Our Journal
Meet the Artist Series VII - Kitty Wilson Brown
Kitty Wilson Brown is our latest artist to take part in our Meet the Artist Series where we invite a talented, Natural Dye expert to take on the challenge of dyeing their bespoke knickers using their favourite dye plants.
Kitty graduated in 2021, with a BA in Textile Design specialising in woven textiles at Chelsea College Of Art, UAL. In her second year she was nominated and studied at Tama Arts University in Tokyo, Japan. Japan is where she learnt and became fixated with weaving. Since she graduated in July 2022, she has completed a two-month internship for the Liverpool Weaving Company, shadowing how a micro mill is run.
More recently Kitty co-founded Contemporary Hempery, which is a field to fibre fabric project, starting with growing hemp following the granting of a growing license. At CH their ambition is to do this whole project from field to fabric, reintroducing hemp as a sustainable crop in the UK.
The proposed end product is beautifully designed woven hemp regenerative fabric. She wants to elevate hemp fabric to a new level. Colour and pattern have intrigued, inspired and excited Kitty’s life. To her colour is the way we see, respond and interact with the world.
Kitty Thrives on working with colour and pattern, which is consistent through her creations. Sustainability and ethics are consistent focus point of her work, which has resulted this year her creating her own textile garden growing her own fibres and natural dye plants.
We love her special edition creations and hope you will too.
They are now available in our online shop, 2 pairs for £30.
Find Kitty @contemporaryhempery on instagram.
Keep an eye out as we add more colours to the site. There is only one pair of each knicker and they are all size small.
Mother Nature and Nature's Mother
Picture a farmer.
What do they look like? Are they tall or short? Are they dressed in dungarees, holding a shovel, in a tractor, wearing wellies? Are they Kaleb from Clarkson’s Farm?
Are they a man?
It’s a common misconception that most farmers are male – like many occupations, men seem to be the face of the farming world. In reality, women make up the majority of the cotton farming workforce in India – so much so that nearly 75% of full-time workers on India’s farms are, in fact, women.
And do you know what? They’re incredibly good at it. Women are integral to the cotton value chain – your clothing quite literally would not exist without them. But they are still undervalued by many; still underpaid for their work; and still disregarded despite their knowledge of the land.
In India, women are often not recognised as farmers because the land is owned or leased to men. But this is nonsensical. We value women.
In traditional Indian farming communities, seed preservation has always been a women’s role. They have a unique connection to Mother Nature – an unrivalled understanding of it. They’re it’s kindest keepers.
Take Eswari, who lives in Erode, Southern India, where our cotton is grown. She is absolutely at home on the farm. If you ask her about the flora, her face will light up. She’ll immediately be able to point you in the direction of plants with healing properties. The land is her own personal hospital.
Eswari, on the farm in Erode, India.
But women also play a pivotal role in protecting our planet, despite (or perhaps, because of) being more vulnerable to the effects of climate change. Research shows that the contributions of women lead to successful, long-term solutions to climate change & global warming.
We have to be careful when we use the word empowerment. It has been used by too many corporations, too many times, and with too little connection to any real impact.
Pon Vaishali manages the farm where our cotton is grown. Although her interest in farming was inspired by her father, who specialised in organic turmeric and vegetables, Vaishali also has extensive theoretical knowledge from her agriculture degree. This included learning about low-impact farming practices, such as crop rotation, green manures and compost, biological pest control and mechanical cultivation. Her knowledge makes our regenerative farm better.
Ultimately, we’re passionate about the lives of the women that are so ingrained in the land that grows our cotton. And any positive impact on women has a ripple effect on their households and communities; it’s exactly what we’re about – holistic outcomes for all – economic, social and environmental.
Because this is the regeneration generation. And we won’t settle for less.
