Family Ties

Belinda Harrow, Jennifer McRorie, Elizabeth Munro, Wendy Winter

Family Ties explores familial bonds through the medium of embroidery. 

Halifax-based artist Elizabeth Munro creates embroidered and surface manipulated non-objective ‘portraits’ of her parents that include audio elements to convey impressions of her parents from childhood; providing a nuanced concept of a portrait filtered through the subjective experience of one person’s memory. 

Regina-based artist Belinda Harrow reproduces photographs of her maternal grandmother at different ages into embroideries. Floating within the outlines of the human figure are colourful depictions of animals. The outlines of the humans are black thread on a cream felt background while the animals are vibrantly hued. 

Moose Jaw-based artist Jennifer McRorie reimagines her daughters’ drawings in ‘whitework’; a type of embroidery where the colour of embroidery threads are the same colour as the fabric on which they are embroidered. McRorie states that "I was compelled to make this series of work as I wanted to honour my daughter, who was born with a genetic disorder, to recognize her voice, abilities and creativity. I love her drawings, her wonderful expression of line and so by embroidering her drawings, I’m acknowledging that even though she is marked by her genetics or biology, she will make her own mark, hence the title of the series." 

Wendy Winter is a Regina-based artist that uses embroidery on vintage and upcycled fabrics to interpret her daily life and personal philosophy. The artists in this exhibition use embroidery in different ways to consider the complexities of the bonds with our families.

Toured through OSAC’s Arts on the Move program, curated by Zoë Schneider.