To coincide with her solo exhibition The delight of walking alone, part of this year’s Glasgow International Festival, we spoke to Paintsil about the process and inspiration behind this striking new work…

‘It just feels normal to think about giants stomping round on the mountains where I live’ says Anya Paintsil, speaking of her home in a North Welsh valley where hills rise on every side of the house. Paintsil’s current exhibition is populated by monumental female figures - the giantesses of her dreams made real in fabric and thread. Paintsil resists the idea that they are straightforward illustrations of folklore: ‘the works don’t really connect to Welsh mythology in a linear sense,’ she explains, ‘I think they’re manifestations of my daydreams.’

Still, the landscape of North Wales presses into the work at every turn. Place names carry myth within them: Cadair Idris, ‘Idris’s seat’, where the giant Idris Gawr was said to study the stars; Yr Wyddfa, the burial mound of the defeated giant Rhitta Gawr. Paintsil grew up moving between North East Wales and Anglesey, close to Eryri, and those stories seeped into ordinary life - ‘folklore is woven into every day life here’. Her giantesses emerge from that atmosphere of lived mythology, but also from a deeply personal world of dreams and fantasy: ‘I daydream a lot about being a giant. In my fantasies I am 16 foot tall with big muscles and I frolic round in the forest relaxing’. The natural world isn’t all fantasy idyll however; the appearance of rotten goat’s heads and reference to a bird cull hint at something more sinister lurking.

Paintsil’s characteristic mix of intimacy, humour, and mythic scale runs through this exhibition. Her towering figures occupy space physically and emotionally, looming large from the gallery walls and meeting the gaze of the viewer. Each piece is made from materials weighted with history and memory: donated fabric, worn blankets, second-hand cloth, salvaged remnants. Her relationship to objects was shaped early on by a childhood surrounded by accumulation. Growing up, her mother’s then-partner was a hoarder, filling rooms with boxes of records, toys, broken equipment, and inexplicable treasures. ‘Material chaos is natural for me’ she says, ‘as well as the idea that everything has potential other uses, that nothing gets chucked away without being stripped to the bare bones’. Her mother became an expert recycler of domestic life: sofas, tables, microwaves, all sourced second-hand and repaired rather than replaced. Paintsil’s practice grows directly from that ethic of reuse and repair.

Paintsil’s works refuse neat distinctions between art, craft, and decoration. Growing up between Ghanaian kente cloth, African wax prints, Welsh blankets, and tapestries, she recalls learning to read textiles as cultural language. ‘You can just look in and know what sort of person lives there’ she says; ‘I think of my practice in the same way, everything imbued with the context in which it was created’. Through her own unique approach to textiles, materials and embellishment, Paintsil’s soft, almost sculptural depictions of Black women defy the visual language of the Western canon. By incorporating afro hairstyling techniques, Paintsil further challenges Western beauty stands, while expanding the possibilities and meaning of craft.

Making, for Paintsil, is less about spectacle than about immersion. Repetition and touch create an intense focus on detail, though recently she has tried to loosen her grip on perfection. A broken leg in 2024 forced her to adapt her methods, moving beyond the physically punishing tufting, rug-hooking and punch-needle techniques she has used since childhood. The constraint became unexpectedly generative and joyful, a new challenge for an artist who finds fulfilment in challenging herself and pushing boundaries: ‘while my work is still very labour intensive, I'm always doing different things, always finding ways to do things’.

The title - The delight of walking alone - emerged in response to Paintsil’s return to to North Wales, after years spent living in cities. ‘I had a real sense of being where I belong’, she says, ‘and being at rest’. In this work, wandering alone in nature represents a way of enlarging the self, the body becoming a mythical landscape of one’s own making. Invited into Paintsil’s tactile fantasy, viewers encounter figures that are at once monumental and intimate: giantesses stitched from memory, folklore, found materials and daydreams. Rooted in the hills and histories of North Wales and her ancestral Fante tradition of figurative textiles, these works celebrate solitude not as withdrawal, but as a space of imaginative possibility - a place where rest, reflection and transformation can take shape.

Anya Paintsil, The delight of walking alone, Burns Street Studio, until 21 June

Other Glasgow International Festival highlights…

Project Ability presents James Gladwell’s cross-stitched drawings at Trongate 103, until 21 June.

Born in 1952 into a Romany Gypsy family, Gladwell was taught to sew as a child by his grandmother. These colourful cross-stitched drawings are joyful manifestations of the artist’s dreams and his passion for needlework, which persisted through the turbulence and upheaval of his adolescence - ‘I’d be lost without doing the sewing’.

