Meg Gallagher releases Out Of This World

The artist draws upon her long-standing experience with textiles for her most recent series, comprised of nine bespoke abstract paintings.

Meg Gallagher is known for her distinctive canvases made from fabrics that are sewn together, soaked in natural dyes and then painted to form abstract compositions. On 15 October, she will release an exclusive new series, Out Of This World, direct to her followers. Below, we speak to Gallagher about the process of making the series.

To find out more about the collection and register your interest, contact Gallagher here or visit the artist’s website.

Meg Gallagher, Veiled Echoes (detail), 2024, black and white cotton denim sewn together and then soaked with natural dyes, acrylic and pigment powders, natural oak tray frame, 115 x 90 cm
Meg Gallagher, <emThe Great Joys(detail), 2024, indigo and white cotton denim sewn together and then layered with natural dyes, acrylic and pigment powders, ecru tray frame, 160 x 115 cm

Out Of This World evokes nebulous planets and intangible matter, or a deep time that sits outside a human lifespan in the world. How did these concepts come into your making process? 

This concept came to life when I realised I was seeking inspiration from outside my normal surroundings. My previous exhibitions have had a more direct connection to landscapes around me, this time I had a thirst to explore magical exotic places and so decided to create these places myself. Call it escapism or perhaps just a desire to take a break from this overwhelming planet for a moment. This is how I decided to call this body of work Out Of This World.
 
My use of recycled textiles is a physical response to the overwhelming world of over consumption we live in. From years in the fashion industry I’ve battled with how much we ‘make and move on’ once a trend is tired. This is my way of taking something destined for landfill and making something timeless and beautiful instead.
 
Your pigments are slowly layered, with washes of dyes bleeding into each other or ink speckled over the surfaces. Because they appear quite organic, the works often look like layers of shell or sediment, or an aerial view of Antarctic or oceanic planes. Can you speak more about how the subject and composition for each work collide?
 
I love that you can see this. I spend a long time gathering imagery that shows nature from different angles and perspectives to the typical ‘sky, hill, sea’ format. Over years of developing my practice, these curves have been carved into my memory. So when I’m cutting and sewing my pieces of cloth together, I let the scissors go where it feels right. It is then that I allow the wet elements to layer on top. I have to let go of control and not force the pigments to react in a way I might want. My decision making process is very clear but my next steps are always moving and changing. It’s a push and pull of elements that I think mimics the way nature evolves and we as humans have to surrender to it. I like the end result to have a rawness to it, a blend of areas that look clean and untouched mixed with very organic earth-like textures.
Many of the works are made from offcuts or ‘scraps’ that have been discarded by the fashion industry. Having worked as a fashion design creative for over 14 years, you’ve seen first hand just how much wastage there is when garments are produced, but also how much skill has often gone into designing or creating the fabrics themselves. When did you first start incorporating velvets, denims and cottons into your canvases?
 
I’ve been lucky to have a rich career in the fashion industry. After the initial thrill of it, I did become quite disenchanted with the fast pace and how much ‘newness’ is asked to be created just to keep up with trends. When I started painting again, I fell in love with the slower pace and the fact that collectors were buying for life, not just a season. I had extra denim laying around from a celebrity custom project that never went ahead. The quality of it was incredible, it was a thick Japanese denim but nobody wanted it for a garment. I had seen a Stirling Ruby exhibition and was so inspired by his insane use of textiles. So I started experimenting with the denim by drawing out the colour, layering paint, throwing it in the washing machine—a lot of processes I had learnt visiting the denim wash houses in China and Turkey where so much time and energy is put into creating these amazing textiles (only to be made into a garment that has a short life span).
 

Your fashion career was punctuated by designing for brands like Camilla and Marc and Ksubi. You also became an expert in denim design. What sparked the transition into visual art, and what crossovers do you see between the industries?

I actually moved into visual art after I had my son 7 years ago—perhaps I was looking for an identity shift after becoming a mother. I was actually at such a nice, ‘successful’ place in my fashion career where it was growing and growing. It didn’t make sense to any of my peers for me to exit but I just knew I would be happier pursuing art.

I bring a lot of tools that I used in the fashion industry into my practice, especially in the ways that I apply colour and how to manipulate textiles. Both industries also have very similar crossovers around the marketing dynamics to connect with clients—a process I’ve learnt over time via osmosis in both worlds. 

Meg Gallagher, The Beginning, 2024, black and white cotton denim sewn together and then soaked with natural dyes, acrylic and pigment powders, ecru tray frame 105 x 105 cm
Meg Gallagher, Tomorrow, 2024, indigo and white cotton denim sewn together with cotton velvet and then soaked with natural dyes, acrylic and pigment powders, rich brown oak tray frame, 105 x 105 cm
Meg Gallagher, A Place to Stay, 2024, indigo and white cotton denim sewn together with silk velvet and then soaked with natural dyes, acrylic and pigment powders, ecru tray frame, 115 x 160 cm
Meg Gallagher, Softly Beside You, 2024, black and white cotton denim sewn together and then soaked with natural dyes, acrylic and pigment powders, rich brown oak tray frame, 105 x 105 cm
Meg Gallagher, The Great Joys, 2024, indigo and white cotton denim sewn together and then layered with natural dyes, acrylic and pigment powders, ecru tray frame 160 x 115 cm

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