Circles of Strength is a creative and supportive response to Covid -19.

It is the “sister project” and the follow-up to “Stories of Strength” – a series of filmed interviews with a range of people living, working and visiting in the Newcastle East postcode area. 120 people were asked one important question – “What have you learnt about yourself during COVID-19?” People aged between 3-86 provided us with a range of eclectic answers.

Circles of Strength are textile art works which have interpreted these interviews using fibre and textile art techniques like embroidery, painting, dyeing, quilting, fabric collage, stitching, knitting, crochet, weaving, collaging and other innovative methods.

Artists and craftspeople from NSW, Queensland, and ACT have joined with Newcastle artists and residents to make this truly a community art event, and a contemporaneous record of social history.

Circles of Strength is the Timeless Textiles Wednesday Group‘s project for International Women’s Day 2021.

Over the years, in the Wednesday group, we have discovered the great strength we have both individually and as a group, and how we can “stitch” yourselves together and support ourselves and others.

This has become the essence of the Wednesday group…. caring and supporting one another through creativity. In late 2020, the Wednesday group embraced this project and extended an invitation to artists all around Australia to interpret Newcastle East’s residents responses to COVID -19.

Circles of Strength will be displayed on International Women’s Day, 8 March, 2021 outside Timeless Textiles Gallery, 90 Hunter Street, Newcastle East from 10am – 4pm.

The offical opening will be at 10am.

Each of the art hoops will be labelled with the artist’s and interviewee’s names and a QR code, which will allow immediate access to view the interview with a smart device