Nostalgia
My practice explores lost narratives, found objects and giving an object it’s time again.
I often work with narratives from my home town of Manchester, England. Pain, loss and yearning for a lost time also feature in my work.
‘Angel Meadow 1822 - 2022’ (2022)
Mixed media installation
approx 6 metres x 3 metres
Angel Meadow is an area of Manchester which has seen radical changes over the past 200 years, from the Industrial Revolution to the diverse city of today. Influencing social, political and artistic life in the UK, the area holds many stories. This work by Jilly Topping covers touch points in the period. From abject poverty, death, the inspiration for the Communist Manifesto, radical changes to social working practices, many literary novels and the mass grave holding 40,000 bodies, painted many times by local artist L.S. Lowry. This installation shows the sacrifice they made to build Manchester.
Shown at the London Metropolitan University Summer Show, Aldgate, London (22nd June to 2nd July 2022)
For the Mothers of Gorton (2020)
‘For the Mothers of Gorton’ (2020)
Mixed media sculpture
approx 450mm x 500mm
An ode to the Mothers of Gorton, their trauma and pain in the 1960s.
Featured in the Royal Academy Summer Exhibition 2021 - 2022
‘Southport (Working Men’s Club Children’s Day Out) (2022)
Film created using interviews, found footage, personal photographs and music 5 minutes 15 seconds duration
A trip to the seaside town of Southport in Northwest England in 1979 resulted in a traumatic day for two children aged 5 and 10. The Working Men’s Club children’s day out was an annual event enjoyed by most. On this occasion the children were left by mistake and together they piece together the day 45 years later. Working with memories, viewed via the female working-class lens and the disparate past compared to today, are explored in this work.
This results in memory provoking, emotional responses to a bygone era.
Shown at the London Metropolitan University Summer Show, Aldgate, London
(22nd June to 2nd July 2022)
‘Welcome to Sunny Gorton’ (2022)
Letterpress prints
various sizes
Quotes, graffiti and everyday sayings from Manchester plus free school meal tickets are all
re-imagined using the letterpress process. A collection of prints using colloquial Mancunian sayings are created by Jilly Topping as a way of preserving these words, so often lost as time progresses. These words are the fabric of everyday life woven into a certain era, especially unique to the area of Gorton, Manchester.
A slow, labour intensive craft using hot metal and wood type is employed to create these prints. The relief printing method was used as the main printing process for more than 500 years, enabling book publishing and education for the masses.
Shown at the London Metropolitan University Summer Show, Aldgate, London (22nd June to 2nd July 2022)
‘Mr White’s Garden’ (2020)
Found objects and fence panel
750mm x 200mm
Treasures found while mudlarking in our garden in Harlesden during the 1st Covid lockdown. It was Mr White’s garden for 60 years before we arrived.
‘Fences Were Lower in the 70’s’ (2019)
Film created using found footage and personal photographs, 3 minutes duration