Exhibitions & Showings

Individual & Collaborative Pieces

Resume: Welcome

Amanda Haran Collaborative Textile Artist

Collaborative Community Engagement

I believe in the power of collaborative community creation, which goes beyond just the act of making. It also involves showcasing the final art to as many people as possible. To achieve this, I strive to balance the exhibiting of work in unconventional spaces that are frequented by my target audience, instead of relying solely on traditional gallery settings. This approach enables me to connect with a broader range of people and create a more positive and creative impact through my art.

Textile Fantasies Exhibition 2023

An open call exhibition for textile artists who have produced work of a fantastical nature.

I showed mixed media textile pieces in which I imagined a 'fantasy' life after my divorce. A therapeutic journey allowing emotions to dictate the pace and direction of the creativity.

LTB Showrooms First Floor Gallery

The LTB is the jewel in the crown of community cultural venues in Coventry. It is run by the people for the people without restrictions, in a former derelict department store. I showed two quilts suspended in the centre of the gallery space so viewers could see the front but also the unseen work on the back.

Work On Walls Herbert Art Gallery & Museum

Eight artists with diverse backgrounds were commissioned to create unique artworks featuring delicate linework, fantastical creatures, repeating patterns, and more, all working directly on the gallery's walls. The inspiration for these pieces was drawn from the vast and diverse collections of the Herbert.

I worked with two collectives to create collaborative community work, which was shown as part of the exhibition. Groups were chosen from socio-economic marginalised sectors with which we had previously made a fragile connection. The aim was to continue to build a trusting and understanding cultural relationship and produce works of 'gallery quality':

MIM - Influenced by play and architecture, kaleidoscopes and Coventry Cathedral inspired a large-scale, freestanding, multi-coloured mark-making exploration of colour, shape and joy. Working with Art Riot Collective (a studio born out of the work with Project Artworks and the Turner 2021), sessions were run in the cathedral and their studios for all neurodivergent artists to participate. Risk assessment and environmental manipulation were undertaken as required to ensure the comfort of all participants.

ROO - Focusing on the Herbert's extensive collection of taxidermy from around the world, Roo worked with a youth group aged between 16-15 years from Stratford to celebrate animals. Escape Arts inspired the animals depicted by Roo in the final piece and created items to compliment the overall design. Spray paint workshops were also held to teach new skills.

Divided Selves - Legacies, Memories, Belonging Community Flag Project

The exhibition 'Divided Selves' showcased artwork from 26 artists and collectives exploring community, belonging and togetherness. One of the artists featured was Larry Achiampong, a British Ghanaian artist who exhibited his large flag called 'Pan African Flag For The Relic Travellers' Alliance (Ascension).' Larry's work investigates themes of class, gender, culture, and the impact of our digital lives, through various media.

In his 'Divided Selves' exhibit, Larry presented one of four imagined flags that he created to represent the 54 countries of Africa, should they come together to form a single system. Each element of the flag was carefully selected.

The flags featured in the community aspect of the exhibition were created by four different community groups - Coventry Men's Shed, Foleshill Creates, Inini, and In Stitches (Escape Arts Nuneaton). Despite coming from diverse backgrounds and rarely getting to know and understand each other, the groups were brought together for this project in the spirit of 'Divided Selves'. Using Larry's symbols as inspiration and only four colours, the groups each designed a large, recycled, hand-stitched flag of exhibition quality, representing their identity, ideas, and hopes for the future.

This series of artworks was the first to be showcased in a particular gallery area and inspired the creation of a dedicated community gallery space in the Herbert for future collaborative showings.

The Coventry Banner - Central Hall

Central Hall is a community space in Coventry which prides itself on being 'open to all regardless of race, sexuality, gender identity, socioeconomic status, disability (seen and unseen) and everything else.' It became the permanent gallery space for the Coventry Banner, allowing as broad an audience as possible to continue to view and enjoy this historic installation.

The Coventry Banner was the collaborative project run on behalf of Array Collective as part of the Turner Prize 2021. I enabled the creation of over 250 individual and community banners to depict the concerns, hopes, and dreams of the citizens of Warwickshire. They formed their own installation, events and exhibition in the artrium of the Herbert Art Gallery & Museum. Such was the love of these works and my desire to prevent any landfill; I investigated a permanent home for them.

Central Hall has become a quiet resting place for textile pieces of the past, such as altar cloths, religious wall pieces and community banners. It offered itself as the permanent home for the Coventry Banner works.

