Artwork information

Malcolm Harrison is considered one of New Zealand’s leading fiber artists and someone who helped elevate craft traditions, including quilting, in the contemporary art scene. Harrison first became interested in fabric while working as a window dresser in a Christchurch department store, and later studied pattern making at night, aspiring to become a dressmaker. He had a successful career in fashion in Auckland before transitioning to textile art in the 1970s, supported by art dealer Denis Cohn. Known for his vibrant quilt-making, itself a form of collage, Harrison used textiles to explore New Zealand history and personal narratives, including queer identities. In the late 1980s, he contributed to the New Zealand AIDS Memorial Quilt and later received the commission to create These are Matters of Pride and Whanaungatanga for New Zealand Parliament, which cemented his legacy.