A new exhibition created specifically for The Bowes Museum’s award winning Fashion & Textile Gallery goes on display in the New Year; the first showing of this new body of work in the UK.

Material Remains is a captivating exploration by artist Diana Winkfield, resulting in evocative paintings, drawings and installations with found objects, particularly clothing, discovered while refurbishing her farmhouse in France. They have inspired her to examine fabric matter in varying stages of wear and decay, left behind by people from across the class divide.

Paralleling the observations commonly recorded by archaeologists, museum curators and conservators, Winkfield’s work focuses on the analysis of the colour, fabric, shape, texture, condition and origins of such objects to reveal a jumble of memories, which unravel and weave real and supposed stories.

Her work, which considers the cultural ideal embedded in French society and expresses life and loss through paintings of found garments, was also inspired by items from The Bowes Museum, whose founder Joséphine Bowes was French. Joséphine was a contemporary of the Empress Eugénie whose collection of costume in the Museum inspired Winkfield to create a magnificent painting for the exhibition.

She also took inspiration from two corsets from the mid 18th Century in the Bowes Collection - one delicate and feminine, reminding Winkfield of ‘ornamental tiny women held from morning to night on painful display’, the other of coarse brown twilled cotton, worn and reworn, patched and repatched, darned and mended, calling up images ‘of a big boned strong peasant woman who once wore it.’

“As I sat there drawing, painting and recording these disparate objects I began to form some preliminary ideas for my exhibition in the Museum’s Fashion & Textile Gallery,” she said.

Curated by Annabel Talbot, this exclusive show which runs from Saturday 16th February until Sunday 2nd June 2013, will resonate with those involved with historic and vintage clothing.

Winkfield studied drawing, painting and printmaking under Elizabeth Blackadder at Edinburgh College of Art, and History of Art under David Talbot-Rice at Edinburgh University during the 1960s before going on to have a successful career as a painter, selling her work through top London galleries. Her work features in numerous public and private collections.

For press images or more information, please contact Sheila Dixon, Media and PR Officer 01833 694616 / sheila.dixon@thebowesmuseum.org.uk

The Bowes Museum, Café Bowes and Shop are open daily from 10.00. A full programme of events and exhibitions is available by calling 01833 690606 or by viewing the website at www.thebowesmuseum.org.uk.

Editors’ notes

• The Bowes Museum was created over 100 years ago by an extraordinary couple, John and Joséphine Bowes. Together they built up the greatest private collection of fine and decorative arts in the North of England and constructed a magnificent building to house them in. The collection contains thousands of objects including furniture, paintings, sculpture, ceramics, textiles and many other items covering an extensive range of European styles and periods.
• The Bowes Museum receives a core funding grant from Durham County Council and as a member of the North East Regional Museums Hub receives support from the Department of Culture, Media and Sport through the Museums, Library and Archives Council Renaissance programme. Additional revenue funding specifically for the Museum’s acclaimed exhibition programme is provided by Northern Rock Foundation.
• The Bowes Museum has recently undergone major redevelopment. This work was supported by the Heritage Lottery Fund, One NorthEast through the County Durham Economic Partnership, English Heritage, Northern Rock Foundation, The Monument Trust, Garfield Weston Foundation, The Foyle Foundation, The European Regional Development Fund, DCMS/Wolfson Museum and Galleries Improvement Fund, Designation Challenge Fund, The Shears Foundation, The Richard and Suzanna Tonks Family Fund at County Durham Foundation, Durham County Council, The Friends of The Bowes Museum, The Headley Trust, Sir James Knott Trust, Catherine Cookson Charitable Trust, Fenwick Ltd, Mercers Charitable Foundation, Welton Foundation. While we are endeavouring to keep as much of the collections on display as possible, visitors are advised to call ahead if wishing to see a specific item to check if it is on display.
• Normal admission to the museum: Adults £9.00, Concessions £8.00, Six Month Pass £12.00, Children Free (under 16s). Admission allows access to all exhibitions, permanent displays and some events. Admissions are donation inclusive and are eligible for Gift Aid. If you do not wish to make a charitable donation admission prices are: Adults £8.15, Concessions £7.25, Six Month Pass £10.00, Children (under 16) and carers free.
• The Bowes Museum is open daily from 10.00am.
• The Bowes Museum is a member of the Discover Durham partnership of attractions. Our commitment is to promote Durham as an exciting and vibrant group travel destination and to provide the travel trade with a professional and knowledgeable service: hotline number 0191 301 8531, www.discoverdurham.co.uk.
 

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