Malcolm Cruickshank

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About Malcolm Cruickshank

Personal Statement

I am a textile artist creating decorative and functional objects for the home and business environment. Products include lightboxes and innovative furniture. I enjoy reusing discarded objects and experimenting with textures and unusual combinations of materials. By-products range from brooches and cards to paintings, drawings and monoprints.

I try to communicate tactile experiences while keeping the work accessible and simple. I want to challenge but leave the viewer comfortable. I find that presenting interesting and previously unseen surfaces commands real attention. I regularly use handmade felt and, although the basic technique is ancient, I aim to use it in a modern and stylish context.

For my main product, the decorative lightbox, I developed a unique technique for introducing light to felt while developing a felted flooring material. Experimentation produced a thin layer of felt discs bonded together and presented as a backlit sheet.

The coloured box takes its inspiration from Orkney seascapes, juxtaposed with contemporary texture and otherwise shocking colour combinations. The North Ronaldsay box reflects the sea contours of the island and uses wool from its sheep.

I find my work exhilarating, considered yet unpredictable. The idea of the handmade creates a sense of history, mystery and originality.

Commissions welcome.

Year Established: April 2005