About the Artist
Eloise Considine is a hybrid interdisciplinary artist whose practice draws together sewn found fabrics with the handmade marks of oil paint and charcoal. Her work explores the increasingly blurred boundaries between craft and contemporary art, framed by the historical undervaluing of women’s labour and a personal upbringing immersed in crafts of woodwork and needlework. Using accessible and local textiles, Considine mimics the process of the craftspeople she studies – weaving and stitching layers of rug and tablecloth amongst dressmaker’s calico. Life drawing and photography serve to investigate the hidden spaces of craft, revealing the artistry, skill, and time embedded in these often-overlooked practices. By depicting confident, active figures - whether solitary or in groups - Considine invites the viewer into inclusive, communal spaces of making. The presence of tactile patterns and domestic motifs, presented as free-standing forms in the space, evoke functional and nostalgic objects. Integral to her practice is the visibility of process: flawed hand-stitching and loose threads on exposed reverse sides offer a candid glimpse into the labour and imperfection inherent in sewing - the value of the handmade.
Women depicted in work
Maria who works at Tailors' shop ‘Stitches’ on Bruntsfield place.
Anke a teacher at a crochet group at ‘Pins and Needles’ Craft Shop, Gilmore Place.
My neighbour Sheila Smith, who dyes, spins and knits locally sourced Sheep's and Alpaca wool in Farnham. She is a founding member of the 'West Surrey Guild of Spinners, Weavers, and Dyers', established in 1979.
Portfolio
