Deborah Aitken
I make art that challenges and questions political and socio-economic issues. I am concerned about the imbalance of wealth and the rise of nationalism and far-right politics. I communicate my concerns through printmaking, testiles and mix media works. I like to use humour in my work, not to soften the message but to ridicule the issues I am bringing to attention.
Humour and colour are tools I use when I text over familiar and overlooked road signs. I appropriate political jargon to criticise and invalidate its meaning. The aggressive tone of statements become innocuous when I print them in pink lettering. I find that changing the context of road signs is perfect for ridiculing the outrageous comments and behaviours of some politicians.
The hijacking of the British flag by nationalist and far-right politicians has fuelled my suspicions about the rhetoric used by Brexiteers. I embroider across the Union Jack the jingoistic language found in newspapers to expose an unpleasant and worrying reality about Britain today. Blue on blue, red on red makes the embroidery difficult to read so the viewer is lured in to read statements such as - Our Time Has Come, Now The Opportunities Are Endless, Take Back Control. I want viewers to note the beauty of the embroidery in contrast to the language of contentious nationalism.
I paint the Union Jack onto fabrics which can be easily deconstructed and unravelled as if the flags are wounded and bleeding. The tenuous threads of the textiles tear apart this iconic symbol to expose the prevailing fragility of the United Kingdom’s future. The materials I use - cotton, muslin, hessian and wool, give the works a subtext referring to our imperial past.