New Collection | An Assembly - an insight into the collection.
A Gathering, A Meeting, A Congregation. Pieced together and placed. An Assembly.
"House of Quinn" has always been a figurative notion and a descriptive definition for my design practice. "Quinn" is my middle name, and the "house of" part came from my unwavering childhood determination to run a Parisian fashion house.
Founded in response to a time in my life when I needed to make a change, House of Quinn today represents a way for me to communicate creatively. Familiar, but also, on reflection, a little cliché, the name House of Quinn has become connected to the multidisciplinary way I like to work. Creating and responding to design, art, and craft 'under one roof,' it allows me to move between disciplines and applications, giving me the freedom to explore what I feel brings me a sense of self, place, and connection and gives me the tools I need to communicate these ideas through my work.
"An Assembly," the name of my latest collection, re-establishes the fundamental concept for House of Quinn and brings together aspects of material, process, and the freedom of experimentation that I wanted to achieve from the outset.
Pieced together and placed but joined by a common thread. This new body of work showcases a gathering of materials, curated in response to early memories of collecting, making, and arranging 'things.' Through the process of playing with materials that we had to hand, ink, fabric, wood, and metal feature across a series of objects that connect to ideas of place and belonging.
The window and net-like forms seen throughout the collection speak of a boundary line and connection to spaces. Organic forms become representational of found objects that were collected along the way, natural mementos that in my earlier years became precious memories, and the process of arranging and rearranging them became a ritual for self-expression.
This new collection also brings together people, through the collaborative nature of making. "An Assembly" felt like the perfect time to work with other makers and artisans who I have admired along the way. Connecting familiar themes through materials and skills that resonated with me in others. My practice has always been mainly textiles-focused, perhaps stemming from a fundamental connection to the materials that I had access to growing up. Fabric has become a medium that allows me to translate my ideas into reality, and in this collection, the skills and application of other makers are celebrated through a series of collaborations and one-off or small-batch objects.
Chelsea Vivash, one of the collaborating artists, showcases wooden marquetry in new and contemporary ways. For “An Assembly” Chelsea has applied her skills to translate a design in wood that will launch at London Design Fair. Interpreting one of my collages into an incredible piece for the home. Chelsea will also be presenting one of her signature, wooden Marquetry artworks, which also incorporates the mark-making seen throughout the collection.
Images by Chelsea Vivash - showing her process and materials
Expressive mark-making, gestural grids, and monochromatic palettes sit alongside elemental textures. From beautiful wooden marquetry to sculptural natural forms made from local organic materials. The common shapes and motifs within the collection connect people, place, and materials.
Found, congregated, and assembled, textiles, paperworks, interior objects, and functional sculpture all come together, sit in line, and silently whisper to one another as if called to "An Assembly."
To find out more about the artist’s collaborations launching at London Design Fair look out for more updates coming to the Journal over the next week, where I will be talking about the new works being presented by Chelsea Vivash and Amy Murrell of Chalk Path Studio.
The collection and various new objects, artworks, prints and textiles will be making their way to the website over the next few months. Please follow me on Instagram and join the newsletter to be informed of all the new and exciting things.
If you would also like to see the show at London Design Fair, registration is still open. You can find me on stand 1b34 from the 21st - 24th September at Trumans Brewery, Brick Lane.
