Inter:section / Rachel Hine, Hilary Green & Rachel Wood Rachel Hine lives and works in Geelong and spends most days working in her studio. She is a Master’s graduate from Monash University, and has worked as a professional weaver at the Australian Tapestry Workshop. Rachel has exhibited consistently, locally and internationally in group exhibitions for many years. She is known for creating whimsical portraits of women. With a strong interest in drawing and historical tapestry, Hine builds small bodies of work that flow from one to another, often working through aspects of the human condition. Subjects like identity, perception and a sense of continuity are themes that Rachel is investigating. Working at all scales of size, Hine mainly creates very finely woven and intimate work. As well as larger more dramatic works when appropriate. “For Craft Cubed 2019, I have been immersed in the weaving practice of tapestry artists of the past. These tapestries pay homage to iconic weavers, some of my hero artists. Just imagine if we could wear garments that reflect the expertise of our artistic idols? Just like wearing a t-shirt of our favourite band. In that spirit, I have tried to weave tiny outfits and settings that reflect the techniques that were used by the artists in their practice. Artists such as Sheila Hicks, Magdalena Abakanowiz, Ritzi Jacobi, Gunta Stolz are investigated, as well as some contemporary weavers, and ancient weavers too. The action of replicating woven textured textiles into a tapestry surface is an informing and meta thing to do. While undertaking some new techniques (for me), I have gained a deeper understanding of tapestry as an artform.” Rachel Wood is a textile artist and educator based in Melbourne. She currently works for a not-for-profit organisation as a trainer and mentor, while she has dedicated the last 6 years to bringing the art of weaving in the form of workshops to many locations over Australia and NZ. When she’s not working, you can find her in her chosen deep-rest and recovery position – behind the loom. Rachel Wood’s debut series of works is an abstract exploration about the exchange of openness for air and the relationship between retraction and restriction. During her explorations, Rachel has reflected on experiences and encounters that have demanded both breath, energy and obtaining space, and the request for deep-rest, retraction and the need for rejuvenation. Rachel approaches her practice firstly by exploring movement. She then explores the use of texture, line, shape and the use of negative space in response to her examinations. Rachel will uses materials she finds around the home, in local op-shops or those that inform her connection to simplicity. Hilary Green is an Australian environmental artist currently living and working in Hobart, Tasmania. She has exhibited in ARIs, commercial and public galleries throughout Australia including prestigious textile touring exhibitions and awards shows. Her work is represented in public and private collections, including The Museum of Old and New Art (MONA), in Hobart. Since completing a Master of Fine Art in 2016 her practice has engaged with intuitive sensorial responses to materials based processes, often described through an abstract language of mark making. Green amasses collections of culturally and environmentally significant botanical specimens that she uses as materials in her works on paper and installations. Hilary has created one key piece for this exhibition, The Matriarch is a hand woven tapestry depicting a cropped portrait of a masked figure. This bold, vivid portrayal of the masked figure is an appropriation of a striking, painterly found image that the artist was immediately allured to by the dynamic and emotive character the layers of gestural brushstrokes and saturated colours created. This image of the veiled woman, an anonymous masked figure, covered, almost as if gilt in dripping gold is a powerful representation of a matriarch. The contrast between the veiled identity and the powerful mask is an intriguing proposition, one in which the artist completely identifies with as a matriarch herself. This large scale work marks the return of Hilary Green’s textile practice, having had a pause from weaving for a number of years. Inter:Section is part of Craft Victoria’s annual Craft Cubed Festival To see the full list of work, click here. Inter:section runs until September 8