The GCSE and A Level Textiles students enjoyed a workshop with the Textile artist Rosie James.
For Year 10 this forms part of their current coursework “Places and Spaces”.
Rosie began by sharing her own artistic journey and explaining how she uses a sewing machine as a drawing tool. She demonstrated her signature technique of free-motion embroidery, where she creates line-based portraits and scenes by stitching directly onto fabric. Students where then guided through the process of translating photographs and images into stitched artworks.
Rosie James herself is a British textile artist known for her distinctive style that blends drawing and stitch. Her work is rooted in observation, often focusing on people in public spaces such as train stations, galleries, and city streets. She begins with photographs, capturing candid moments of human interaction and movement. These images are then transformed into stitched line drawings using a sewing machine in free-motion mode, allowing her to “draw” with thread. Her figures are often outlined in black thread, with loose ends left visible to emphasize the handmade, dynamic quality of the work.
In addition to embroidery, Rosie incorporates screen printing and appliqué to add color, texture, and context to her pieces. Her compositions are layered and thoughtful, often juxtaposing detailed figures with abstract or patterned backgrounds. Thematically, her work explores the rhythms of everyday life, the anonymity of crowds, and the quiet narratives that unfold in shared spaces. Her use of thread as a drawing medium challenges traditional boundaries between fine art and craft, making her work both visually striking and conceptually rich.
