ANNIE by Meg Tonkin
Sat in her loft in a quiet street in Whitstable is Prism Textiles member Annie Taylor, surrounded by crowds of dolls and magical creations. I’ve had the pleasure of exploring Annie’s wonderful home previously, and now got the opportunity to sit down and chat with her about her life and practice! Strap in and get ready for a sneak peek into the fantastic world of Annie.
Annie’s art revolves around storytelling. Real-life, imaginary - it all means something through her eyes. From something as mesmerising as the story of a derelict house in her degree show work “A Dwelling of No Significance” to her inability to create a doll without inventing a backstory, tales and narrative weave their way through Annie’s body of work.
I haven’t found myself as captivated by a project such as I was for “A Dwelling of No Significance” in a long time. Annie recounted the tale, detailing the handmade way she had photographed the inside of the soon-to-be demolished house with a pinhole camera, and the multiple ways she created about (and from) the house. Using wallpaper peeled from the walls she created layered glass forms with these chunks inside, made etchings of the house on copper, and even tracked down one of the home’s ex inhabitants who could recount its history to her. These works allow the home to live on, even after being torn down in 2006, all because Annie saw it differently to those who viewed it face value as worthless. *
It would be hard to talk about Annie without mentioning the other side to her story telling - her dolls. Annie’s dolls are fantastical beings with different personalities and backstories, quite literally of all shapes and sizes. From mermaids to fairies, 16 foot tall to 4 inches small, there’s a doll for every occasion.
These dolls came out of illustrations she had been making about fairytales, when someone at an open house suggested she make her own stories. Annie takes part in East Kent Artists’ Open Houses, which she loves because of the interesting conversations you get to have with people which she says steers you off track from the plan which exists in your head. This is where she showed her first doll sat on a chair, which got a lot of interest from visitors and kick started her doll collection. From here she made small dolls in jam jars, which reflecting on she felt a bit confined at the time, and so too these dolls became confined to their little homes. Then she made her impressive 16 foot (!) doll, while working in a small studio, who then filled up the room and was too confined.
It would be hard to talk about Annie without mentioning her work for the Profanity Embroidery Group, which she accidentally co-founded with Wendy Robinson 10 years ago. Inspired by a Rina Piccolo “Fuck the World” cartoon, the group stitches (you guessed it) profanity on textiles - Annie sewing explicit words and sarcastic phrases onto the bodies of her dolls in a “Feminist Rant” as she would describe her work. I feel this very fitting as the group addresses many feminist issues in an on the nose manner rather than, as I’m sure they would put it, fannying about.
Annie has been a member of Prism Textiles since 2023 and says that Prism helps keep structure in her practice. We both agreed that having no brief or date to work towards can leave you in a bit of a lull, and Prism helps her constantly think of new ideas and avenues for her work with each new yearly exhibition theme.
Most recently Annie turned somewhat inwardly with the theme of Dictionary, and without spoiling too much, she has been making Russian nesting dolls which was partly inspired by her familial connection. Her granddad was from Russia which strengthened her connection with these types of dolls, and after making a few of them while looking into the history behind them, she realised they hadn’t actually been invented until AFTER her granddad left!
Nevertheless, Annie and her dolls have an evidently strong connection through and through; her care and experiences shine through their stitches and I cannot wait to see her finished dolls in the April Prism exhibition!
Meg Tonkin
*For further detail here is a link to a written piece Annie wrote for Bruce Castle Museum, where the work is now homed.