Weaving lifelines

Dr Peter Saul is a senior intensive care specialist for Hunter New England Health - clearly a highly skilled man with an important job relevant to us all - so it was an honour to spend an afternoon with him at Timeless Textiles on his day off exploring the materials of his 'trade'.

Brought out of context the variety of surplus and sterilised breathing apparatus used in the care of patients quickly become abstract vessels, (life)lines and woven or tangled strands available for creative manipulation. Colour coding, internal heating elements and high-tech non-confusable joins distinguish these materials from those one might find in a hardware store, however essentially they have the same function as tubing used in engines, plumbing or wine making - they provide pathways for gases and liquids to the correct places. Together we discussed possibilities of how to re-deploy these materials and how creative play is essential for everyone - to exercise the mind and assist in problem solving in everyday life. Unfortunately many of us do not allow ourselves to have the time or opportunity to do something without apparent functional outcome, this is what Deeper Voice of Textiles is all about and we hope all our participants will benefit from our 'invitation to create'.