SOLD OUT: Rag rugging workshop with Vita Cochran – May

Please note: This event has sold out.

Rag rug making is a craft that developed out of necessity when fabric was a precious commodity, and rugs for the floor an expensive outlay. Old, worn out or damaged garments are cut up and hooked through a backing fabric to produce a strong, warm and useful item. Artist and maker, Vita Cochran will teach you how to make a hooked rug from old woollen garments and fabric. Recycle materials in an innovative way to create an original artwork imbued with history.

By the end of the workshop, you will know more about the history of rag rug making, how to choose and prepare materials, the technique of hooking and started making a small sample rug, which you can finish at home. Refreshments, materials and equipment will be provided. The workshop includes a half-hour meal break. Please bring your own lunch or visit our Gallery café.

Vita Cochran is a maker of contemporary textile objects such as handbags, accessories, and embroideries, which draw on craft, art, and fashion history. Vita’s work has been collected by major museums in New Zealand and is represented by Anna Miles Gallery in Auckland. Her most recent exhibition After Paintings (2019) showcased handmade rag rugs inspired by modernist paintings.

Image credit: 
Vita Cochran’s exhibition After Paintings. Installation view, Anna Miles Gallery, 2019. Photograph: Samuel Hartnett ©