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Carol Naylor Honorary Fellow

Stitched & Constructed Textiles

About Carol
Carol is a textile artist specialising in machine embroidery, creating unique one-off pieces for public and private venues. These range from small intimate framed works to large scale hangings. Her work has been represented in many group and solo exhibitions and she teaches and exhibits in the UK and abroad. As well as exhibitions, and work for galleries and private venues, her work has been commissioned and collected by public, corporate and private clients. She describes her work as walking through the landscape, from her home near the South Downs to France, Italy, Spain and other countries.
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Biography Back to top

Carol studied at Goldsmiths School of Art where her passion for textiles was nurtured. In 1997 She left a successful career in lecturing as Head of Fine Art at Chichester University, in order to concentrate solely on her own work.


She stitches intensively onto painter’s canvas, or similar, using a variety of rayon, cotton, woollen, and metallic threads, building line upon line of colour and texture, looking at the changes in light and shade, mixing colours as a painter would. Each piece evolves as she works, and cannot be replicated.


Heavyweight threads in the spool are couched down in long, free lines from the back of her base fabric, as she draws with her machine. She then turns to the right side, redefining and adding finer details.

She works from personal experience and observation, and her own drawings. Sometimes a shape, or a memory can be enough to start a piece of work that in turn can lead to a series. Although she focuses mainly on landscape, she has recently begun a series of more abstract, richly stitched sea and skyscapes.

She says "I look, I draw, I select and I translate"

Resumé Back to top

Carol has a BA Hons and Postgraduate Diploma in Textiles from Goldsmiths School of Art.


She exhibits extensively in the UK and has participated in exhibitions in USA, France, Spain, Italy, Ireland and Portugal. Her work is represented in many private collections worldwide.

Carol is a Fellow of the Society of Designer Craftsmen and was chairman for four years. She co- curated the annual winter exhibition at the Mall Galleries for 13 years, and also co curated Everyday Encounters for the Society at the William Morris Gallery, Walthamstow.

She is an Hon Vice President of the Society and is proud to exhibit in their annual exhibitions.


She enjoys working to commission, and has work in several Hospital and Education Trusts in the UK. These include Broomfield Hospital, Essex, St Richards hospital, Chichester, Frimley Park Hospital, Surrey as well as several Education authorities including West Sussex, Kent and Leeds. Recent commissions include one in 2021 for a private client in the USA called "Blossom Trees".

In 2013 Carol received a silver award from British Craft and Design for excellence in textiles selected by Kaffe Fassett.

She has taught and lectured throughout the UK and has been a guest lecturer and teacher in the USA and New Zealand.

She has work published in many magazines, books and the press in the UK, USA, Australia, New Zealand, France, the Netherlands and Portugal, and has written articles on her own work as well as on other textile artists.


Selected Recent and forthcoming Exhibitions

2022

"Transformations" with the Society of Designer Craftsmen at the Bankside Gallery in June -July 2022

'The Art of Embroidery' Bankside Gallery London an internationally selected exhibition

2021

'Excellence' Oxmarket Gallery with Society of Designer Craftsmen

'Alchemy' With Artel Contemporary Arts, Chichester

2020

'Into the Light' Oxmarket Gallery with Society of Designer Craftsmen

2019

'A Stitched Timeline' one person show at Sunbury Embroidery Gallery

2018

'A Stitched Timeline' A one person show at the Knitting and Stitching Shows, Alexandra Palace, Dublin and Harrogate

'Elemental' Artel Contemporary Arts Oxmarket Centre of Arts, Chichester

2017

'Landlines-Bodylines'- two person exhibition, Oxmarket Centre of Arts, Chichester

'Page 17' touring exhibition with Embroiderers Guild in UK

‘What is Stitch’ Sunbury Gallery, Diana Springall Collection

'Transience' Artel Contemporary Arts Oxmarket Centre of Arts, Chichester

'Textile Textures' Walford Mill, Wimborne, Dorset

2016

'Capability Brown Festival' with the Embroiderers Guild, venues include NEC,

the Knitting and Stitching shows at Alexandra Palace, London, and Harrogate

Art in Action, Waterperry, Oxon

2015

ArtExpo 2015, East End Studios, Milan, presented by ArtMeet Gallery, Milan, Italy

Art in Action, Waterperry, Oxon

Designer Craft at the Mall Galleries, London

2014

'Sewing the Land' Old Chapel Textile Centre, Greenham, Newbury 2014, one person show

Designer Crafts at the Mall Galleries, London

2013

'Winter Textiles Exhibition' New Ashgate Gallery, Farnham

Designer Crafts at the Mall Galleries, London

2012/11

'Contemporary Textiles' New Ashgate Gallery, Farnham

SOFA Santa Fe and Chicago USA, 'The Landscape Revisited' with Zest Gallery

Scissors, Paper Stone' Obsidian Art, Bucks

2010

Galerie 49, Saumur, Loire, France

Cunault Art Exhibition, Loire, France

'Landscape' Pfaff touring exhibition, venues included the UK, France, Holland, Belgium and the Netherlands


Other Makers in Stitched & Constructed Textiles