The CAS has recently acquired two works by Richard McVetis for Huddersfield Art Gallery

Richard McVetis is an artist based in London whose practice is deeply rooted in process and habitual ritual making. For over a decade he has been using hand embroidery to record time and map space through dots, lines and crosses. His work is intricate, with each stitch embodying a deliberate thought and provides a record of human presence through time.

The CAS has acquired two of his works - Two cubes (2018) and Permutations (2019) for Huddersfield Art Gallery.

Two cubes (2018), is part of a series called Units of Time, which seeks to visualise and give time material form, translating the intangible into the tactile. The objects orbit each other, and describe the individual expression of McVetis’ time. This work consists of two cubes which have been intricately embroidered to give the impression of a circle. On one cube, it is the circle which holds the stitches, on the other cube, the stitches are everywhere but the central circle.

Permutations (2019) is a mediation on McVetis’ cubed works. Here 12 objects have been rearranged and reconstructed to form a new object. What were once cubes, have now been laid flat. This reworking of the cubes could mean that this piece, rather than measuring time, is more akin to reflecting on old memories, or perhaps trying to see the same situation from a different perspective.

Huddersfield is a centre of textile excellence and Richard McVetis' works were selected  in consultation with the Fashion and Textiles department at the University of Huddersfield and the Woven Festival. His work has synergy with other works in Huddersfield Art Gallery’s collections which explore systems and space such as works by British Constructivists and Systems Artists.

McVetis will have his first solo show at the Crafts Study Centre in Farnham, 5 April - 30 July 2022. You can find out more about the show here.

Efea Rutlin
Curatorial Trainee