constructed from threads and, in acknowledging its qualities of recording or communicating a story, we are reading the threads - the read thread. There is also, however, an East Asian myth that when you are born you are linked by an invisible red thread to your soul mate; no matter what you do, this red thread connects you to your fate and, although the thread may become tangled or infinitely long, it will never break. Exploring histories of making and cultural practices, a multidisciplinary team of international scholars use the metaphorical thread to link the experiences of cloth production, lineage practices, contemporary challenges and sustainable futures, and to explore, through imagery and ideas, the agency of cloth to shape and communicate the sensations and emotions connected with human experience. Divided into four sections on reading cloth, challenging the stories it tells, following the thread of its narrative and finally anticipating its future, The Read Thread allows a variety of viewpoints and a diversity of voices, without favouring theory or specific cultural approaches, to interrogate cloth as a record of experience within its social, historical, psychological and cultural context; the authors explore our encounters with cloth and its role in the exploration of identity and biography, representative of passage, exchange, life and death. Provocative and timely, and beautifully illustrated with over 50 color images, it is vital reading for students and scholars of textiles, fashion, material culture, art and anthropology.
Exploring cloth as a record of experience, and its role in communicating our identities and the stories of our lives, this book presents cloth within its social, historical, psychological and cultural context while also recognising that our involvement in the processes of making and production are integral to the stories it tells.
About the Author
Lesley Millar is Emerita Professor of Textile Culture at the University for the Creative Arts, UK. She has been responsible for many international touring textile exhibitions. She has contributed to many publications most recently editing, with Alice Kettle, The Erotic Cloth (Bloomsbury, 2018) and Spaces and Places (2021). In 2008 she received the Japan Society Award for significant contribution to Anglo-Japanese relationships and in 2011 was appointed MBE for her contribution to Higher Education. Alice Kettle is Professor of Textile Arts at Manchester School of Art, Manchester Metropolitan University, UK. She is co-author of Machine Stitch Perspectives with Jane McKeating (2010) Hand Stitch Perspectives (Bloomsbury, 2012) and Collaboration Through Craft (Bloomsbury, 2013) with Dr Amanda Ravetz and Helen Felcey. She has most recently edited, with Lesley Millar, The Erotic Cloth (Bloomsbury, 2018). She is a practising artist with work in international collections including the Whitworth Art Gallery, Manchester, The Crafts Council of Great Britain, Museums in Riga, MAIO in Turin, and the Belger Collection Kansas City USA.
Reviews
In this beautifully illustrated book, the intertwining of threads encapsulates the critical capacity of cloth to act societally, historically, speculatively and psychologically. The editors have brought together some of the best textile scholars and artists to bring new readings and new agency to this ambivalent material. This is an essential contribution to textile discourses. * Catherine Dormor, Professor and Head of Westminster School of Arts, Westminster School of Arts, UK *
From the transformative power of Austrian lace in the Niger Delta to social media as a vehicle for global engagement in community textile projects, this wide ranging and fascinating collection of essays spans history, culture, craft, and technology, to weave rich and multilayered accounts of how fiber, thread and cloth record human lives. * Wendy Weiss, Textile Artist and Professor Emerita, University of Nebraska, USA *
This collection underscores the importance of the study of cloth for understanding contemporary human experiences, revealing stories of cultural preservation, resistance, and a sustainable future. The depth of scholarship presented signals a twenty-first-century renaissance in textile studies. * Jill D'Alessandro, Director and Curator, The Avenir Institute of Textile Arts and Fashion, Denver Art Museum, USA *
Reading the Thread draws together current thinking about and through cloth. Platforming the voices of contemporary artists, theorists and designers, this book presents a global story of connection, expression and intimacy. Each unfolding section examines the ubiquity and therefore power of cloth as a means of record and communication across multiple histories and geographies. * Christine Checinska, Senior Curator - Africa and Diaspora: Textiles and Fashion, V&A *
Book Information
ISBN 9781350320482
Author Lesley Millar
Format Paperback
Page Count 240
Imprint Bloomsbury Visual Arts
Publisher Bloomsbury Publishing PLC
Exploring cloth as a record of experience, and its role in communicating our identities and the stories of our lives, this book presents cloth within its social, historical, psychological and cultural context while also recognising that our involvement in the processes of making and production are integral to the stories it tells.
About the Author
Lesley Millar is Emerita Professor of Textile Culture at the University for the Creative Arts, UK. She has been responsible for many international touring textile exhibitions. She has contributed to many publications most recently editing, with Alice Kettle, The Erotic Cloth (Bloomsbury, 2018) and Spaces and Places (2021). In 2008 she received the Japan Society Award for significant contribution to Anglo-Japanese relationships and in 2011 was appointed MBE for her contribution to Higher Education. Alice Kettle is Professor of Textile Arts at Manchester School of Art, Manchester Metropolitan University, UK. She is co-author of Machine Stitch Perspectives with Jane McKeating (2010) Hand Stitch Perspectives (Bloomsbury, 2012) and Collaboration Through Craft (Bloomsbury, 2013) with Dr Amanda Ravetz and Helen Felcey. She has most recently edited, with Lesley Millar, The Erotic Cloth (Bloomsbury, 2018). She is a practising artist with work in international collections including the Whitworth Art Gallery, Manchester, The Crafts Council of Great Britain, Museums in Riga, MAIO in Turin, and the Belger Collection Kansas City USA.
Reviews
In this beautifully illustrated book, the intertwining of threads encapsulates the critical capacity of cloth to act societally, historically, speculatively and psychologically. The editors have brought together some of the best textile scholars and artists to bring new readings and new agency to this ambivalent material. This is an essential contribution to textile discourses. * Catherine Dormor, Professor and Head of Westminster School of Arts, Westminster School of Arts, UK *
From the transformative power of Austrian lace in the Niger Delta to social media as a vehicle for global engagement in community textile projects, this wide ranging and fascinating collection of essays spans history, culture, craft, and technology, to weave rich and multilayered accounts of how fiber, thread and cloth record human lives. * Wendy Weiss, Textile Artist and Professor Emerita, University of Nebraska, USA *
This collection underscores the importance of the study of cloth for understanding contemporary human experiences, revealing stories of cultural preservation, resistance, and a sustainable future. The depth of scholarship presented signals a twenty-first-century renaissance in textile studies. * Jill D'Alessandro, Director and Curator, The Avenir Institute of Textile Arts and Fashion, Denver Art Museum, USA *
Reading the Thread draws together current thinking about and through cloth. Platforming the voices of contemporary artists, theorists and designers, this book presents a global story of connection, expression and intimacy. Each unfolding section examines the ubiquity and therefore power of cloth as a means of record and communication across multiple histories and geographies. * Christine Checinska, Senior Curator - Africa and Diaspora: Textiles and Fashion, V&A *
Book Information
ISBN 9781350320482
Author Lesley Millar
Format Paperback
Page Count 240
Imprint Bloomsbury Visual Arts
Publisher Bloomsbury Publishing PLC
