Double Weave – Bourne and Allen’s Modernist Textiles opened at Ditchling Museum of Art + Craft last Friday evening (15th September) and we were thrilled and proud to do much of the conservation and mounting for this fabulous exhibition!
Hilary Bourne and Barbara Allen were an extraordinary powerhouse of a couple, quietly designing and making some of the most advanced and inspiring textiles of their generation. It’s a beautiful, subtle exhibition with close community links given their strong connection to Sussex, Ditchling and the foundation of the museum itself. The exhibition has been beautifully curated by EJ Scott (Museum of Transology) as lead working with a fabulous group of co-curators including Dr Veronica Isaac, Dr Jane Hattrick, Dr Suzanne Rowland, Jane Traies and Shelley Tobin, all bringing their different areas of expertise to the exhibition.
Artist Omeima Mudawi-Rowlings MBE has created a beautiful hand dyed floating textile art work that is shown too, entitled Drawn to the Light, made as a response to Bourne and Allen’s legacy and her own experiences of intersectionality. Zenzie had the pleasure of meeting and talking with Omeima the previous Monday when she and Tabby helped EJ and the Ditchling team (big shout out to Joleene and the techs) with the installation.
Double Weave is on until 14th April 2024 – it’s a highly recommended visit snuggled into a beautiful museum