The original installation was reworked (as part of the initiative to get people out of their cold homes in winter) to fill this space's lofty walls and offer a community greeting to all who used this venue.

Daniel Lismore Masterclass Mannequins On Tour

Artist, designer and activist Daniel Lismore has been described by Vogue as 'England's most eccentric dresser'.

As a son of Coventry, his retrospective exhibition 'Be Yourself; Everyone Else Is Already Taken' was held at the Herbert Art Gallery & Museum and received great accolades. I acted as his community engagement officer.

I led a project where Lismore's unique sculptures inspired the communities of Coventry and Warwickshire to consider their own social, historical and cultural themes and create elaborate 3D ensembles using Lismore's authentic techniques (including vacuum-forming) to curate their curiosities, charity shop finds, found objects and yards of Alexander McQueen fabric into expressions of their community concerns and passions. The launch of this display coincided with International Peace Month and encouraged all to understand each other better in peace.

Contributing groups were:

Coventry Men's Shed
Escape Arts
Grapevine - Help and Connect
Hereward College
Hospital Education Service (Coventry)
Nuneaton In Stitches
Sitting Rooms of Culture

Following the community mannequins' display in a new area of the Herbert that had yet to have any collaborative exhibiting, it was requested that they go on tour to resonate and inspire others to investigate, join or support the groups that made them.

I desire to show works to as wide an audience as possible, which means searching for suitable, non-conventional community venues. The mannequins were shown in:

Nuneaton Train Station
Stratford Town Hall
The Station Gallery
The large windows of a former Debenhams Store

Before being returned to the groups that made them, they were permanently housed in their venues.

With thanks to Artichoke Trust, Alexander McQueen Special Projects & Education, University of Warwick Widening Participation and Outreach – International Manufacturing Centre (WMG.)

Sexuality Gender Identity

I exhibited as part of the 'Sexuality, Gender, Identity' exhibition, organised by Toni Peach and John Yeadon.

Submissions were requested from LGBTQ+ artists, friends, and supporters. Work in any media or genre, including painting, print, drawing, collage, sculpture, installation, performance, film, photography, digital, etc., was accepted. I exhibited a textile vagina made from a man's suit. The organisers sought a broad and inclusive variety of work to inform, educate and build understanding.

The exhibition was part of The Proud Freedom Fest and Coventry Pride.

Daniel Lismore
Be Yourself, Everyone Else Is Taken

Daniel Lismore Be Yourself, Everyone Else Is Already Taken

Artist, designer, and activist Daniel Lismore, described by Vogue as 'England's most eccentric dresser', grew up in Coventry and Warwickshire. He had exhibited his work worldwide, but his 2022 retrospective exhibition, 'Be Yourself; Everyone Else Is Already Taken', was held at the Herbert Art Gallery & Museum and was received with pride. I acted as his community engagement officer, devising and running five programmes around reuse, recycling and repurposing to channel an artistic response. These were:

1. Inviting community members and working alongside them to prepare his pieces for exhibition after shipping (I helped create a new piece for Greenpeace)

2. Running a stitch workshop to channel activist causes

3. Working with children and young adults to create a full-size mannequin from scrap, using Lismore's techniques, which was displayed at the entrance to the Herbert to welcome guests

4. Holding sensory tours to allow target community groups (that did not engage in culture) to be welcomed into the Herbert, understand the exhibition better and feel the fabrics, etc, that were part of Lismore's pieces

5. Running a series of day-long masterclasses with the support of Warwick University and their vacuum-forming machine to create seven collaborative community mannequins that represented each group and their causes from waste materials, which were displayed in the Herbert as their own exhibition (these later went on tour)

Local companies offered textile waste, mannequins were clothed in charity shop shirts before creation, Alexander McQueen donated waste fabrics, and Artichoke offered unused sashes for their 'Processions' project. Groups also brought key pieces for inclusion and curation to express their community concerns and passions.

It was essential that any group understood, was taught and used the techniques and materials as close to that of Lismore's as possible. My offerings are not tokenistic.

I wanted to demonstrate that cost should not prohibit creation.

The Festival Of Quilts (20th Birthday) 2023

The Festival of Quilts 2023 at NEC in Birmingham showcased a collaborative 'Sew What?' quilt I organised, made by more than 50 women. It was a part of the 'Group Quilt' section, but the context of this piece was much deeper than just an international exhibition.

