www.channel.org.ukfuturelooms
This is an ambitious multimedia project, inspired by a ruined textile mill in Batley, West Yorkshire, and the women who once worked there.
Set up by Pavilion Photographic Visual Arts in Leeds, and IRIS, the women’s photography project at Staffordshire University, the site involves artists, writers and local people.
The site mimics the structure of the old mill, and echoes to the sound of many voices, old and young. Through words, archive materials and haunting images, the site draws parallels between the lives of the weavers and the women working in today’s new technology industries.
There’s a great education area that poses various challenges - for example, children are encouraged to “weave” their own webs, using images, text and links from an online store.