making home
amber bardell
The patches in the ‘Making Home’ collection were designed with the idea that our clothes are a way we can feel at home. Through the act of mending and customising, we make our clothes our own. They live with us and provide protection, comfort and expression.
We wanted the designs to reflect the kind of affirmation we can find in clothes, when they feel like an extension of ourselves, our personalities, like wearing our hearts on our sleeves. 'Find your roots' is a reminder of the many ways we can use creativity and self-expression as a way to ground ourselves and find home in the everyday. Home is a feeling, one we can carry around with us, even if we haven't found four walls to inhabit long-term.
I remember meeting Amber for the first time last year and being immediately drawn to their use of colour and fearlessness when it comes to choosing medium or material. As a recovering perfectionist I tend to overthink every thing I do, especially when it comes to creative tasks. I was struck by how Amber created and created and created. I felt inspired to be less judgmental of my own work.
When we started talking about a series of patches together we wanted to bring in Amber’s desire to allow their audience to be co-creators of their work. Something that couldn’t be more aligned with what I wanted to create with Rebel Patch. As soon as a patch reaches their new owner it takes on a life of its own. It takes on new meaning, might become a tool for creativity or a symbol of certain values. A patch is never just a patch. And that’s why I think they are so powerful.
amber bardell
Amber Bardell is a multidisciplinary artist working predominantly with mixed media painting in Bristol, UK. Their work consistently draws inspiration from the natural world, exploring intuitive dreamscapes. Bardell continues to explore the notion of nourishment, looking into how the arts can relate to well-being on a personal and community level. Their latest collection of work has been titled 'Making Home' and reflects on the power that the creative practice can have as a role in feeling at home, even in times of transient living conditions and international travel.
