Norma Starszakowna's textiles deal with the complex relationships which link the past with the present. Oscillating between architectural installation, textile art and clothing, she focuses on the three dimensional surface qualities that can be achieved during the printing and dyeing process. The success of her experimental and innovative methods was recognised as early as 1977 when she received a Scottish Arts Council Award for research into new processes. Diasporas is the latest in a series of textile hangings which relate directly to the history and memories embedded in walls and buildings. Each piece is inscribed with fragments of graffiti and messages that are highly evocative and include subtle references to both universal truths and highly personal experiences. Born in Scotland, Starszakowna remembers as a child standing on her father's shoulders, pinning his political pamphlets high up on walls beyond the reach of human destruction. Starszakowna has been highly influential in both the development of textile art and in her role in higher education. She has played a pioneering role in informing important revolutions in printing and dyeing techniques and in redefining craft as a politicized endeavour.