Quiet Resistance: Residency Proposal

Trevellan Magic Space Autumn Supported Artist Residency has been awarded to Hannah Wroe, who will be developing her research practice exploring Quiet Resistance.

Read more about Hannah and her proposal below...

Untitled. Materials: Cotton, Cotton Thread. Photo: Hannah Wroe.

Short Biography/Project Outline

I studied Art and Politics at Goldsmiths University of London [2019] and conducted a research project on colonial bioprospecting. Since then I have been developing work looking at the dichotomy of wildflowers and vexillology, creating flags and banners which speak to the social and political histories of plants.

In 2018, as part of my MA, I completed a research project on the tī kōuka, or Cordyline Australis, a type of tree lily native to New Zealand. I traced the plants journey from Aotearoa to the Cornish coast and conceived of it as a kind of monument to the history of Empire and colonial voyaging in Cornwall.

Stemming from this research I have a growing interest in quiet resistance. I am always amazed by the delicate wildflowers on the Cornish coast that stand up against the power of the Atlantic Sea. Ewa Majewska in her book, Feminist Anti-fascism: Counter Publics of the Common, writes about a similar idea of 'weak resistance', types of protest and demonstration that resist patriarchal troupes of heroism and 'the fight' instead focusing on softer and more gentle forms of power.

My interest in quiet or ‘weak resistance’ has developed organically from my chronic pain and fatigue condition, Endometriosis, where cells in my body change to those similar to the cells in the womb and spread, like weeds, around my body. Because of this I am often not able to go to demonstrations and protest on the 'front line’.

Based on this research, I have been experimenting with making flags and banners that capture a fragile resistance rather than the usual bold colours and shapes of patriarchal/colonial heraldry. Some of this is due to necessity as I get pain in my hands and arms meaning my work needs to be delicate and minimal. 

During the residency I plan to experiment with and begin drafting designs for and embroidering and sewing flags and banners based on the research outlined above. My work will use as reference photographs of wildflowers taken and somatic fieldwork conducted during walks along the Cornish coast, which I plan to do as part of the residency. 

This may include, drawing or embroidering onto my own printed photographs of Cornish wildflowers, referencing colours, textures and feelings from coastal walks in thread and fabric choices, on location tracings of shadows and rubbings of textures, photographing or filming works outdoors, sound snippets, finding fabric samples or offcuts locally, collecting and documenting local plant knowledges from passersby on walks, archival research.

Title: Romulea Tempskyana.  Materials: Ripstop, Nylon thread. Photo: Hannah Wroe.