Traces.

Mullaniff's solo exhibition ‘Traces' consisted of three paintings and eight drawings, whose subject and content had been developed from a group of hand-painted motifs derived from printed textiles in the archives of the Victoria and Albert Museum. As a museum housing a collection of paintings, furniture and ornamental domestic objects, the exhibition venue related directly to Mullaniff's own research interests.
Mullaniff's research has concerned visual analyses of ornament and the decorative, the primary source material being 19th century printed fabrics, which are reinterpreted in contemporary forms through paintings and print techniques. Historical motifs and patterns are of increasing interest to artists and historians investigating the historical trajectory of cross-cultural influences and social relations. Mullaniff has been central to the recent reassessment of this productive exchange between domestic design and fine art, the historical archive as a resource in the reclamation of cultural memory, and the contribution that visual material makes to a deeper understanding of the complexities of culture.
‘Traces' connects directly with Mullaniff's recent research into the Buta/Paisley print motif, from its Persian origins (1501-1736) to its transformation in the mid-1800s by Paisley weavers, a journey that followed the colonial trade routes. This research will be presented in the exhibition ‘Paisley: Exploding The Tear Drop', to be held at PM Gallery and House, London, November 2007.
‘Traces' was accompanied by a fully illustrated catalogue [ISBN 0906688426], with essays by Professor Janis Jefferies, Goldsmiths College, and Clare Browne, Curator of European Textiles (1600-1830) at the V & A. ‘Traces' was funded by the Arts Council of England and Ipswich Borough Council.
http://www.thepatternlab.com/previous_exhibitions/traces/
http://www.ipswich.gov.uk/Services/Museums+and+Mansion/Christchurch+...