Mel Rayner

Whereable Textile Artist

I have worked the Fashion Industry in product development for over twenty years alongside some of the very best (and worst) of Melbourne's designers and tailors. My career as a Patternmaker has been sustaining and rewarding, however my work as an artist is also important - embracing and extending the materials and tools of my trade. For as long as I can remember textiles have been the primary focus of my creative world. The ability of fibres and fabrics to bend, stretch, flex, fluff, contain and enclose is of enduring fascination in both my professional and my personal life. Stitching is a unifying community activity which is undisputed historically as well as currently. The tedium of repetitive handwork in particular seems to leave our hearts and minds open to the conversations that may otherwise be dormant or repressed. It is as if the threads bind not just the fabric but our psyches as well. I am influenced by that which is close to me physically, spiritually and mentally. The seaside, music, colour. The people that I love and that love me (and the ones that just put up with me), the decay in the natural and unnatural environments in which we live and the new growth which occurs amongst us all. It is my aim to live my life as a work in progress- surrounded by inspiration, constantly creating, reviewing, remodelling, delving into new and old ideas, exploring other worlds and opening the opportunity for profound reflection through the artistic process. The Idea of the Phoenix rising is suggestive of a point in time at the edge of life and/or death. Life is a journey through a rich tapestry. The maps that we carry on our travels are sometimes illegible and faulty based on hearsay and misgivings, or out of date and based on false ideas.

melray@ozemail.com.au