Four textile artists, Joan Baxter, Midge Gourlay, Sheen Norquay and Sarah Sumsion, are brought together in a new exhibition at the Castle Gallery, Inverness from 12 June to 3 July.

Their work is diverse but they share a common interest in the archaeology, history, culture and landscape of the North and North West of Scotland, in particular, of Sutherland, Argyll and Orkney.

These artists are breaking the bounds of what is thought of as traditional in needlework and tapestry.  Whilst still indebted to tradition they use the medium of textiles to be creative, expressive and convey meaning.  These artists are thinking with their hands, drawing with threads and weaving a story. 

Joan Baxter - Tapestry/Weaving
Joan Baxter is inspired by the landscapes and history of Strath Brora in East Sutherland.  Her tapestries record the different landscapes from the high moorland summer sheilings, down the Strath to the sea.  Traces of thousands of years of habitation remain in the ruined medieval townships vacated during the clearances, and in earlier settlements from the Iron and Bronze Ages.  Joan wants her work to commemorate these ghost communities whilst linking them to the present.

Midge Gourlay - Embroidery/Related Techniques
Midge Gourlay works with colours, patterns and textures taken from the land and seascapes of the west coast of Scotland.  She works mainly in silks which are hand dyed and used either in fabric form or as unspun threads. Silk fibres are felted to create grounds to work into using hand or machine stitchery and embellished with found objects, papers etc. 

Sheena Norquay - Quilting/Hand applique & machine stitching 
Sheena Norquay was born on Orkney and although she now lives in Inverness, she is still inspired by the Orkney seascapes and Norse myths.  Her pictorial ‘story quilts’ incorporate many symbols and hidden images, most of which are explained with accompanying text. The surfaces of her quilts come alive with movement, shape, pattern, texture and colour as she stitches through the three layers of fabric and wadding that make up the basic fabric.

Sarah Sumsion - Weaving/Mixed media
Sarah Sumsion employs several techniques and materials in her work including paint, dye, scrim, silk, hand woven fabric and stitching.  She is interested in the marks that man leaves behind on the landscape through industry, creating cross cultural references between sites in New Mexico, India and West Sutherland. 

Demonstration
These four artists have explored the artistic potential of  wool, threads and fabrics to create works of great creative merit and interest.  To learn more, visit this exhibition at the Castle Gallery, Inverness from 12 June – 3 July, 2004.  Sheena Norquay will be demonstrating her hand and machine quilting techniques at the gallery on Saturday 19 June (11.00-1.00 and 2.00-4.00) and will also be talking about the stories behind the work and the preparation of the original drawings and designs. Not to be missed !

For more information telephone 01463 729512 or email info@castlegallery.co.uk  www.castlegallery.co.uk