Where I work
I work at home in a small, bright room, but more interestingly in 2003 I pioneered weaving landscapes ‘en plein air’ during residencies at Bundanon, NSW. I continued this practice for the next ten years in Box Hill (where I live), France, and Sri Lanka (the land of my birth).
What inspired my work
My engagement with landscape began through the challenge of working outdoors and has continued as a way of capturing my immediate reactions to place and atmosphere.
How I made it
I am a tapestry weaver and the process is both painstaking and endlessly engaging. I like to work free from a prescribed ‘cartoon’, letting invention take place on the loom whilst staying true to the spirit of the image.
What I am working on
Currently, I am working on a series of thirteen tapestries that document both my road journey that cut through the red centre of Australia and flight home over the vast, aerial landscape.
About me
Cresside Collette is a tapestry artist and has been a weaver for 43 years. She originally trained for and became a foundation weaver of the Victorian Tapestry Workshop (now the Australian Tapestry Workshop) in 1976. She has been an exhibiting artist since 1971 and taught tapestry weaving and drawing at RMIT University for 11 years. Since 2011 she has established an annual tour to France and the UK to view the best of historical tapestry and engage with contemporary practitioners of this craft.
Website: www.cressidecollette.com