I created the quilt to encourage women to stitch patches with messages they wished their 16-year-old selves knew. The messages ranged from funny to empowering to therapeutic, such as 'Girls Do Fart,' 'You are not fat,' and 'You are not dirty.' The quality of the making circle and the act of creativity were given the utmost importance. Those who had never created anything from textiles before were encouraged with sensitivity and support to express themselves through their patches. The quilt was not judged based on the quality of the finish but on the quality of the experience.

Every work was curated, prized, and carefully stitched onto an old giant curtain to create the required quilt structure. However, many visitors did not fully appreciate the quilt's power. They were more interested in the precise, new material worked pieces, leaving the collaborative quilt unnoticed. This experience left me demoralised, and since then, I have been reflecting on how to translate the power of person-centred generated collective community works effectively.

Women In Textiles Exhibition To Honour International Women’s Day 2022

The exhibition took place in the Kitchen Gallery at Cockington Court, Torquay, to celebrate women working with textiles in honour of International Women's Day 2022.

I was selected to show by local community artist Shelley Castle, who had chosen work created by a variety of women ranging from those who had never stitched before to highly skilled textile artisan makers, including:

1. The Fish Hawker Aprons: Three aprons based on fish stock reports from fish landed in Brixham and the harsh lives of women in the fish industry.

2. The Fish Hawker banner carried in procession.

3. The Peace Banner 2006 was designed by Nicci Wannacut and exhibited at various sites yearly on International Women's Day.

4. The Extinction Rebellion Apron: Worn at various protests in London and COP26 in Glasgow.

5. And my 'Sew What?' collaborative piece, 'Coat of Kindness,' created by 100 women worldwide, started on International Women's Day 2021 and was completed on Mental Health Awareness Day that year. This was also shown as part of the 'Abundance - Carnival Of Lights' festival in Coventry.

End FGM In Coventry 2022 Conference

As part of 'International Day of Zero Tolerance to Female Genital Mutilation' (a UN-sponsored annual awareness day as part of the UN's efforts to eradicate FGM), Coventry City Council, Coventry Haven Women's Aid, Panahghar, Valley House, Coventry University, Coventry and Warwickshire Partnership Trust, University Hospital Coventry and Warwickshire, and the West Midlands Police held a conference called 'End FGM in Coventry.' Its aims were to support culture change, protect girls at risk, support women affected by FGM, support communities to oppose the practice, raise awareness and support the law.

I was asked to show collaborative women's stitch work to allow delegates to consider women's voices. The conference empowered delegates to support Coventry's vision of ending FGM and ensure it remained a high priority within all daily roles.

The Coventry Banner - Turner Prize Legacy

The Turner Prize 2021 was exhibited at the Herbert Art Gallery & Museum, where community engagement was a crucial part of its programming. I had the privilege of serving as the community engagement officer for the exhibition and the legacy project on behalf of Array Collective, which emerged as the eventual winner.

To encourage social change, the Coventry Banner invited community groups and members of the public to create banners featuring their own messages and calls to action. I organised on-site and off-site opportunities and devised an online offering for the shielding community. Inspired by Anna Farley, I created an easy-read guide to encourage as many people as possible to participate. If a person could make a mark, they were a member of the Coventry Banner.

In keeping with the principles of recycling, reusing, and repurposing, we used the suffragette sashes from the Processions project, which were gifted to us by Artichoke. This was a fitting choice as Array had participated in this public intervention and often created art from found items.

The people of Coventry responded with great enthusiasm, and more than 250 banners were produced, showcasing a diverse range of interests, concerns, and creative techniques. These banners were displayed in a free public exhibition throughout the summer, filling the Herbert's covered court.

This project was the subject of a research piece by Dr Rachel Marsden, illustrating best practices shared in social work. It was featured in EDI Issue 3 and nominated for several awards.

A social celebration launch was organised as part of Mental Health Awareness Week, where everyone was welcomed to share their messages and calls to action for social change. Visitors to the exhibition added their messages for change, expanding the reach even further. Communities were invited to share the stories behind their banners in drop-in sharing sessions.

The work was reconfigured for permanent display at Central Hall, Coventry.

Sitting Rooms Of Culture Settee Of Culture

The 'Settee of Culture' was an interactive community installation organised by Sitting Rooms of Culture in Coventry's City Centre Market. This exhibition was an open invitation to create a patch to form a cover for the whole couch. I stitched a piece from discarded materials that acted as a therapy to channel the emotions of the time.