Bettina (1927–2021), Finite Structures at Gallery Cento, until 21 June

Chelsea Hotel legend Bettina’s eclectic body of work encompassed photography, xerography, word art, film, computer-assisted animation, textiles, painting, and sculpture. Drawing on her early years as a textile designer, her work reveals a keen eye for surface, rhythm and materiality. Gallery Cento present an interconnected set of sculptural, photographic, and animated film work that combine a topological and philosophical engagement with the city’s surfaces - we adore the marble eggs!

Keira McLean, Fire Stories - created in collaboration with with filmmaker Caireen Stuart and animator Akvile Dirmauskaite; co-designed and produced with residents of Easterhouse. At The Glenburn Centre, 19 & 20 June.

Glass artist Keira Mclean assembles this powerful multimedia project, which celebrates community history, resistance and resilience in the face of political austerity, socio-economic deprivation, rampant isolation, and loneliness.

Rae-Yen Song 宋瑞渊, •~TUA~• 大眼 •~MAK~•. at Tramway until 9 August

Don’t miss Rae-Yen Song’s tentacular spectacular that takes over Tramway’s vast main gallery. Ranging across textiles, ceramics, video, performance, and audio work, •~TUA~• 大眼 •~MAK~• is a wonderfully inventive meditation on life-cycles, migration, and rebirth.

Crafting home: An interview with Sarah Espeute

First of all, tell us a little bit about Œuvres Sensibles and why you wanted to bring a creative space/ practice to Marseille?

Œuvres Sensibles is my studio, where I develop textile pieces. It began as a way to give form to a more personal practice – one rooted in drawing, embroidery, everyday objects, and emotion. The name itself is important to me: it carries the idea that an object can be more than functional or decorative. It can hold a story or a memory.

Through the studio, we create pieces that are made by hand, in small series and made-to-order, using embroidery, antique textiles, natural fibres, and traditional techniques. I wanted Œuvres Sensibles to be a true creative space, not only a place of production, but a place where ideas can move between collections, installations, collaborations, and more experimental projects.

Marseille felt very natural for this. The city gives me space, freedom, and a rhythm that is close to the way I want to work. The light, the sea, the mixture of people and influences, the energy of the south of France… all of this nourishes my work in a very instinctive way. I also liked the idea of developing a local and human way of producing, reconnecting with slower gestures and artisanal practices that still feel very present here.

What does a typical day in your studio look like?

Some days are very quiet and focused, with embroidery, drawing, or textile research. Other days are more collaborative preparing installations and exhibitions.

There are always fabrics everywhere, sketches pinned to the walls, unfinished pieces resting on tables. I like the in-between state where ideas are still moving and evolving.

We love the idea of creating sensitive pieces – tell us a little bit more about how emotions and sensitivity play a role in your pieces?

For me, sensitivity begins with attention. Paying attention to small gestures, familiar objects, or moments that are often considered insignificant.

I’ve always been very attached to objects that carry traces of life – old table linens, slightly worn fabrics, plates collected over time. These things hold memories without trying too hard. I think my work comes from this desire to create objects that people can emotionally connect to, not only visually but almost physically.

I often say that an object should have a soul. Something that creates a small emotional reaction such as a memory, a smile, a feeling of familiarity.

Do the patterns or shapes in your embroidered pieces carry specific narratives or references?

Yes, very often. Most of the embroidered scenes come from fragments of everyday life, memories from my childhood or objects that are important for me. I’m interested in these ordinary scenes because they say a lot about intimacy and the way we live together. The motifs are often very simple – a fish, a glass, bread, flowers – but once embroidered they become almost alive.

I also enjoy playing with scale and trompe-l’œil. There is often a dialogue between humour, poetry, and something slightly surreal.

The ‘Clothing Curtains’ [Rideaux-Vêtements] are exquisite, can you tell us more about how you conceptualised these and the story you want to tell?

The Clothing Curtains were first created for an exhibition in Paris, when a gallery invited me to “dress” a typical Haussmann apartment. I took the request quite literally and started thinking about the way textiles inhabit interiors, almost like clothing inhabits the body.

So I created the shirt, pants, dress and kimono curtains for the windows, a skirt for the coffee table, a trompe-l’œil bedspread. The exhibition was called A well-dressed apartment.

Curtains have a very theatrical presence in a space. I like that they blur categories: they are both decorative objects and almost characters within the interior.

How do you envision your curtains being used in a space: more decorative, theatrical, or practical?

I think they exist somewhere between all of these things. Of course they remain functional objects – they filter light, divide spaces, create softness. But I also like the idea that they can transform the atmosphere of a room quite dramatically. The clothing-curtains are meant to create presence. Almost like a silent performance happening within the space.

How do you balance functionality and poetic expression within your pieces?

