TEXTILE CITY

Museum of Science and Industry, Manchester, July- September 2022

TEXTILE CITY is an interactive artwork for children commissioned by the Museum of Science and Industry, Manchester, which forms the base of their free summer programme for young people and their carer’s.

The interactive artwork is influenced by the architecture of Deansgate, both recent and post industrial, textile designs from MOSI's archive, and Froebel's Gifts, the first set of designed toys for open ended play in the first kindergarten. Visitors can play, build and weave their way through an ever changing skyline of foam covered shapes of Manchester, as well as learn to weave with recycled fabric and paper, with the weaving chimney towers and paper weaving activities.

Jenny created three new textile patterns in response to her research to form the work. A geometric repeat inspired by Manchester’s ever growing glass sided tower blocks, a floral and spotted pattern informed by details of post industrial architecture within MOSI’s current complex of buildings, and a stripe with shapes influenced by a design by Jean Elizabeth Gregson within their archive. Jean Gregson was a female textile designer who studied at Manchester School of Art during the inter war period.

Textile City also comprises of three wooden chimney towers, which acts as tall bobbins, which visitors can weave the walls of with recycled cotton from Manchester.

With special thanks to Tom Antell, Kuntsruct for construction of towers and Maria Sykes for assistance with sewing.