Thursday, 28 March 2024

Textile Details

'Will there be poppies, daisies and apples when I grow up?', by Irene MacWilliam (Photo: Martin Melaugh)
'Will there be poppies, daisies and apples when I grow up?', by Irene MacWilliam (Photo: Martin Melaugh)

 

Title of Textile:Will there be poppies, daisies and apples when I grow up?
Maker: Irene MacWilliam
Country of Origin: Northern Ireland
Year Produced: 2010
Size (cm): 53cm (w) x 43cm (l)
Materials: Cottons and polycottons. Markal oil paintsticks
Type of Textile: Arpillera
Description:

This textile by Irene MacWilliam, expresses her anxiety for her grandchildren and the burden of responsibility they bear for climate change and an ever-changing environment. Here, she highlights the concerns affecting us globally via the language and world of a child -will there still be flowers and apples in the future?

The little girl clutching a teddy bear in one hand and the sand watch in the other, against the backdrop of carbon footprints, is an ominous reminder of our responsibility to act now to ensure this girl and her contemporaries enjoy a safe, healthy future.

Irene created this piece in response to a call from curator Roberta Bacic in 2009 seeking textiles on the theme of the environment. Since 2010, it has journeyed to 15 different Conflict Textile exhibitions, within the UK, Europe and beyond where it has prompted reflection, debate, challenge and action. In August 2021, Irene received Artist of the Year award for this piece from the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (RSPB) Northern Ireland (NI).

Given the stark warnings on the state of our planet, from the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) sixth assessment report (August 2021) and the COP28 Conference (December 2023), Irene’s piece now presents an even more urgent call to action than in 2010.

Owner: Conflict Textiles collection
Location: Conflict Textiles store
Original / Replica: Original
Photographer: Martin Melaugh
Provenance: Donation from Irene MacWilliam.



Textile exhibited at: Arpilleras: Voices on Tapestries, 8/03/2010 - 31/03/2010
Arpilleras: Embajadoras para el Bicentenario Quilts/Arpilleras: Ambassadors for the B, 14/04/2010 - 20/05/2010
Exhibit of Chilean Arpilleras, 20/05/2010 - 22/05/2010
Stitching Resistance, 12/10/2010 - 16/01/2011
Stitching Peace: An exhibition of Arpilleras and Quilts, 16/02/2011 - 18/03/2011
Stitching Peace: An exhibition of arpilleras and quilts, 17/05/2011 - 25/05/2011
Arpilleras: Community Action and Empowerment through Narrative Textile Art, 6/03/2012 - 6/04/2012
Arpilleras Poéticas y recital del poeta chileno Jaime Huenún, 10/11/2012 - 15/12/2012
RETAZOS TESTIMONIALES: arpilleras de Chile y otras latitudes, 28/09/2013 - 10/11/2013
Women 31 , 7/03/2014 - 15/04/2014
Arpilleras: Verhalen over leven / Arpilleras: stories of life and survival, 23/09/2015 - 20/11/2015
ARPILLERAS: verhalen over leven / ARPILLERAS: stories of life and survival, 16/01/2016 - 24/02/2016
Enduring Life: Arpillera Voices, 11/05/2016 - 15/07/2016
Development Education in the Continuum of Teacher Education , 6/02/2019 - 6/02/2019
Poesie des Nähens / The Poetry of Stitching, 17/01/2020 - 8/03/2020
Macht mit anstatt Macht über: Widerstand für eine gerechte Welt ist möglich!, 9/09/2021 - 9/09/2021
Climate Change – The People’s Story, 9/07/2022 - 18/12/2022
Threads and Stitches of our Changing Landscape, 28/06/2023 - 21/10/2023
Arpilleras Poéticas, 7/12/2023 - 12/02/2024



Textile Detail Image(s)