Day two of the first creative workshop exploring the connections between stitch and sound, through sampling

Day two of the first creative workshop exploring the connections between stitch and sound, through sampling, at London Printworks in Brixton, May 2008

Day two of the first creative workshop exploring the connections between stitch and sound, through sampling, at London Printworks in Brixton, May 2008.

Three of the sampler-culture clash collective Yusra Warsama, Pat Cove and Jackie Rayer creating embroidered samplers.

Learning to embroider

Learning to embroider

Learning to embroider

Yusra Warsama learning how to embroider with the help of Jackie Rayer. An important approach to the project is that each participant, whether dj, poet or embroiderer, learns about each of the art forms: music, poetry and embroidery. This way, they can gain a better understanding of the techniques, creativity and skill involved, thereby developing their knowledge of, skill in, and respect for, each art form.

Participants in the project, including members of the Embroiderer's Guild and the New Embroidery group

Participants in the project, including members of the Embroiderer's Guild and the New Embroidery group, learning about the V&A's collection of embroidered samplers with V&A Curator Clare Brown

Participants in the project, including members of the Embroiderer's Guild and the New Embroidery group, learning about the V&A's collection of embroidered samplers with V&A Curator Clare Brown

We spent the first day of the workshop in the textiles study room at the V&A, many of us meeting each other for the first time, discussing a selection of samplers from both the V&A's and the Embroiderers' Guild's collections. These samplers were the initial inspiration for the project.

Jackie Rayer recording a selection of sounds, words and poems

Jackie Rayer recording a selection of sounds, words and poems, including stitched texts taken from samplers in the V&A's collection

Jackie Rayer recording a selection of sounds, words and poems, including stitched texts taken from samplers in the V&A's collection

The idea was to bring these historical pieces stitched by girls and young women in the 17th, 18th and 19th centuries back to life through the voice of women embroidering in the 21st century. All the participants in the workshop recorded sounds and texts. Collectively we recorded over 100 audio pieces. Some we have left as full pieces, others we intend to sample and reconstruct into new compositions.

Liz Ashurst contributing to the stitched consequence pieces

Liz Ashurst contributing to the stitched consequence pieces

Liz Ashurst contributing to the stitched consequence pieces

This exercise helped us think about the process of collective making and about shared ownership.  Each person started with an empty piece of calico, then for twenty minutes they stitched freestyle whatever happened to be in their thoughts at that moment. Then, like the game of consequences, they passed their cloth onto the next person, who carried on from where the last stitch finished, taking it in a new direction. This process continued until each person had contributed to the eight pieces of cloth.  The result was eight collective pieces of embroidery containing a wide range of stitches and imagery, which only existed in their final form as a result of each person's vital contribution.

Jackie Rayer and Kathy Small contributing to the stitched consequences pieces

Jackie Rayer and Kathy Small contributing to the stitched consequences pieces

Jackie Rayer and Kathy Small contributing to the stitched consequences pieces

The Sampler-Culture Clash 'Embroidery vs DJ' event at London Printworks in Brixton, as part of London Design Festival

The Sampler-Culture Clash 'Embroidery vs DJ' event at London Printworks in Brixton, as part of London Design Festival, September 2008

The Sampler-Culture Clash 'Embroidery vs DJ' event at London Printworks in Brixton, as part of London Design Festival, September 2008

As part of the event, audience members and performers were invited to sit, stitch, drink, meet and talk whilst creating a 30ft collective sampler. The event also featured a live improvised performance piece mixing sound, word, image, stitch and movement created by embroiderers, dj's, b-girls (breakdancers), poets and beat-boxers.

Vocal sound orchestra, featuring Yusra Warsama and Jan Gilburt

Vocal sound orchestra, featuring Yusra Warsama and Jan Gilburt

Vocal sound orchestra, featuring Yusra Warsama and Jan Gilburt

During the first workshop we experimented with creating and re-creating sounds by just using our voices, which we later recorded and sampled. We created a vocal sound orchestra built on repetition, layering, looping and cutting.

'I was here', created by an unknown artist at BildMuseet

'I was here', created by an unknown artist at BildMuseet, Umea, Sweden, June 2009

'I was here', created by an unknown artist at BildMuseet, Umea, Sweden, June 2009

As part of the Open Source Embroidery exhibition, curated by Ele Carpenter, we invited visitors to graffiti-stitch a settee and a pair of armchairs whilst they listened (via the headphones) to a selection of audio tracks created by the Sampler-Culture Clash collective. An amazing new archive of embroidered thoughts, names and images has been created, transforming the chairs from their original blank canvases into a new collective work.

Mother, with child

Mother, with child, listening to the Sampler-Culture Clash audio tracks

Mother, with child, listening to the Sampler-Culture Clash audio tracks whilst contributing to the graffiti-stitched chairs during the Open Source Embroidery exhibition curated by Ele Carpenter at BildMuseet, Umea, Sweden, June 2009

Sound artist Jason Singh learning to stitch

Sound artist Jason Singh learning to stitch

Sound artist Jason Singh learning to stitch as part of the first week-long creative workshop at London Printworks in Brixton, May 2008

Yusra Warsama recording a selection of new poems

Yusra Warsama recording a selection of new poems

Yusra Warsama recording a selection of new poems at Raw Material's studio in Brixton, created during the first exploratory workshop in May 2008