Expanded Textiles is a group exhibition investigating contemporary textile and fibre practices beyond their conventional boundaries, reflecting the growing intersection of sustainability, environmental awareness and contemporary textile and bio-textile art.
Expanded Textiles: 5 – 27 Sept 2026, Articulate Project Space
Bringing together nineteen intergenerational artists and their wide range of conceptual, spatial and materially complex practices, this exhibition emphasises transformation and experimentation. Natural processes such as plant-based dyeing, growing plant and fungi fibres, weathering and staining, connect a number of the works. Others are connected by construction and deconstruction through processes of weaving, stitching, twisting, spinning and knotting using traditional manual techniques. In contrast, several foreground biological investigation, or technological processes and innovative fabrication methods. Many make connections between nature and the climate crisis, personal history, ancestry and identity, which resonate as non-linear narratives throughout the exhibitions.
Together, these artists reveal the remarkable versatility of textiles as a contemporary artistic medium, both visually compelling and intellectually engaging, honouring traditional techniques while continually evolving through new ideas, materials and processes.
Featured Artwork
My so happy to have my woven sculpture, Whispers of the River, featured in this exhibition. Rivers sustain ecosystems, shape landscapes and connect communities, yet they are dammed, diverted and exploited for human use. This sculpture reflects on the growing movement to recognise rivers as living entities with inherent rights. Handwoven from reclaimed copper wire and foraged vines, each length has been individually salvaged, unwound and woven through a slow, repetitive process. The interconnected strands echo the branching networks of rivers and their dependence on every tributary remaining healthy. By transforming discarded material into a resilient woven form, the work invites us to reconsider our relationship with rivers—not as resources to control, but as living systems deserving of protection, respect and care.
Artists: Nqa Blayed, Jane Bodnaruk, Julia Boros, Sadhbha Cockburn, Elizabeth Day, Ellen Ferrier, Joanna Fowles, Kath Fries, Agnieszka Golda, Sylvia Griffin, Cecilia Heffer, Waihan Lee, Madeline McGregor, Julie Paterson, Sue Pedley, Catriona Pollard, Venessa Possum, Rhonda Pryor, Jane Richens.
Curators: Kath Fries & Sylvia Griffin, Exhibition assistant: Annie Lu
Opening drinks with the artists and curators 3-5pm Saturday 5th Sept
Workshop: ‘Stitch-in’ workshop with Julie Paterson: 12-2pm Sunday 6 Sept. Free – bookings essential.
Artists Talks –
Sunday 6th, 2pm: Jane Bodnaruk, Ellen Ferrier, Agnieszka Golda, Julie Paterson,
Waihan Lee
Sunday 13th, 2pm: Sadhbha Cockburn, Joanna Fowles, Jane Richens, Sylvia Griffin
Sunday 20th, 2pm: Rhonda Pryor, Kath Fries, Madeline McGregor
Sunday 27th, 2pm: Julia Boros, Catriona Pollard, Sue Pedley, Cecilia Heffer
Closing drinks with the artists and curators 3-5pm Sunday 27th September
Articulate Project Space: 497 Parramatta Road, Leichhardt NSW 2040
Friday to Sunday: 11am – 5pm
www.articulateprojectspace.org