While at the Photographers’ Gallery in London, I came across a small-scale exhibit of the work of Julie Cockburn. Curious and eager as I am, I investigated further… Julie Cockburn takes old found photographs, portraits and landscapes, and gives them a new life with embroidery, ceramic and montages. The result is refreshing, colourful, playful and amusing. A bit Picasso-esque, dadaist. I leave to the curator the explanation of the approach: “In offering up her personal, visual language in dialogue with the original, Cockburn highlights that we all bring our histories and perspectives to bear as we look or ‘read’
photos, and invites the viewer to become aware of, and empowered by, their own reading”.
