Phoebe Murray-Hobbs and artist Penny Tristram: Discussing Landscape with Red Kites

TRISTRAM, Penny, Landscape with Red Kites ©Penny Tristram

Challenging the hierarchy of art mediums that has underpinned much of Western art history and education is an ongoing process. Re-valuing textile art, particularly by woman and global majority artists, has been part of this, as historic and contemporary works are being increasingly appreciated in museum collections and exhibitions.

As the contemporary art collection of the National Library of Wales is soon coming to this site, it offers an opportunity to draw attention to the work of Anya Paintsil, Edrica Huws, and Eirian Short. These artists have pushed their respective techniques - including rug making, appliqué, embroidery and patchwork - to create works that test and showcase what can be achieved in the medium of textile.

At the beginning of 2025, the National Library of Wales commissioned three textile artists working in Wales today to respond to these works. In this third and final interview read how Penny Tristram was inspired by Short’s Y Brain / The Crows, and the relationship between painting and embroidery in her practice.

How were you inspired by Eirian Short’s Y Brain / The Crows?

Working in Wales has been significant in my practice due to the dramatic and interesting nature of the landscape around me. Short's work (which depicts Pembrokeshire) reminded me of my own local landscape which is rocky and craggy. While corvids are often seen here, red kites are emblematic of the area. I took inspiration from the view of the Dyfi Valley from my home near Machynlleth. One of the most striking and memorable qualities of the Dyfi Valley for me is the swiftly changing weather and light which create dazzling bright greens and dramatic grey skies. I aimed to recreate this atmosphere in Landscape with Red Kites.

Can you say a little about the process of making the embroidery? 

I made the embroidery with a combination of DMC embroidery thread and Scanfil organic cotton thread, on a base of organic linen sourced from Machynlleth's Organic Textile Company. My technique, embroidery, is a traditional one, however I bring a modern approach to it, using colours which are only achievable with modern dyes, along with looser and more expressive versions of traditional stitches such as satin stitch and long-and-short stitch. The embroidery took around 60 hours to complete and is made of an estimated 30,000 stitches.

You work with both painting and textile. What are the specific challenges and rewards of working in textiles vs on paper for you? 

I tend to alternate between the two, as embroidery is slow and labour-intensive, and I have found it's useful to freshen my practice by making quicker works from time to time. Making embroidery has greatly improved my skills in representational drawing and painting, as with embroidery one is essentially drawing in a very focused, deliberate and mindful way. My motivation to work with textiles comes from the magic of making thread look like something else - for example shimmering water, or a collection of trees.

How do you feel about the way textile art is represented in museums and galleries today, compared to other art forms? 

I think it's important to be aware of the historic distinction that’s been made when we share textile work and art generally from around the globe. There has been a tendency to name the author or maker of Western fine art, while crafts and global art might just be called "Welsh traditional embroidery" or "Nigerian carving" for example. Of course, it is not always possible to know who made a historic art or craft piece, however it's something to be aware of when labelling work.

Penny Tristram is an artist, educator and facilitator based in Machynlleth.

Landscape with Red Kites is a hand embroidery created in in response to Eirian Short's Y Brain / The Crows in the National Library of Wales’s Collection. Diameter: 10 inches.