Learn how to create a hand embellished quilt block with local artist Lila Wordsworth, and see her quilt piece ‘The Untangling’ at ONCA.

Make a hand embellished quilt block using simple embroidery techniques to tell a story of our interaction with our environment, focusing on themes of rest for people and planet.

This workshop, led by ‘The Untangling’ artist Lila Wordsworth, will be an opportunity to share experiences and ideas around conservation, rewilding and our place in our local ecosystem, as well as generating ideas for further environmental art projects. Lila will share her experience in sourcing, dyeing and sewing with used textiles to create visual and sensory narratives. She will show you a selection of original artwork samples from her Brighton studio and there will be time for your questions.

Lila will direct you both as a group and individually, as she shares with you how she celebrates and uses pre-loved items and found objects as her canvases, by working directly on and into them using needle, threads and fabrics as drawing tools.

Techniques explored will include couching, running stitch, whipped running stitch, needle threading and knots. Hand-stitched text will also be explored.

Materials are provided by Lila – there is no need to bring anything. However, participants may bring a selection of their own textiles and materials if they wish. Lila suggests bringing items made solely from natural fabrics, as they are easier to embellish using embroidery, mending and patching techniques. The aim is not to finish a block; participants can take home a selection of materials to enable them to complete their work in their own time.