Supported by the Tapestry Foundation of Australia, the Hancock Fellowship was established to bring international artists in tapestry, textile and design to visit the ATW and share their expertise through workshops, lectures and exhibition whilst learning about contemporary art and creative industries in Australia.
The Hancock Fellowship, named in honour of former ATW Chairman Arnold Hancock OBE, demonstrates the ATW’s commitment to strengthening engagement with the international arts community, and promoting Australia’s creative talent to audiences worldwide.
Reiko Sudo was the 2015 Hancock Fellow. She is the Artistic Director of renowned Japanese textile producer, NUNO Corporation. She pioneered 'techno-textiles' - a rich intersection between traditional artisan techniques and industrial design processes. Since 1984, NUNO has collaborated with over 50 weaving and dyeing centres throughout Japan to create unique textiles. Throughout this period, NUNO's textiles have garnered acclaim worldwide and been selected for inclusion in many museum collections.
In addition to a public lecture by Reiko, ATW also held the exhibition Melbourne, do you NUNO? . The centrepiece of the exhibition was a walk-in space encircled by two large tapestries created from 360 swatches selected from among NUNO's 2500 designs so far, a perfect ‘sampler’ of the many materials, techniques and styles of NUNO textiles. Special limited edition items were also on sale throughout the exhibition in the Nuno pop-up shop. Two workshops were also held over the duration of the exhibition: Make a patchwork scarf with Nuno textiles and and an Itajime Shibori Dyeing Workshop. Itajime shibori is a shaped-resist dyeing technique using pleating, folding, clamping to create shapes. The shapes prevent the dye from penetrating the fabric they cover.
Launching the Melbourne, do you NUNO? exhibition was long-time friend of Reiko Sudo, Chairman and Executive Director of the Sherman Contemporary Art Foundation, Dr Gene Sherman AM.
Where: Australian Tapestry Workshop
262 - 266 Park Street
South Melbourne VIC 3205
