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Canadian Tapestry Network Newsletter Summer 2009

Capturing all of the colours of the season in Woven Tapestry

 Editorial: Someone said to me recently that life is like a roll of toilet paper. The closer one gets to the end of the roll, the faster life seems to disappear. At sunrise each day, I strive to work on my current tapestry adventure to start the day, only to realize how quickly the time flies, while enjoying the weaving process so intently....These pesky time flies are becoming quite the nuisance!

Regardless, the summer months fill us all with so much wonderful colour, from which we can draw for our tapestry designing. Enjoy filling your sketchbooks with photos and drawings and comments of the moments in celebrating of this delightful time of the year. Continuing to enjoy the CTN membership submissions, both Barbara and I would like to thank everyone for staying in touch and sharing such interesting tapestry adventures.

Madeleine and Barbara

News from CTN Members

In Memoriam:

CTN Member, Maria Estela Serafini; Aug. 23, 1948 – Apr 2, 2009

 Maria Estela Serafini died on April 2, 2009, surrounded by her family in Westford, Massachusetts, after a battle with cancer. She was born in Cordoba, Argentina, and was married for almost 40 years to Eduardo Acosta. She is also survived by her two sons and two grandsons.

 Estela learned to weave tapestries at La Rueca, the studio of Gabriela Szamrey in Cordoba. She and Eduardo arrived in Massachusetts in 2001 to be closer to their grown sons, and she promptly joined TWiNE (Tapestry Weavers in New England).

At her first TWiNE meeting, Estela asked "What is this 'ends per inch?" She had learned to weave on a picture frame with tiny nails on the top and bottom and lots of fine cotton warps. Without any shedding mechanism, she was free to use various setts within the same tapestry, sometimes weaving over one under one, other times weaving over 3 under 3, thus achieving wonderful variations in texture using just a long tapestry needle. In a lovely musical reference, Estela called this "Changing the Rhythm".

Estela said that she wove with her gut; when a tapestry was finished she would be exhausted: her arms, her legs, even her HAIR felt tired. She approached every aspect of her life with complete devotion. We all remember her emails that said "I hug you with my heart," and there was never a doubt in any of our minds that she really meant it.

Estela‘s name suited her perfectly: she twinkled just like a star. Her energy and joy were infectious, irresistible. I asked TWiNE members to help me describe her, and Tamar Shadur wrote: "I don't think I saw Estela more than three or four times, but it seemed as if we'd known each other a whole life time because of her warmth, lovely smile, and giving personality."  Michelle Mancini summed up with this observation: "When I think of Estela my heart warms and I see her beautiful smile." We all miss her terribly, but in the middle of all this sadness, the memory of her smile will always lift our spirits. We were all so lucky to have known her.

Thanks Jan for writing about Estela CTN member, Janet Austin lives and weaves in E. Greenwich, Rhode Island

 There is an ATA webpage about her ATA award in 2004, with a nice photo of her tapestry "Unfinished Dream". www.americantapestryalliance.org/Members/NLv30n4/NLv30n4p20.html and you may also enjoy seeing her work at: http://www.americantapestryalliance.org/AP/ArtistBio/SerafiniE.html

  → For CTN member, Sue Pretty, on February 13th, "Textile Territory" opened at the Gallery at 100 Market Street in downtown Portsmouth. This exhibit continued until April 17th 2009 and included four floors of textile work. Sue had 32 pieces included in this exhibit - a combination of tapestry and paper weaving. Lisa Gray of Portsmouth, NH the other featured artist had over 30 textile pieces as well. Sue and Lisa were recent recipients of awards in textiles. Again congratulations Sue.

 Susanne Pretty "A Cup with a desert Landscape on a Snake  Tablecloth"  

The exhibit focused on fiber-related textile pieces, including felting, quilting, surface design on fabric, and painting of fiber. Here is a link to an excellent review in the Portsmouth Herald, dated February 12, 2009, (0600):

http://www.seacoastonline.com/articles/20090212-ENTERTAIN-902120324

Sue Pretty-Hamel lives and weaves at her home in Farmington, in New Hampshire, and can be reached at emporium@metrocast.net

→ CTN member, Barbara Burns is current enjoying her new exhibition "Portraits in Tapestry". Do visit her website:

www.Burns-studio.com

To view this exhibit up to June, 30 2009, visit Maine Fiberarts, 13 Main Street, Topsham, ME 04086. The Gallery hours are: Weekdays 10 – 4. For more information, phone the gallery at: (207) 721-0678, or visit: www.mainefiberarts.org  There will be a reception from 2:30 – 4 pm, Sunday, May 31st with a gallery presentation beginning at 1:30 pm. Congratulations!

