[Beyond Heritage: Material Making Meaning] is a research project, exploring craft and production, as well as material and cultural heritage, through the reading and interpretation of established and speculative histories in specific textile making contexts.
Drawing on recently completed and continuing project work, this lecture will share insights into personal approaches to an artistic practice sitting at the intersections of studio, factory, academic and museological institutions, and audiences.
Tim Parry-Williams (b. 1974, Gloucester, UK) works primarily in the field of woven textiles. A portfolio practice encompassing research, writing, consultancy, curation, education, and textile making, has led to exhibitions and publishing in England, Northern Ireland, Austria, France, USA, Norway and Japan.
With a primary interest in materials, studio work is centered on hand and industrial weaving and embodies a range of interests from analogue and digital craft, provenance and sustainability, material culture, the archive, and a strong attention to the languages of history and tradition. Artistic Research activity is practice-led, employing an interdisciplinary approach of material culture, historical and empirical methodologies.
Recent artistic works have built on core values in utilitarian cloth, combining the nature and aesthetics of the ‘linen cupboard’ with the subjects and narratives of wider culture and society. The work [Dinner Service] was awarded First Prize in the John Ruskin Prize 2025.
He is currently Professor of Art: Textiles at the Faculty of Art, Music and Design, University of Bergen.
Image: Grana (Detail) | H170 X W415cm | Wool, reactive-dyed/unbleached linen | Industrial (digital) jacquard, piece-dyed in cochineal | 2025 | Image: Sem Svoni