ANNIE HEYWORTH

"My fascination with paper dresses traces back to my formative years, influenced by my artist parents who excelled in distinct fields. My father, a successful oil and watercolour painter, and my mother, a limitless creator, shaped my artistic inclinations. Her meticulous crafting of exquisite miniature mannequins for a London shop window display on Oxford Street captivated me in childhood.

Around age nine, I entered a competition at the Bethnal Green Museum of Childhood (now the Young V&A), fashioning a three-dimensional collage with a pedlar doll, winning first prize in my age category. This piece was inspired by a doll encountered at the V&A, marking the inception of my journey towards paper dresses.

During my foundation year at St. Martin’s School of Art and subsequently while pursuing a Fashion and Textile Design degree, my affinity for the "miniature" persisted. Though my focus initially leaned towards fashion illustration, I maintained a dual career in trade fashion magazine illustration and freelance textile design after graduating.

Throughout my career, creation has been an enduring motif, manifesting in diverse forms across the years. However, several years ago, I revisited the domains of drawing, illustration, and portraiture, feeling a sense of equilibrium in this medium—or so I believed. The genesis of my paper dresses sprang from an inherent yearning to engage in three-dimensional work. These dresses have revitalised my connection with sewing, pattern cutting, and textiles, simultaneously igniting my passion for sculpture, fashion, and miniatures.

In my current state, I find myself surrounded by aged books teeming with captivating imagery, rediscovered mementos from childhood, threads, extraordinary papers sourced from across the globe, and my cherished pair of scissors. Even as I continue to dedicate myself to drawing, my heart and mind have been utterly ensnared by the universe of miniature dresses." — Annie Heyworth