Pattern plays an important part in this painting, acrylic ink on paper, by Janet Currier, entitled ‘Plain Work’. The title comes from the title of a poem by Kate Clanchy from her book of poems called ‘Newborn’ that explore the experience of having a baby and mothering. The title for the poem becomes the title of the works in the series of stitching paintings. For Janet, it is apt because it compares the action and gesture of stitching to the act of mothering and caring. These are themes that run thorough her practice.
This work is composed of acrylic ink on paper. The precise stitching motif, the pattern in the painting, gives the work internal tension. Furthermore, there is a contrast between the loose watercolour areas of pink, now more evident with the deeper colour, and the detailed pattern of the green lines. The work on paper also references back to her sculptural pieces, an integral part of her practice, which she works on in the studio alongside these paintings.
