Pages From a Lockdown Diary: Carole Wilson + Tim Craker

Stemming from studio activity during the lockdowns of 2020 and 2021, Pages From A Lockdown Diary is a collection of artworks which measure and mark the passing of time, in works built up from daily repetitive actions and activity. Carole Wilson and Tim Craker are two Ballarat based artists who utilise textile methodologies to create their work. Using techniques more often associated with sewing, knitting or the making of nets, thousands of knots and stitches are used to secure a variety of found objects together into curtains and shrouds, embroidered samplers and geometric arrays in both two and three dimensions. Both artists have undertaken a number of international residencies over the past ten years, during which they have gathered materials from diverse locations, forming a storehouse of items to be utilised for creative projects back in their home studios. The lockdowns of 2020 and 2021 certainly provided extended opportunities to revisit previous travel experiences, memories and materials. Both artists respond to the Japanese concept of mottainai – a sense of regret when something is wasted, and a belief that all materials and objects have an intrinsic value.