Description

A one-day in-person workshop with stitch and photography for complete beginners with artist Jessa Fairbrother, at her studio in Bristol.

The day will focus on introducing you to some of the key ways to begin to work on the photographic image with thread.

Jessa will show you how to start / finish with embroidery thread on work and teach you basic stitches to try out.

You will experiment on testers (provided) before deciding how to work on a photograph of your choice.

In the afternoon you will apply what you have learned to your own photographic image. You must bring copies of your photographs that you would like to work on (not the most precious original).

About me

I have been sewing all my life and began to stitch into the photographic image over ten years ago with a body of work Conversations with my mother. This led me to developing a method for using the needle and thread on the image to make very specific embroidered work. I am currently studying Historical Hand embroidery at the Royal School of Needlework and incorporate some of these techniques in my newer works.

Important Information.

Access 

My studio is on the second floor of an old building and there is no lift. There are four sets of stairs.

What you should bring:

Copies of one or two of your own photographs for the afternoon so I can advise you on what would be the most satisfying thing to try out first. Photographs of any sort are fine, but it is easiest to practice on machine-printed C-types rather than inkjet. Black and white photographs are also great – if you have a resin coated paper this is the easiest to work with.  It is a good idea to keep the photograph smaller than 10 x 8 inches. Larger than that is difficult to handle.

If you have a pair of scissors you particularly like to use, bring them too.

I use DMC embroidery threads which is what I’ll be supplying for the day, but if you have a speciality thread you’d like to try out please do bring it along.

Glasses if you need them! This is painstaking and fiddly work. I have to wear glasses to do it. If you normally wear glasses or contact lenses you should definitely bring them.

Define ‘Starter’

You have never done any sewing at all, or maybe a little bit, like sewing on a button. You are an artist or creative working in a practice that revolves around another medium, in which case this could still be for you. This is a very skills based day.

Cancellation Policy 

This workshop takes place in my small  studio at Jamaica Street in Bristol so the number of participants is capped at 3.

In the unlikely event I have to cancel the workshop you will get a refund of your workshop fee.

If you need to cancel more than 7 days before the start of the workshop you’ll get a refund minus a £20 admin charge.

If you need to cancel within 7 days prior to the start of the workshop the fee is non-refundable.

Address/Parking/Travel

The studio address is 39 Jamaica Street, Bristol, BS2 8JP.

There is no free parking but on-street paid-for parking nearby, and plenty of busses to the middle of Bristol city centre.

Temple Meads train-station is a short bus-ride away.

For any other questions not answered here please email jessa@jessafairbrother.com