Lovely powerful community project I am leading at the moment.
https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/1Kqw5Jn0bBS9C-TN3bTLvbJedS18vOAGZ
Threads of Freedom brings together thoughts of freedom generated and stitched by the community of Havant, each piece of work is currently being stitched directly onto denim dungarees that serve as canvas. Every material and method of attachment has been chosen with care, both to honour the individual contributions and to ensure each piece can be displayed securely and beautifully.
A running stitch has been used as method of attachment throughout—not only for its durability but also for its symbolism. Found in traditions such as Indian Kantha, Japanese sashiko, and Welsh and North Country quilting, it is a universal domestic stitch rooted in everyday making. True to the spirit of “make do and mend,” running stitch has also long been used to patch, repair, and hold things together using whatever was available. Its use here deliberately echoes that heritage, allowing each contribution to be added in a way that is modest, resourceful, and handmade—mirroring how people have historically extended the life of garments and safeguarded what mattered to them through stitch.
Dungarees were chosen as the canvas for their layered history: once worn by women in munitions factories and by members of the Land Army, and now recognised as a non-gendered, universal garment. Since those post-war years, life has changed dramatically—women have gained new rights, opportunities have widened, and society has evolved. The dungarees offer a blank surface to hold the stitched and written expressions of all who contributed. The exhibition celebrates not only personal creativity but also the freedoms hard-won over the decades—freedoms of voice, choice, and collective expression.
Overwhelmed by the richness of the drawn contributions. Wanting to honour them fully, the artists working on the commission developed a way of tracing and redrawing selected images, creating new drawings which will sit alongside the final artwork.
Thank you to the lovely Tanya Woods for agreeing to be my partner in crime in developing this project. Also thank you to Hermione Grainger and jane sims for helping with mammoth task of attaching all the stitched pieces.
and of course thank you to all the people of Havant for their wonderful contributions without which there would be no project, the Spring Art and heritage centre for awarding me the commission in the first place and Fiona Baxter CEO for her support throughout!
helen sill 