Functionality is very important to me because I want the objects to truly live with people. I don’t want them to remain untouchable or purely decorative.

What interests me is when a functional object suddenly carries another layer, a story, or a feeling, while staying within high-end design. My tablecloths are meant to be used for meals and to get stained while being conversation starters and design objects.

Where do you look for creative inspiration outside of textiles and objects?

I’m very inspired by Mediterranean culture, by old family dinners, by films, by the atmosphere of southern houses where objects accumulate naturally over time.

I also find inspiration in music, photography, and in certain interiors from the 20th century where decoration felt deeply personal rather than styled.

What place makes you feel at your most creative?

Honestly, probably at home. Not necessarily in a romantic way, but because it’s where everyday life happens. Cooking, moving objects around, inviting friends, watching the light change during the day – all these small moments feed my imagination constantly.

And more broadly, Marseille itself stimulates me a lot. The city feels imperfect, layered, and very free. That freedom is extremely important for my creative process.

Finally, a question we ask everyone – what does ‘craft’ and the ‘decorative’ mean to you?

For me, craft is deeply connected to the hand and to time. It’s about gestures repeated slowly, about learning through practice, and about accepting imperfection as part of the beauty of an object.

The decorative is often underestimated, but I think it plays an essential role in how we experience spaces emotionally. Decoration is not superficial to me. It creates an intimate atmosphere that reflect personality.

A huge thank you to Sarah for speaking with us! This interview has been edited for length and clarity.

All images courtesy of Œuvres Sensibles and taken by Maxime Verret.

Find out more: https://oeuvres-sensibles.com

In the 1950s, a casserole dish firing in a kiln signalled the culmination of one maker’s lifelong pursuit of form, function, and financial independence. These dishes – praised for their utility – also showed unique aesthetic flourish: they included a twisted handle curved with a wink. Emerging from a workshop, hidden away in a creative commune, this maker took the means of production into her own hands and craft took her on a journey, from navigating life as a single-mother in experimental creative communes, to finding queer love in pursuit of the perfect kiln…

So, how did a casserole dish change the course of one woman’s life? Read on to find out…

Welcome to our new series – Objects of Dissent – eight essays that will develop over the course of the year. In each one, we pick an object that holds a connection to decorative dissidence. We examine surface tensions and the stories objects reveal when we dive deeper into stories of makers who’ve crafted resistance in the last 150 years…

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We’re delving into the archive to bring you an interview with a designer and creative director who works across a huge range of media to craft an inspiring and unique visual language: Hadiya Williams. In 2020, we spoke to Hadiya about her inspirations, journey as a maker, and how she built a global design brand.

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This time we’re delving into the world of artist duo Bugarin + Castle. Together, they create moving image, costume, sculpture and installation works. They build worlds drawing on cabaret performance and architectural scope, drawing vibrant connections between queer and trans lives in Scotland and internationally, including diasporic connections to the Philippines. Through collaboration, their practice kaleidoscopically unfolds to refract different perspectives and experiences…

The Craft Of: Bugarin + Castle

Our practice is all about… the power dynamics of space and sound, with a focus on trans and Filipino perspectives.

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So, how did this humble bucket help one maker protest? Read on to find out…

Welcome to our new series – Objects of Dissent – eight essays that will develop over the course of the year. In each one, we pick an object that holds a connection to decorative dissidence. We examine surface tensions and the stories objects reveal when we dive deeper into stories of makers who’ve crafted resistance in the last 150 years…

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Last year, on a freezing November day in Berlin, we saw the exhibition Defiance: Jewish Women and Design in the Modern Era in its final weeks. Bringing together the work of sixty-two artists and designers, the exhibition tells the remarkable story of a vibrant group of pioneering Jewish women designers. Across a vast range of media - from ceramics and m…

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Weaving with Rezia Wahid, MBE

“Something about making from nothing, just a yarn, a thread, to it becoming a sculpture, a woven material that one can do anything with… I just loved the whole idea”

Rezia Wahid, MBE is a weaver, artist and teacher based in London. Find out more about her practice here.

Materiality with Yusuf Osman

“When I make something, I make something to last. I think an economy where there is small makers or small companies selling limited growth items then that is a better world…”

YUSSICO is a leather goods label founded by award winning designer and leather craftsman, Yusuf Osman. Find out more about his practice here.

Upcycling with Ophelia Dos Santos

“DIY can be very empowering and rewarding. By learning a simple stitch – like chain stitch or backstitch – you can mend and reinvent clothing very easily” 

Ophelia Dos Santos is a textile artist and sustainable fashion advocate. Find out more about her practice here.

How about you?

