Featured Artist Julee Latimer

Artist Julee Latimer challenges conventional artmaking methods by weaving dried paint into textile sculptures. See more of her fascinating portfolio on her website.

 

 

I am a UK born, Australian based artist living in Melbourne. I investigate ways in which to use paint as a material after it has dried. Over the years this has taken the form of collage, sculptures and textiles.

 

 

During my BFA (2019) weaving paint threads into deconstructed works became a strong focus. They were heavily influenced by my experiences of repeated international relocations and the instability I felt before building a new social network. However, despite exploring many different methods of hanging and backing these weaves, I never fully realized my ambition to allow the paint to remain completely free of the canvas.

 

 

I always felt cheated when I needed to adhere them to canvas or board in order to, not only, maintain their dimensionality, but also, to allow them possibility of sale. During 2024, however, I had a dream of papier-mâché and a whole new direction opened up leading to the birth of my new series of Paint Textiles.

 

 

After completing the weaves, I apply a skin of papier-mâché  to the reverse to hold the ripples permanently in place. Doing this enables me to avoid a solid, flat, visible substrate as backing. The results are lightweight, strong, and fitted with hanging hardware.

 

 

I see my work as a push/pull relationship between freedom and control. I pour the paint allowing it to, quite literally, paint itself. This hands-free, relaxed approach changes when the paint is dry and the meticulous, very hands-on approach takes over.  Weaving provides the perfect technique to lend stability to the flexible material.

 

 

The first works in this collection use a solid colour palette in order to allow the pattern of the weave to shine and for the directional flow to be featured clearly. My mind is buzzing with ideas for future works. I have so many big plans for textiles that reveal the underside, are patterned, or that have empty space featured.

 

 

In my latest work Conversation with Friends, I asked nine women in each of the three groups I am a part of to tell me their two favourite colours. I am weaving these colours into one another to highlight the integration and connections formed within these groups. Each thread, for me, is symbolising a sentence. This work will be full of vibrant chatter.

 

 

This is so special to me as these groups were joined after the lockdowns ended. Each of the 27 women have, in some way, helped me build a strong, local network. My choices of orange and pink will border and connect with each of them.

 

 

I love the combination of the slow art of ancient craft merging with fine art aesthetics. This blend of genres and avoidance of labels really appeals. Are they paintings, sculptures, or textiles? The viewer is free to choose, but I really don’t think that it matters.

 

Julee Latimer invites you to follow on Instagram.

 

 

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