Julia Binfield Vessels, 2020
Residency. Guided screen printing and mixed-media sessions.
A long period of experimentation in the studio
Julia writes:
I would like to say that I have always loved David Hockney, that William Scott is part of my DNA (my mother adored him), that I was influenced by Russel Wright, a discovery I made as an adult.
I would not want to seem too “British”, but I would also like to talk about my passion for everything that lives in a pantry; the correct term would be “the kitchen cupboard”.
Simple, perfect shapes such as jugs, glasses, bottles, cups, but also vases, which seem useless and instead are extremely useful for putting flowers in and changing the course of a day.
I would like people to know that this sum of passions found an outlet in Daniela Lorenzi’s A14 atelier; Daniela, a generous woman, gave me the freedom to explore different techniques. Among these I chose screen printing, and working with Georgia Garofalo we tested colours that could withstand washing, printing, printing and printing… together we experimented with the “matryoshka” technique. We called it that because it allowed us to print 4 or 5 shapes, in different colours, overlapping the subjects, with her washing the screen while I fixed the prints under the hot press.
Everyday objects for a personal vocabulary
Julia Binfield interprets everyday objects, such as bread bags, bags and aprons, integrating them into her fabric creations. These objects take on an aesthetic and narrative value, becoming an integral part of a visual language that blends graphics, illustration and design.
They are unique pieces combining collage, screen printing and free-hand embroidery. The result is a set of creations that unite functionality and art.
The screens: functionality and poetic narrative
In this phase of research, Julia goes further, thanks to the time spent in the atelier and to meetings and exchanges with other artists, designing actual folding screens.
These screens become real displays, able to live not only as design objects but also as free visual compositions. These elements create a vocabulary that is recognisable, extensible and accessible on several levels. Elements that could also be found in a gallery space, but that find their true life in the domestic space.
Indeed, the same objects, set in natural contexts such as the hamlet of Villafredda, also become the expression of a domestic art, a liveable art.
Julia herself, when interviewed, answers:
In short, where do you see these “works on fabric” of yours: in the field of graphics, illustration or design?
I don’t know. Earlier you also asked me what kind of person might like them and in what kind of home they would look best. I answer precisely with the choice of location, which was the intuition of a photographer friend of mine, added to the generosity of the family who live in the hamlet of Villafredda (Friuli). A place that, when you see it for the first time, immediately makes you want to live there or, simply, you enjoy the spaces without needing to decide whether you want to live in them. A bit like the people who choose pieces sewn by me: they are very different from one another, there is no absolute look or style. I like that! Just as I would very much like to see my pieces used, lived in, worn to exhaustion, like much-loved toys.
Opere correlate
Nessuna opera correlata trovata