City Of Culture 2021 Opening Ceremony Banners

On Saturday, June 5, 2021, Coventry, UK City of Culture, held its signature event, 'Coventry Moves'. The city was filled with modern-day Godivas, selected by public nomination, who rode on horseback from various city wards. They were accompanied by women bearing banners and flags, which showed their manifesto for the city. The event was a significant all-day performance.

My role was to develop banners from recycled materials with King Edward VI College (Nuneaton), a sixth-form college with a foundation degree in art. Students volunteered to take part to design and stitch the manefestoes of the Godivas. Many of those involved had never used a needle and thread, so I had to teach skills from threading a needle onwards. We stitched and sat on the floor as a group, sharing as we used our hands. An almost therapeutic circle was formed in this two-week project.

Such was the success and recognition of the banners that they went on to be exhibited in Coventry Cathedral and Coventry Market, allowing as many people as possible to appreciate their designs and contemplate the words they carried.

Marlene Reid Centre MRC Coalville

The Marlene Reid Centre (MRC) is a community-oriented facility that works with individuals, families, groups, and other organisations to promote positive community activities in North West Leicestershire and beyond.

As part of the 'Sew What? Arts Council England funded project, I had the privilege of leading a collaborative quilt initiative in which the MRC participated. The project aimed to encourage women to create patches with messages they wish they had known when they were 16. The messages ranged from amusing to empowering to therapeutic, such as 'Girls Do Fart,' 'You are not fat,' and 'You are not dirty.'

The focus was on creating a supportive and creative environment, and every group member was encouraged to express themselves through their patch, regardless of their previous experience with textiles. The quilt was not judged based on the quality of the finished patch but on the value of the experience for each participant. Each patch was carefully curated, prized, and stitched onto an old curtain, creating a beautiful quilt structure.

As community centre budgets are often limited, the MRC's foyer needed more decoration. The quilt project aimed to create a warm, welcoming, safe space for all community members. As a result, the MRC agreed to display the quilt in their reception area as a permanent reminder of the community's creativity and collaboration.

Beneath The Trees Festival

'Beneath the Trees' was a free urban village fête that offered music, food, dancing, performance, storytelling, and a chance for the community to come together and connect with nature. It occurred in Naul's Mill Park, Coventry city centre. The event aimed to provide a space where people could relax, enjoy the earth's magic beneath their feet, and spend time with loved ones. The audience enjoyed the park's rose garden, the spoken word tree and the nearby River Sherbourne alongside the offerings from local artists led by a thought-provoking natural sculpture created by Alfie Bradley of 'Knife Angel.'

I created the beginnings of a giant repurposed textile banner depicting a phoenix, a symbol of Coventry. I invited passers-by to join me in a workshop to add recycled denim feathers onto the wings. An homage to 'Coventry Blue.' This complemented the offerings of local eco-organisations.

The event was commissioned as part of the #GreenFutures program supported by the National Heritage Lottery Fund and the #LoveCoventry program.

COVert Arts The Risers Exhibition

'The Risers' was organised by COVert Arts to celebrate rising local artists in Coventry. The event ran for a week and was held at The BOX in Fargo Village.

To be included in the event, artists were invited based on their exceptional talent; preceding it, a series of online interviews hosted by Eduardo Jara allowed each artist to discuss their influences and achievements and share their broader vision so their works were better understood. The showcase featured diverse art forms, including sculptures, paintings, photography, mixed media, spoken word performances, and open mic sessions.

One highlighted piece was my 'Sew What?' lantern, which was also featured in the earlier 'Abundance - Carnival of Lights' in Coventry. This visually stunning piece of art showcased messages on clootie ribbons created by over 100 women and was a true testament to the power of community collaboration. I wanted to allow the audience to read the words of wisdom the women had stitched on each ribbon.

PROCESSIONS - An Artichoke Project

On June 10, 2018, tens of thousands of women and girls gathered in the streets of Belfast, Cardiff, Edinburgh, and London to participate in PROCESSIONS by Artichoke. The event was organised to celebrate and reflect on the role of women in today's society and commemorate the 100th anniversary of the first British women voting.

Creative director Darrell Vydelingum's idea of flooding the streets with green, white, and violet rivers came to life. I was lucky enough to participate as the support artist in the Cardiff march to Anne Marie Lagram. We proudly displayed two banners, 'Women of Shropshire - We Are Here' and the other, 'Women of Wolverhampton.' These banners and 100 others were created collaboratively using hand and machine-stitched textiles to express a message from each region's women. The Cardiff march was a family affair, with three generations often seen marching together, and we were accompanied by Leanne Wood and Louise Helen Johnson, the great-great-great niece of Emmeline Pankhurst. The musical accompaniment was provided by the choir Only Menopause Aloud and women from the band Symphonic Brass Wales.

