Jenny Butcher
Jenny Butcher is a textile artist based in Felixstowe, on the Suffolk coast. Her interest in textiles was rekindled while she was studying for a Fine Art degree as a mature student, and she graduated from the University of Suffolk in 2017 with a first-class BA (Hons). She went on to complete the Creative Stitch and Advanced Stitched Textiles courses in Ipswich.
Research drives her practice. A recurring theme, which she calls 'Roots', is the impact of adoption on birth mothers, their children and their families in the 1950s and 1960s, and the heartache and lifelong search for consolation that discovering the truth can bring. She is also inspired by the local history and geography of the Suffolk coast. Text often features in her work, drawing the viewer into a dialogue intended to provoke empathy and awareness.
Personal memory gives the work its authenticity. Her installation Entry 261 takes its title from the court document that authorised her own adoption, and centres on childhood memories of wearing homemade dresses, which stand for a time of innocence before she learned the circumstances of her adoption. The words hand-embroidered on each dress are copied from letters written by her birth mother to her future parents.
She is a member of the textile groups Out of the Fold, East Anglian Stitch Textiles (EAST) and Sew What!
Artist Statement
In my recent project I have been researching the impact on individuals who were given up for Adoption during the 1950's and 1960's.
Through this work I have combined the tactile qualities of cloth with other materials like paper, wood and metal to strengthen my narrative.
I enjoy the process of making and like to work intuitively. Experimenting with different materials gives me the freedom to develop new ideas, move the work forward and combine materials not normally associated with textile art. This method of working also offers me the opportunity to suggest varied meanings to my work.
