Fabricnation

The Fabricnation collection includes the following 16 prints. The designs work on a 64cm vertical repeat. Pattern match varies according to print.

AFRICAN ROYALE

A playful African treatment on traditional damask, the royal lion takes center stage surrounded by ostrich fronds, rampant lions and birds.

CROWD

An abstract pattern that on closer inspection reveals a section of a large crowd photographed at what might be an outdoor political or union rally, a church service or a civic meeting. Flipped horizontally and vertically, it creates an almost Rorschach image.

VELD

An African savannah rendered in repeat in the style of a 1970s landscape photograph, offering a window onto the great outdoors that is at once expansive and calming.

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NUMBER 1

A mix of images inspired by the packaging of basic South African household products. Printed on hopsack and natural linen - reminiscent of sacking used to package products in the past.

CHAMPION

Images from the packaging of basic South African household products have been combined to create a playful stripe – a take on soccer team shirts and traditional striped tablecloths.

FOUR ACES

A mix of images, mealies, cards, stars and fish, inspired by the packaging of basic South African household products combine to create a strip repeat evocative of West African textiles.

BOKKIE

A reinterpretation of the springbok, inspired by art deco textiles and the South African railways

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MONEY ANIMALS

This textile frees a banknote from its function as a medium of exchange by transforming it into something decorative- as seen when foreign banknotes are taped to the walls of bars and restaurants all over the world. In the new South Africa wild animal iconography replaced controversial colonial figures on the Rand notes.

SEASCAPE

A west coast wave is rendered in repeat. Evocative of seaside holidays

OLD POSTCARDS

A collage of a collection of old postcards from a faded South African past

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POSITIVE POWER

A floral pattern inspired by late 60s early 70s “folk/hippy” textiles - The flowers that make up this pattern have been created by mutating, collaging elements from a variety of medical diagrams of the HI virus. The viruses (flowers) become weird and wonderful symbols. This fabric honors the courage, dedication and power of all people living with HIV who have grown to live and love – free positive lives.

LILIACEAE

A variation on a traditional botanical/floral print This print investigates the strange succulents that are part of the family, Liliaceae. Printed “with roots” the textile celebrates indigenous South African flora and the healing properties, muti, associated with these plants.

ALOES AND LACE

Aloes and lace is a playful evocation of frontier traditions of self sufficiency and simplicity. An oil lamp replaces electricity; water is pumped by harnessing the power of the wind and a lacy curtain frames our view of a harsh landscape. The economic, social and environmental crises of our times have put us back on the frontier of the unknown.

TOILE DU JOZI

The Toile du Jozi design tells the story of an African city rendered in the faded style of a Toile du Jouy fabric but instead of depicting typically French rural scenes it shows Johannesburg (Jozi) street scenes. Urban meets rural, formal meets informal, tradition meets modernity.

OUR BIRDS

The format for the “Our Birds” design is based on 18 century ceramic tiles from Bristol. The birds from the original tiles have, however been replaced by South African indigenous birds including the African Hoopoe, the Cape Barn Owl, the Sugarbird, the Pied Kingfisher, the Fiscal Shrike (“Johnny hangman”), the Black Throated Honeyguide, the Stripe Breasted Swallow, the Yellow Eye canary and the Cape White Eye.
Vertical print repeat 0.64m
Horizontal pattern match 1.25m

UMLUNGU PRINT

“Umlungu” is a Xhosa word meaning “from the sea” or “the foam on the sea” and is used in the South to refer to white people. This print shows the boats that brought my European ancestors from across the sea. The shapes of the goddesses, Artemis and Venus are placed in silhouette in front of the boats. 200 years later European and Southern African myths morph.

Vertical print repeat 0.64m
Horizontal pattern match

Please note: Screen colour is not a true representation of print colour