Hiding In Plain Sight by Tiffany Arntson features photography and woven elements. Tiffany says:
I looked at them for a long time before I came to touch the leaves and know what a gift they are. Tall, sword shaped spikes. Clustered in a jagged bush, New Zealand flax plants are hard to ignore. A friendly monster – depending on how you view them.
This was my first encounter with these otherworldly plants, inherited in the garden of our new house. I feel shame to say I ignored them for three years. Yet they were steadfast in not needing anything from me. They kept growing, waving in the wind and each Summer they pushed up magnificent stems of orangey red flowers. Their determination was quiet and unwavering.
The first time I tried to prune them I tossed away the leaves cut from the base. They were waste to me, I didn’t consider they had a use beyond. The second time, a year later, was different. My daily dog walks in the local fields opened up a new way of seeing and being with the land. I return home with treasures. Walnut shells, lichen on a piece of bark, a sycamore helicopter, a particularly pleasing stick. My family watches piles around our house grow, with eyes wide. Some of these finds became part of my art making. A new way of working with materials that speak to me without words.
All this was in the back of my mind when it came to the second pruning of the New Zealand flax. As I cut the leaves I wondered if I could make with them. I discovered this plant, known natively as harakeke, is an iconic, exceptionally strong plant central to Māori culture. And, as all precious resources, it was heavily exploited in the colonisation of the country. For centuries Māori used traditional techniques to weave the inner fibre into everything from fishing nets and heavy mats to clothing. I came to see how precious the plant and its leaves are.
I started experimenting, admittedly with an undisciplined approach. Beginning by weaving a grid, everything that comes next is a response to the place I’m in, the people I’m with and the stories being told. Frequently I pause, hold the piece in my arms, against my body, then place it on my head. It’s very calming in there, wrapped in the green aroma, able to see and not be entirely seen. It’s a place where I feel free.
Tiffany is an artist, communications consultant and host of creative residencies for artists, held near Stamford, Lincolnshire. Her art making celebrates the overlooked and under valued; natural elements found on daily walks and man made materials that have been discarded. With a playful, curious energy, she explores the question: what sustains us? It’s work that surfaces the unseen connections within ourselves, other beings and our environment.
@anenglishrogue @rogue.residencies roguematters.com
Thanks to neighbour Margaret and Grand View Care Home for their New Zealand flax, Ava and Meg for help in weaving these pieces with me and Lucy Glen for the photograph featured in the noticeboard.