Anne Kempton is a fibre artist and owner of Timeless Textiles Gallery in the East End of Newcastle. Anne, among many things is a creative leader dedicated to raising the wonderment of fibre art, building a passionate and dedicated community around creative projects for social justice.
In 2022 she published the book 'Finding Your Thread: The Search For the Storyteller and the Artist' which she describes as 'a call to action to find your voice through creative endeavours'.
“Working commercially as well as artistically can be a tricky juggle at times. This project was a great reason to break out a bit of glam, pay homage to and have a giggle with some local legends I admire and celebrate our local creative community. Anne is that very rare precious thing that you want to cherish - both an ideas person and a do-er. She is a maker, a gatherer and a creative leader. I have had the honour of knowing her for the last few years and she’s whipped me into action on more than a few occasions with just the tiniest roll of her eyes - it's quite a power and it cracks me up. I’m astonished at the size of her clever heart, how much she achieves for this city and creative communities beyond, the causes she's championed, the people she's helped, and the stuff she quietly gets done while most of us are still figuring out how”. - Edwina Richards.
Edwina Richards is a freelance commercial / art photographer specialising in social documentary and community projects.
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We Are is a multi-location multimedia photographic experience highlighting creative women of Newcastle, commencing on Wednesday March 8th 2023 (International Women’s Day) and culminating in a celebration event at The Lock-Up on Friday March 24th.
We Are is a portrait project featuring 20 WH!P Collective members turning their lenses towards fellow female and non-binary creatives to highlight the many benefits that a thriving and diverse artistic community bring to our region.
WH!P (Women* of the Hunter !n Photography) was founded in 2020 to embrace and create opportunities for professional photographers from the Hunter region by leveraging the combined skills, experience and credentials of its members. Fostering a culture of support, celebration, exchange, education, advocacy, action, enjoyment, play and growth, it hopes to actively raise the profile of contemporary photographic excellence, education and experimentation in the Hunter Region. WH!P works collaboratively with those both within and beyond the local area who share our belief that the world should be shown through a lens as diverse as the real world.
*all references to women/woman is inclusive of gender diverse people
WH!P’s logos and graphics designed by Laura Kent
“I love making my voice stronger by playing, creating and making art, be it drawings, felt or food. This is what sustains me”