September 2009
"Cutting the Apron Strings"
- an Exhibition of New Prints & Fabric Art by Clare Makwana

‘Cutting the Apron Strings’
(Artist's statement:)

There are two parts to this exhibition:

Firstly: a celebration of everything my mother taught me- thrift, resilience, stitching and an appreciation of the beauty and the art in craft.

I wanted to take some of the ordinary everyday items that we use such as aprons and gloves and embellish them, decorate them and in doing so bring beauty into our day to day routines and travels.

Secondly: the beginnings of an exploration of aprons as a symbol and shape in my art work.

An extract from the book Thrift to Fantasy
(by NZ Author Rosemary McLeod):

‘..Aprons used to be a universal female uniform. To illustrate a man wearing an apron was a recognised joke; men did not perform household tasks and only a henpecked husband would agree to put one on. But aprons were also complex garments which appeared in many guises depending on a woman’s role on the day. She could be a fashion plate, a seductive minx, a drudge; she could express something about her personality and her attitude to her daily tasks even as she submitted to the role of a housewife...’

I like the idea of taking the apron out of context and using its petal or feather like shape to combine with other elements I have been using in my printmaking as well as using it as a symbol of both protection and the role playing people do.

(All prices shown are NZD)
This exhibition runs here during September - please call in & view Clare's work.