REFRESH
NINE NEW GRADUATES

'Horseshoe' necklace - textile, mixed media and brass

Anna Deacon

"I happen to be a turnupstuffer, so of course I never have a free moment." "What's that?" asked Tommy. "Somebody who finds the stuff that turns up if only you look, of course. What else would it be?" said Pippi. "The whole world is filled with things that are just waiting for someone to come along and find them, and that's just what a turnupstuffer does."
Astrid Lindgren,
'Pippi Longstocking'

I spent last summer picking up junk that I found on the ground, or being a "turnupstuffer" as Pippi Longstocking puts it. I didn't pick up any old rubbish. I found a lot of washers and nuts and bolts but I also found some really interesting stuff, for example, a piece of plastic that looks like a skull and a bit of metal that resembles a monkey's face. I used the junk I found to make toys - funny little people and animals and robots. Then, inspired by my mother's craft books from the 1970's, I decided to make my own soft toys, which I later developed to make fashion accessories. Being a "turnupstuffer" was the main objective of this project. I like the idea that you can make use of almost everything that surrounds you, that nothing has to go to waste, that you can turn old rubbish into new treasure. For these reasons, I explored traditional craft techniques that make use of scraps of fabric, for example, patchwork and rag rug making. All the fabric that has been used in this project is either second-hand, from remnant bins or friends scraps and leftovers.

Biographical Details