A bold, bright and beautiful teacher bids her farewell.
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This month Jill Pettifer ends an multi-award-winning teaching career at Dickson College, having inspired generations of students to consider fashion, fabric, print, design and to question why they wear what they wear.
Jill started teaching at Dickson College in 2011 but has had a 40-year career in research and as an educator in Textiles/Fashion and Art. Initially she studied at the Strathfield School of Textiles, then Canberra School of Art. She lectured at Art School for 20 years as well as the Canberra Institute of Technology for 10 years and then the tug of Dickson College, where her four children were educated, lured her in.
“I have always sewn clothes for myself, family and friends. My neighbour gave me early and good advice—use Vogue patterns and buy the best fabric you can afford! Fabrics intrigue me – the structure, pattern and handle. I wanted to learn more—the fibre and all the processes involved in creating a fabric. This has led me on a lifelong passion for textiles and the decorative arts. I appreciate a good story behind the fabrics I use, it could be the type of natural fibre, the technology, origins, structure, design and properties.”
Never setting out to become a teacher, Jill said the profession had had its fair share of challenges.
“If I could summarise the biggest challenge, it would be the amount of time you have to spend on all the facets of teaching, it is always on your mind! But I have enjoyed teaching, the preparation, delivery and interaction with young people.”
And the highs have been constant.
“There are so many! I would say that seeing the students achieve the best they can, being excited about learning and discovery, and taking pride in their work as well as being happy are among the top.
Jill Pettifer, award-winning Dickson College teacher
“It is rewarding when current students say ‘I was thinking of you when I bought these wool gloves’, or ‘I looked at the label and country of origin’. Also, receiving postcards from past students saying ‘I went to this gallery because of you’ is wonderful. I would like to think I have had a positive influence on the future endeavours of students.”
She also works hard to expose students to a wide range of art and design through a variety of current and past mediums. “The feedback I get is that they had no idea that Textiles and Fashion was so diverse.”
Jill loves organising the odd excursion/workshop, organising several each year including places such as Megalo Print Studio, Canberra galleries and museums, Otto and Spike, Publisher Textiles, Walwa sheep station, and having acclaimed artists speak directly with students—among them Annie Trevillian, Patricia Piccinni, and eX de Medici.
There has also been work on community events with students helping with Design Canberra open studio events, Limelight, Alpaca fashion parade, Light rail cabinet artworks, and the Centenary Tapestry project.
“The fashion parade is always a highlight for the students: it’s a time for collaboration, problem-solving, being kind to each other and proudly showing off their creations to family, friends and the wider community.”
Jill said she it has been very rewarding to have supported her young charges over the years.
“It is wonderful to see the diverse vocations students have pursued, such as costume and set design, textile and fashion design, architecture, nursing, hairdressing, tattooing, dance and hospitality. There are also exciting opportunities through an AgCAREERSTART gap-year program, which enables participants to gain skills and knowledge on farms across Australia. One of the students is very excited to join a farm on the NSW coast next year.”
Dickson college student fabric and fashion designs
Jill has always emphasised is the concept of safety.
“We need to work safely and look after ourselves, others and the environment. I see safety in a very broad sense as ‘we eat, drink and wear plants and animals’, we need to look after all these elements.”
Not only a beloved mentor at her college, Jill has also risen to the top of her subject matter and won a number of awards.
She was awarded the Australia Wool4School teacher award for 2020 and 2021 for her delivery of the student wool4school design competition. She set the competition as a task and an opportunity for students to participate in a real-life design scenario working to a design brief.
This year she received a National Teacher Scholarship to attend the Australian Cotton Conference at the Gold Coast.
She is retiring not because she wants to slow down, but because she has so much she wants to do and she will continue to teach in a part-time and voluntary capacity.
Meanwhile her time will be freed up to include more time adventures with her family and friends, more gardening and more travel. She loves living in Ainslie, gets up early to ride to the pool for a swim and loves the challenge of ocean swimming.
Needless to say Jill hopes to focus on her own work printing, weaving and sewing, as she has piles of fabric to use up! If you’re interested in seeing Jill upcycling garments she made in the 1970’s, she’ll be giving textile product knowledge and design/dye/print workshops to community groups and tertiary institutions in her so-called “retirement”.
