I was delighted to be awarded National Arts Council funding through an open call at Spring Arts and Heritage Centre for my project Threads of Freedom.

Threads of Freedom is part of a national project Our Freedom: Then and Now, which explored ideas of freedom, identity, and the ways communities understand and experience freedom across different generations. Through this wider project, I began thinking more deeply about how textiles can hold personal and collective stories, and how traditional making practices can become a wayof exploring memory, heritage, and lived experience.

At the heart of Threads of Freedom is my fascination with the stories held within handmade textiles. A stitch is never simply a mark on fabric; it carries the knowledge, experiences, and histories of the people whocreate it. I am interested in how embroidery, weaving, printing, and other textile practices can act as a form of communication—preservingmemories, expressing identity, and connecting us across time and place.

The idea of freedom within this project is explored in many ways. It considers the freedom found in creativity and self-expression, and the ways textilepractices have enabled communities and individuals to preserve their voices and histories. For many makers, textiles are not just objects; they are a language through which stories can be shared.

My own approach to traditional textiles is rooted in curiosity and respect. I often describe learning stitches as a process of translation rather thanreplication. Every technique has a history and a context shaped by thecommunities that developed it.

Through research, making, conversations, and future collaborations, Threads of Freedom will provide a vehicle for the voices of many to come together in a local community art work.

I don’t yet know exactly where this project will lead, and that uncertainty is part of the creative process. .