Anna Perach is one of the lucky ones. She was hoping to get a studio space at Gasworks in Vauxhall for a while, and in 2021 one became free. “Studios are so hard to come by in London, and there are only five spaces here,” she tells me while making me a coffee in the Gasworks kitchen, where a large table is set for a lunch to welcome the new artists in residence. “But then I got a call that there was one available. I thought I was coming for an interview, but instead they showed me around and welcomed me straight away. I was beyond myself – it was a huge step up for me. For the first time, I had enough space for professional equipment and yarns so the space itself really pushed my practice forward. And it feels like family here.”

Her studio is spacious, with three big east-facing windows. On one side is a large tufting frame, a machine she bought when she moved into this larger space; the tufting gun she used to make her fabric pieces is dangling from it. Next to it, on the other wall, is a shelving unit full of coloured yarns, faced by the final result – one of Anna’s wearable sculptures. I sit on a chaise lounge in the corner, facing Anna at her desk, the sunlight streaming in. A large book lies open. Perach’s work has always been research heavy and I am curious about what she is currently reading.

Read the interview at Studio International