Residency | ‘…and the plants and the webs and the splashing’ by Kate Owens and Kimberley O’Neill

The annual TOAST Creative Residency aims to bring together a like-minded community of creative individuals. This year, we are hosting our first virtual Creative Residency, an online three-day programme of talks, workshops and live demonstrations. The programme, inspired by our seasonal campaign Flux & Flow, was open to all with an aim of to connecting individuals and fostering thought. This year, we partnered with the Crafts Council, the national charity for craft, to invite an Artist in Residence to explore the theme Flux & Flow and showcase their work throughout the Virtual Creative Residency. Textile artist Kate Owens has been experimenting with traditional block printing and the sculptural possibilities of the print block for the past four years. Her studies in sculpture at the Royal College of Art have informed her practice and this is evident in her approach to scale and her unique combination of print with choreographed movement. For this project, Kate will be using this innovative print-block-shoe technique to walk across fabric using her body weight to transfer ink to the cloth. Through this printing method, the textiles become an intimate record of the physical making experience. This completed work was presented at the Creative Residency, profiled within Crafts magazine and has been donated to the Crafts Council collection. Ahead of the residency, we found a quiet moment to talk to Kate about her inspirations and her journey so far on the TOAST Magazine. Read