In 2019, 'The Women Making History' book was published by Artichoke and Profile Editions and showcased the 'Women of Shropshire' banner with others in full-colour images and included essays by inspiring women, such as Jenny Waldman, June Sarpong and Clare Hunter.

After the 100 large banners were stored in the V&A, the legacy of PROCESSIONS continued with the exhibition 'Women Making History', which featured the 100 large banners and was held at London Scottish House from June 2 to July 11, 2021. The exhibition provided an opportunity to reflect on the banners' calls for equality, examine the pace of progress, and be inspired to keep pushing for change.

Abundance - Carnival Of Lights

In November 2021, Coventry witnessed a grand celebration of light, hope and freedom with the 'Abundance - The Carnival of Lights'. The event brought together people from different communities, including the local Muslim, Sikh and Christian communities, for a free, family-friendly procession across the city's north.

As part of the event, the 'Sew What?' ribbons were remodelled into a giant willow lantern by a network of women, led by me, at the suggestion of Daksha Piparia of Foleshill Creates. The lantern was shaped like a lotus flower petal, symbolising the journey from dark places to beauty and rebirth, resonating with many women who participated in Sew What? during the pandemic.

The ribbons were wrapped around the lantern so the light could shine through each. Members of the Sew What? community carried the lantern on poles as part of a mini procession, which included a woman wearing the 'Coat of Courage' festooned with lights. We joined a flotilla of illuminated bicycles, pyrotechnic performances, dancers and a massive elephant float to create an unforgettable experience.

According to the organisers of the Abundance Festival, thousands of people attended the carnival of lights over the Diwali weekend, making it the first restriction-free celebration of its kind in the city. The festival was created by the Coventry City of Culture Trust in partnership with the National Lottery Community Fund, Arts Council, Aakash Odedra Dance Company, Sampad Arts and Historic Coventry.

Coventry Peace Orchard - Clootie Ribbons

As part of a traditional Scottish healing ritual, a strip of cloth or rag known as a clootie or cloot is tied to a sacred well or tree.

In the 'Sew What?' project, the women who had stitched a ribbon had their first names hand-sewn onto a recycled clootie by me. On Mental Health Awareness Day, which was on October 10th, I tied each clootie to the fence of Coventry's Peace Orchard and allowed them to flutter in the wind, symbolically sending the hopes and dreams of each participant into the universe as a healing ritual. While this was not a defined part of my Arts Council England funded project, it was a fitting way to honour everyone who contributed. During the COVID-19 lockdown restrictions, I shared photographs and videos of the ritual with the online community as a means of gratitude and thanks.

Sew What? - A Mindful Stitching Event & Artwork

'Sew What?' was a participatory mindful sewing event led by me in collaboration with Arts Council England. It took place from International Women's Day to Mental Health Awareness Day 2021. The project aimed to celebrate women's achievements and develop mindful stitching to manage anxiety and connect with others.

It was open to anyone who identified as a woman and felt lonely, isolated, bored, fed-up, anxious, uninspired, or out of love with their arts and crafts practice. Throughout history, stitching has allowed women to communicate their joys, abuse, grief, and rights through samplers, story cloths, quilts, and procession banners. During the event, we repurposed the Processions suffrage sashes, donated by Artichoke, from being used to commemorate women's past struggles to one that highlights women's current struggles.

Over 100 participants stitched ribbons with any word or words they had never said to themselves but had always longed to hear. These were then photographed, uploaded and physically tied to trees during COVID-19.

Bolton School Girls Division - Retirement Of Lord Leverhulme Commission

I discovered my love for creating art and textiles during my time at Bolton School. I could only attend the school on a full scholarship, thanks to my back street northern school's headmistress, who insisted I take the entrance exam. The art and textile rooms became my happy places, and I spent countless hours there creating.

In 1990, I learned about the Leverhulme family's association with Bolton School and was fascinated to discover that the original William Lever had strongly supported the suffrage movement. Suffragettes had even burned down his bungalow. However, at the time, I knew very little about the family's complicated past.

This year, I was asked to create a mixed media piece for the retiring third Lord Leverhulme's official leaving ceremony as Chair. The composition combined textiles, painting, embellishment, and batik and was duly framed and presented. This experience was life-changing, inspiring me to pursue my passion for creating art and textiles further.