Artist Statement

My earliest memories are of my family making things, something was always being created by someone, cakes, clothes, knitting gardening and cooking
I always had access to 'stuff', paint, glue, fabric, paper and books and I was brought up with the knowledge that most things could be made

My art is a reflection of myself, of how I feel, what I see around me and is a response to situations that are personal to me. I love to use the medium that speaks to me at that moment and is best suited to the idea so I use paper, fabric, stitch, paint, dye, photo transfer, fibre etch, paper mache and found objects. The piece may become a quilt, a wall hanging, a box or a book.

Ideas of layering, wrapping and preserving are a returning theme. I often build up layers of fabric and embroidery only to use acid on the surface to burn away parts to reveal detail underneath or I will build up layers of paper mache, partially concealing what lies beneath; a sort of artists archeology.

I enjoy telling a story of things that have gone before, objects that have become precious, objects that have a story to tell. Although my work often has a strong personal theme this is not always obvious; it is important to me that my work allows the viewer the space to invent and interpret the work for themselves.

Kate Crossley