Safe Passage
One of the recent themes in my work has been refugees and their journeys. My own ancestors crossed the seas both fleeing from oppression and poverty and searching for a better life for themselves and their children. Their stories often moved me, as do those…
Miniature Tapestries
Featured image, Flying, miniature textile by Joanne Soroka, 20 x 20 x 9 cm, cut Japanese paper, exhibited at Miniartextil, Como A large tapestry is a major commitment for an artist to embark on, since it may be three months or even more in the…
How I Made a Shroud
My soulmate, Barry, died suddenly and unexpectedly in August. After I got over the initial shock, I thought about how I wanted to give him a parting and meaningful gift, so I decided, as a textile artist, to make a shroud for him. Barry was…
What’s so special about tapestry weaving?
One of the great strengths of tapestry weaving is the surfaces that can be created. Each medium has its positives, and with tapestry, yarns can be used in multiple ways to create texture in bas relief or even into the third dimension. Here are a…
Can textiles be political?
Joanne Soroka, Another Country, shaped tapestry with tufting The words ‘political’ and ‘textiles’ are not natural bedfellows. Textiles are gentle, feminine and amateur in the general imagination, but some artists like to subvert received opinion and use the apparent disparity to make their point….
How do I become an artist?
The traditional view was that the artist was a genius, a man, who worked in a freezing garret and was devoted only to his art. He was separate from ‘normal’ society, but didn’t care – in fact, he celebrated his superiority to it. Perhaps it…
The strangest exhibition opening ever
I exhibit my work internationally, and sometimes I am lucky enough to be able to travel to far-flung destinations. It can be exciting to attend the opening of an exhibition, although they tend to be standard affairs with chatting and speeches, albeit tempered by the…
Foraging for Tapestries
I have loved collecting wild food all my life, starting as a small child with wild strawberries and blueberries. When I discovered the books Stalking the Wild Asparagus and Food for Free in the 1970s, I broadened my searches to include plants such as wintercress…
What’s So Funny?
Tapestry is thought of as a serious discipline, historically used to impress its audience by showing the might, taste and prestige of its owners. Or it could cow viewers into submission by frightening them with images of the Apocalypse, suggesting that they should turn from…
The resurgence of tapestry
Happily we have seen a resurgence of interest in textiles as art in recent years. Great – but why is it happening now? We know that textiles have often been viewed as craft and that the practitioners have mainly been women – two strikes against…