stitched textiles

Thomas Roach

Natural Dyes & Stitching

Thomas Roach taught himself to sew at age six because he couldn’t draw. Many years later he is still stitching, dyeing and using cloth as a medium to explore spiritual themes and community stories. Currently he is working primarily with natural fibers and dyes, using simple stitched resists and deconstructed screen-printing techniques. He seeks to evoke the liminal spaces between this world and that of the Divine.

Thomas shares his experience of cloth through teaching, workshops and community art projects. He co-lead a community art project that created 26 indigo-dyed quilts permanently installed in the parish Hall of Christ Church Cathedral, Vancouver. On the success of the project, Thomas created a second community project there: Prayers of the Church as part of a residency in 2016. Thomas also designs church vestments and consults with parishes about use of liturgical space. Commissions include Christ Church Cathedral, the Primate’s World Relief and Development Fund, St. Paul’s Cathedral, Regina and the Church of the Redeemer, Toronto.  Thomas holds a diploma in textile arts with distinction from Capilano University, and was featured in the exhibition "Boys with Needles" at the Textile Museum of Canada.  Some of Thomas’ recent works using natural dyes, printing and stitching were exhibited from Newfoundland to the Sunshine Coast during the summer of 2015.

SELECTED EXHIBITIONS:


Small Works: SDA at 40  2017 (Surface Design Association member exhibition)

  • Oregon College of Art and Craft, Portland, OR

(in)finite: spiritual conversations in cloth  2017 (juried)

  • Christ Church Cathedral, Vancouver, BC

Full Circle: 10th Anniversary Exhibition  2017 (juried)

  • FibreWorks gallery, Madeira Park, BC

Cherry Blossoms: A Textile Translation 2015   (juried)

  • Silk Purse Gallery, West Vancouver, BC
  • Squamish Public Library, Squamish BC

Edge of the Forest: Surface Design Association Canadian Member Exhibition  2015-2016(juried)

  • Richmond Hill Centre for the Performing Arts, Richmond Hill, ON
  • John M. Parrot Gallery, Belleville, ON
  • Fibre Conference @ Gros Morne National Park, Newfoundland
  • Fish Creek Community Library, Calgary, AB
  • Coast Collective Arts Centre, Colwood, BC
  • FibreWorks Gallery, Madeira Park, BC

mended: Surface Design Association BC Member Exhibition  2015(juried)

  • Il Museo at the Italian Cultural Centre, Vancouver, BC
  • FibreWorks Gallery, Madeira Park, BC
  • Place des Arts Gallery, Coquitlam, BC

Common Threads Indigo Quilts  2014  (co-coordinator)

  •  Permanent Installation at Christ Church Cathedral, Vancouver, BC

Boys with Needles  2002-2003  (curated)

  • Museum London, London, ON
  • The Textile Museum of Canada, Toronto, ON

Artropolis2001(juried)

  • CBC Studios, Vancouver, BC

Fiberworks 2000(juried)

  • Cambridge Galleries, Cambridge, ON

Sacred Spaces: textiles for Spiritual Practice2000 (solo)

  • Spiritworks Gallery, Saskatoon, SK

Leaves of Green - Sky of Blue: works in Indigo2000 (juried)

  • Craft House Gallery, Vancouver, BC

Gathering Threads: Contemporary Vancouver Textile Artists1999 (curated)

  • Roundhouse Community Centre, Vancouver, BC