We’d love to hear about the crafts you’ve started – or are going to start – this new year! Leave your reading recommendations, top tips and favourite projects in the comments below… and if you have an exhibition, book, guide, workshop or anything else you’d like us to feature in our monthly round-ups for 2026, please get in touch!

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Take a little peek into different practices of making, designed to inspire you each month. We’re sharing this series as a thank-you to our supporting subscribers and founding members who make Decorating Dissidence possible. If you’d like to join them to get bonus content each month, we’d love to welcome you 💌

Decorating Dissidence is a reader-supported publication. To receive new posts and support my work, consider becoming a free or paid subscriber.

The Craft Of… Sandy Sanchez

We are so excited to hear from of Small Pleasures this week – our final Craft Of Q&A of 2025! Sandy writes our go-to newsletter for all things design and interiors. As a writer and brand strategist based in NYC, Sandy shares parts of her life as she hunts for vintage goods, thrifted clothes, and rare books that always have an inspirational twist. You can also find her writing in Architectural Digest. Below, we take a tour of Sandy’s home, as she shares some images of her artfully designed home filled with handpicked objects, art, books, and an epic notebook collection.

In her newsletter, Sandy has a knack for drawing our attention to the beautiful everyday. Posts like The Human Urge to Collect Little Objects really speak to us (you should see our respective trinket collections). The things we find and keep and treasure are important. And who even knew about customised light switch trays? We do now! Sandy’s newsletter is all about letting more joy, leisure and noticing into our lives. A perfect Q&A to end the year on, as we slow down and reflect…

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This month: we delved into Poppy Nash’s Disobedient Textiles, with a look at her recent exhibition in Edinburgh and a recap of Decorating Dissidence’s conversation with Clare Hunter, which celebrated Poppy’s…

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Take a little peek into different practices of making, designed to inspire you each month. We’re sharing this series as a thank-you to our supporting subscribers and founding members who make Decorating Dissidence possible. If you’d like to join them to get bonus content each month, we’d love to welcome you 💌

In this feature, we look at the craft of Eleanor Clarke, curator at the Goodwood Art Foundation. This weekend, the foundation opened its winter exhibition ERASURE, an which brings together three international artists whose work confronts the intertwined destruction of ecological systems and cultural heritage: Laís Amaral, Solange Pessoa and Dana Awartani. Read Eleanor’s introduction to the exhibition’s artists and themes here.

We caught up with Eleanor to find out about the art pilgrimages that inspire her, her top tips for a creative city break and up-and-coming artists, and her words of wisdom for aspiring curators.

How did you get started working in the arts?

Creativity and cultural engagement were a big part of my childhood. Having spent my first few years in Singapore, and being half Sicilian on my mother’s side, I grew up surrounded by different cultures and traditions. At school I was an art scholar and took every opportunity to go on art trips. Until then, I’d had little exposure to contemporary art, so encountering works like Janet Cardiff’s The Forty Part Motet, James Turrell’s Sky Space, and Theo Jansen’s kinetic sculptures was transformative. These moments opened my eyes to what art could be, and I’m grateful to my parents for sending me to a school that valued such experiences.

After completing an MA in art history, during which I worked part-time in an Impressionist and Modern gallery, I realised my real passion lay in working with living artists. My first curatorial experience was at Blenheim Art Foundation, where I worked on shows with Cecily Brown, Tino Sehgal and most recently Mohammed Sami. My curatorial involvement increased over the course of these exhibitions and for Sami’s exhibition I contributed to all aspects of the exhibition, including full editorial responsibility for the catalogue. Sami has been nominated for the 2025 Turner Prize based on the Blenheim exhibition, which is a definite career highlight. That experience cemented my commitment to curating and continues to shape my work at Goodwood Art Foundation.

What are you working on now?

ERASURE: our next exhibition at Goodwood Art Foundation, which opens on 22nd November. The show brings together three international artists: Lais Amaral, Solange Pessoa and Dana Awartani, whose work confronts the intertwined destruction of ecological systems and cultural heritage.

Lais Amaral will present new and recent paintings exploring deforestation, environmental collapse, and social marginalisation. It’s her first UK institutional presentation, so I’m very excited to be introducing her work to a new audience! Her paintings sit alongside carved soapstone sculptures by Solange Pessoa, which trace connections between body and landscape, while echoing histories of extraction. The exhibition also includes a mixed-media installation by Saudi Palestinian artist Dana Awartani, I Went Away And Forgot You: a moving and deeply symbolic meditation on cultural erasure. Together, these artists offer poetic and layered reflections on how cultural memory and ecological health are bound together, each essential to the survival of the other.

I’m also working with Ann Gallagher on our summer 2026 exhibition and additional artist presentations at the Foundation, which promises to be very exciting.

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