NEILSTON GIRLS GROUP
Fashion and Textiles
Jilli Blackwood

Artist Jilli Blackwood took the young people in the Neilston Girls Group on a creative journey exploring the theme of ‘identity’. The group investigated explorative drawing and mark making using different mediums and techniques before going on to create a series of fashion and textile pieces.

Individually the young people designed and made belts and hats for themselves to wear which involved learning machine and hand stitching. The young people went on to embellish a shirt in their own style using a variety of techniques including appliqué, dying, and mark making. The girls discussed how they saw themselves in the year 2020, including how they thought they would look, what they thought they would be doing and who their role models were, and created dolls reflecting their thoughts and ambitions.

Together the group created a banner using collage and stitch in the form of a crossword made from words that described themselves in a positive light. This involved self-examination and discussion within the group of how they appeared to others as well as research of calligraphy to create their own style of lettering.