Signature cloths/quilts are tactile social history documents, the surfaces are filled with sewn autographs in a variety of compositions; sensory records detailing identity and belonging. I first encountered them on a Fellowship to the International Quilt Museum in Lincoln, Nebraska in 2010. Between 2010-17 I created over 18 signature cloths.
Rainbow Haven is a refugee and asylum seeker organisation in East Manchester. This video is about a collaborative signature cloth from 2011 that shines a light on an important but underrepresented group. Video credit: Mary Stark.
A short film from 2016 documenting the Threads of Identity project with Burnage Academy for Boys. The film was made to commemorate 30 years since the death of Ahmed Iqbal Ullah, a pupil at Burnage. He was the same age as the boys who took part in the project. Video credit: Mary Stark.
Posts about my signature cloths
- Exhibition. Connecting Threads at the Fashion & Textile museum, London
A few images from the opening of my exhibition, Connecting Threads, at Fashion Textile Museum, London, 2025. - Sew Near – Sew Far
Sew Near – Sew Far is a stitch-based artwork created as part of Meeting Point2, a year-long project by Arts & Heritage. Inspired by the Brontë sisters’ signatures, the piece invites local people to add their own sewn signatures during workshops. Featured in the Brontë Museum guide, the work celebrates the Brontë bicentenaries. - British Signature Cloths
This WWI fundraiser, made in North Wales and now held at Wrexham Museum, is part of a collection of signature cloths—tactile documents rich with sewn history. Since 2010, I’ve discovered examples in museums and private collections, highlighting community engagement. Please get in touch if you have information or images.
“Signatures are personal and physical inscriptions, symbolic and romantic gestures, but also visual signs that are still used today as ‘information’ or ‘evidence’ for verification of someone’s identity.”
A Book of Signatures, Harb and Edwards 2010