Meet The New Quilt Artist: Dianne Firth

Name of Artwork: Change

For landscape architect Dianne Firth, textiles are a vehicle for her to explore issues related to the Australian landscape. Landforms, water and vegetation, at a range of scales, as well as the ephemeral qualities of weather all provide inspiration.

She selects materials and colour in a symbolic manner. Through a process of abstraction, she manipulates light, line, colour and texture to convey the message, create moods and evoke visual and emotional responses.

For example, the work Change was created following the bushfires in eastern Australia at the end of 2019 and into 2020. Not only were lives and property lost, but the visual change to large tracts of much-loved native forest was immediate. Tracts of light-coloured trunks of Eucalyptus forest became black charred remains.

This change has been captured in two panels, notionally one before the fire and one after. Although the number of vertical lines on each panel is the same, the effect of figure and ground is quite different. The colours of the cotton material were chosen to reflect the before and after fire forest colours. The off-white net base enables shadows of the tree trunks to be cast on the wall behind, referencing the airiness of the forest.

Dianne is recognised, both nationally and internationally, through her works in juried exhibitions and public and private collections.

The New Quilt, on exhibition at Hawkesbury Regional Gallery, Windsor, NSW from 5 February – 11 April 2021. 

Gallery hours: Open 6 days a week Monday, Wednesday-Friday 10am-4pm Saturday-Sunday 10am-3pm. Closed on Tuesday and public holidays.