Sarah Harley
I'm currently working on small scale figurative textile pieces, paintings and prints developed in my studio based on sketches and photos from life which I use as a starting point. My work explores my relationship with nature, whether as an observer walking through landscape, as a gardener, or occupying a natural environment as a space to rest and contemplate.
I make small scale paintings which take a close up view of nature, often showing the tangled growth and decay of plants and trees. My current series of paintings began during the pandemic when my daily walks on the outskirts of Norwich took on a deeper significance. The tenacity and continuity of nature seemed both meaningful and reassuring while the human world was full of chaos and uncertainty. I use oil paints with natural mediums and primers and I paint on oak boards, which are offcuts from an antique furniture restorer’s workshop. These biodegradable materials are a way to connect more to the environments which inspire my work.
I use embroidery and textile collaging using re-cycled fabric to make images of people in nature. These are based on holiday sketches, usually of family and friends. I used hand stitching to create line drawings adding scraps of printed textiles to reference colour and pattern in nature. There is an intimacy to hand stitching and domestic textile processes and I use this to explore a sense of connection and wellbeing in the natural environment.
Lived Experience
I work in a wide range of mediums including painting, drawing, printmaking, collage and textiles. My work is often auto-biographical in that it reflects the different chapters and episodes of my life and experience.
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