The humble patchwork quilt - that utilitarian piece of manchester born of scarcity and need is the traditional model for 'Stitched and Bound'.  While there are few examples of the traditional quilt at this exhibition, the works that are on show are heavily weighed down with the time-honoured techniques that have taken quilting along its journey from the 'wagga' or 'bush-rug' to these brilliantly coloured and experimental pieces that adorn the walls of Craftwest.

The element of decoration that permeates this show initially encourages us to agree with the opinion that textiles and women's work is merely ornamental, crafty and therefore subsidiary to current trends of contemporary art.  Each piece, however, demands consideration of the unique qualities that only textiles can bring to personal expression.

Finished but unfinished by Judith Pinnell explores the juxtaposition of subtly coloured silk paper with metallic embroidery and appliqué.  Crisp machined edges contrast with the frayed edges of the fabric.  Compare this treatment of silk with that of Lois Ives' Raked Silk, richly coloured wool and silk felt embroidered in patterns reminiscent of the raked sand gardens of Japan; or Cherry Johnson's Interplay, cotton and silk machine-stitched and slashed to reveal all layers in a symmetrical pattern of blues and reds.

The pure seduction of fabric with its endless permutations of combinations and surface treatment comes to focus in works such as Janie Matthews' Strata, stitched, shibori pleated and devored fabric that invites scrutiny into the many layers that comprise this piece.  Sarah Pondevie takes a very different approach to layering in Life, which is a series of biographical panels.  The qualities of silk and linen that she exploits are crucial in adding richness to this personal work.  Wendy Lugg's Desert Veil suspended from the ceiling invites a view from all angles, as the layers of shibori-dyed and stitched ramie and silk create a translucency in the play of light and shadow.

While most of the work in this show draws on the materiality of fabric and colour, Leaps and Bounds by Jane Whiteley evokes memory of the 'childhood task of stepping on cracks in the pavements' (catalogue entry).  Two hand-stitched pieces of tea-dyed cotton gauze continue the theme about the memory of the body in textiles that she explores more extensively in her solo exhibition  'From Within' showing concurrently at the Moores Building in Fremantle.

The variety of techniques and experimentation in the show offset Margery Goodall's Windows on the World - View from Kosovo.  Here we come across a work that most closely resembles the traditional patchwork quilt.  Shifting patterns of coloured squares make this piece come alive in the time-honoured way that endows textiles with their unique quality.