Rachael Whitfield
My name is Rachael Whitfield, my practice is interdisciplinary with a focus on connecting meditative craft with the love I have for the people and landscapes that I hold dear.
Wearing the grass jumper in fields around my home.
Springbank, Ashbrook and Lowerhouse fields in Bollington, Cheshire, 4th April 2025
Within my personal life, I make many crafted items and handmade garments for my loved ones. I use the process of knitting to relax and spend time with memories I have of the person. Viewing the landscape as a familial figure, I wanted to extend my love to it in the form of a handmade garment. The jumper is both from and for myself and the landscapes I treasure. It is made to fit me, with grass and foliage lovingly gifted from the places I spend time with; and I have made it as a token of my love for our environment.
I chose to weave so that I could use raw, unprocessed natural fibres like grass without them snapping from contortion and I used my usual yarn for the warp because it would be flexible enough to allow for constant disturbance of weaving. The weaving together of these materials, the natural and synthetic, symbolises the union of my love for the people and the landscapes that I hold dear. I was taught knitting by my grandmother when I was young and have learnt a variety of textile crafts by the hands of the women in my family. The photos of me weaving in situ show me wearing a jumper that my grandmother made for my aunt when she was younger.
Creating from and being with.
Wearing an old sweater my grandmother made, weaving another with love from our land. Combining fibers from the places I’m with the most, a time capsule of and a love letter for our current landscape.
Weaving the front panel of my jumper using grass from beside me. Field by Moor Lane, Loughborough, February 2025.
A celebration to show love and respect, and to spend time with our waterways.
Event created and held with fellow student Isobel Martin.
17th May 2025
The walk was a peaceful way of spending time with our landscapes and the bodies of water within them.
After gathering at our residence, we introduced the event and walked along the canal to an amphitheatre.
Here, we performed duets together on the violin and read literature about hydrofeminism and considering ourselves amongst natural processing.
Once we had walked to Dishley Pool, we filled up bottles with the lake water to create varying pitches of whistling. Issie then conducted a guided meditation before allowing participants to rest, take in their surroundings and sketch from their experiences.
Photographs courtesy of Emilia Couttie