Open bench residency: Julie Monro-Allison

"In this project, scraps of textile materials originating from animal bodies, such as leather, silk, and bones, are woven and stitched into small sculptural pieces. The work is a meditation on the politics and emotions, the inconsistencies and conflicts, of animal-human interaction, particularly in those interactions relating to death and desire. What does one feel, for example, for a fur coat? Leather gloves? A mouse's corpse? Polished bones? How does one articulate these feelings?"

- Julie Monro-Allison, week 1 resident

This week some of you may have noticed some live action art making going on in gallery three. As part of AMAM, the 'Open Bench Residencies' involves participating three artists from very different fields. Each artist will create a studio space in Craft Victoria's Gallery 3 for a week, working within their medium to produce a body of finished pieces, showcasing the making process in a dynamic and fluid context. In the fourth week the three residents will collaborate to curate an exhibition of the finished works.

In week 1, from 11-16 August, we have basketweaver and textile artist Julie Monro-Allison. Using a wide and varied range of materials such as string, apple seeds, bone and leather, Julie will be working away at her bench till Saturday tomorrow (16/8)

Next week ceramacist Bridget Bodenham will be taking over the space and following that, Emma Greenwood. Do drop by and say hello! (And maybe bring some biscuits while you're at it)