Alice Fox
Plot 105
Weaver
Shipley, United Kingdom
Fibres between conservation and cultivation
- Alice uses found materials with natural fibres she grows herself
- Her allotment, Plot 105, functions as an extension to her studio and a source for her materials
- Her work is held in the Bodleian Libraries and the Ahmanson Collection
With an interest in both science and art, Alice Fox earned a degree in geography, then worked in otter surveying and nature conservation. Her creative practice and her fieldwork shared a common frustration: she could rarely trace where raw materials came from. After taking a textiles class while raising her children, Alice decided to shift her focus to the craft, committed to growing and gathering her own materials herself. She discovered that strict limits on her materials sparked creativity instead of stopping it. "Without boundaries, there are too many possibilities. Where would I even start?" she asks. Alice later earned a Master of Arts degree, following her undergraduate studies which she completed part-time over five years. Based in Saltaire, West Yorkshire, she now teaches workshops and writes books about her unique use of wild textiles.
INTERVIEW
While motherhood made my conservation work difficult to sustain, my passion for the landscape, eco-friendly practices and knowing where things come from still underpins everything I do. Today, I simply express these values differently.
Growing your own materials is nothing like having commercially available natural fibres, such as flax. I sow, tend for a hundred days, pull, dry and process everything by hand. There may be only a small amount each year, so every bundle is precious, not for scarcity alone, but for the time and care that went into making it exist.
The previous allotment tenant left tools in the shed, where I found a small, broken spade in a lovely colour. I drilled into it, attached cordage and built onto it. It is not about recycling, but rather recognising the value in something that can still be worked with.
I made a thorn piece measuring over four metres, exactly the width of a gallery in Cornwall, wall to wall, where it was displayed. Having a reason to work at scale felt important and I seek similar projects. I am always looking to deepen my relationship with different materials that allow me to explore new forms and scales.
Alice Fox
Plot 105
Weaver
Shipley, United Kingdom
ADDRESS
Address upon request, Shipley, United Kingdom
AVAILABILITY
By appointment only
LANGUAGES
English
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