Barbara Burns lives and weaves in Chestnut Ridge, NY and can be reached at: bburns174@gmail.com

→ Congratulations to CTN member, Ixchel Suarez

 Her talent and hard work has been be recognized by the Oakville (Ontario) Arts Council. Ixchel is a finalist in the visual arts category for "The Stars Among Us ‘09".

"What the Oakville Arts Council is hoping to achieve in holding this event is a celebration and showcase of our local talent (both emerging and established artists). We hope to foster the arts, while highlighting the excellence in: Literary Arts; Film, Photography and New Media; Performing Arts; and Visual Arts."

 Check out "The Stars Among Us" event at www.oakvillearts.com  We hope that you can join us on Thursday, June 11, 2009 at the Oakville Centre for the Performing Arts, to support your fellow artists and participate in the celebration of our local arts."

Ixchel Suarez "Arenal Volcano"    

  Ixchel Suarez "Nine Lives"

 Common Threads – World of Threads: Ixchel Suarez writes: "excellent news from the Common Thread ....more than 250 entries from around the world!!! 5 continents participate and the works are fantastic! Deadlines for Nine Lives and Guilded Threads are still to come May 30. We have confirmed 12 venues for the exhibits around the Town." (see calendar section or go to www.worldofthreadsfestival.com) and please visit Ixchel at: www.ixchelsuarez.com

→ Vladimira Fillion’s new tapestry “Catherine de Medicis”

The last day of the year 2008 I purchase from Madeleine Darling-Tung a small portable tapestry loom for weaving. She was so nice and she sold me the loom ready warped with Swedish warp sett @ 10 epi. I had in mind to use this small lovely loom for trying different techniques before I try to weave them on bigger tapestry. So I got the idea to learn to weave my first face. I have in my album from a trip in France, a lot of beautiful postcards from visiting different chateau and castles. So I selected the portrait of Catherine de Médicis, the queen consort of King Henry II of France from 1547 to 1559. I enlarged her face to the size of my loom. This was my pattern. I placed an enlarged postcard behind the warp on the loom and I started weaving. The colors after enlargement were little different, so original postcard was my main reference. I found that 10 epi was not enough, so I put some more warps on the loom and started weaving. Some of the material I had at home, but I took Catherine with me for a big shopping spree in local embroidery shops. The picture was constantly with me – you never know, where you will find something that will be great for your project. During the whole month when I was weaving Catherine, I did not think about anything else. Sure, I was working, doing my duties at home, etc., but my mind and nights were with Catherine. My husband and my son were checking her every day. Some new lines were woven in and the next day, taken out and redone again. I can tell that my family and my dogs lived with this small tapestry. And after one month the project was finish. I had the tapestry framed in Janell‘s small Framing Studio in Surrey, and they did wonderful job. I brought Catherine to a professional photographer for some nice photos. When everything was finished, I felt sad – like something nice was gone forever. The empty small tapestry loom had nothing on it, as it sat on the craft table - something was missing in our living room and in my life. I felt, that I could not start weaving other tapestry right away as my mind was still with Catherine, and my eyes full of the colors of her face. So I start catching up with my beginner spinning, I placed in the living room another loom and started my learning to weave using Salish weaving techniques. Different loom - different technique – twining using a thick weft, and counting the warp for a geometric design. This was my antidote to clear from my mind, Catherine. Today my Salish wall hanging is just finished and I‘m fine. I can go ahead with other tapestry project. I am again in the colors, pattern and my mind is full with a new project.

Tapestry -"Catherine de Medicis", 9 x 7; Warp: Swedish cotton warp, 14 epi.; Weft: Persian yarn, bamboo yarn, crochet cotton, embroidery thread: cotton, linen, rayon, silk, synthetic threads.

 New CTN member, Vladimira Fillion Wackenreuther, lives and weaves in Surrey, BC, and can be reached at vladimiragrooming@gmail.com

→ Enjoying the tapestries of CTN Member, Judith Friswell, who lives and weaves in Nipawin, SK

She writes: "I developed an abiding interest in the arts and crafts during my school years in England, but it wasn‘t until 1967 and a move to Saskatchewan from Ontario that I began to do more with this interest. CTN Newsletter, Summer, 2009 Page 6 I started painting in oils and branched out into silkscreen printing in 1969, weaving in 1975 and watercolours in 1976. Photography has also long been an interest.

 I enjoy capturing the essence of the Saskatchewan landscape in my weavings and paintings, and am also interested in geometric designs in Navajo weaving. Even though I am basically self-taught, I have, over the years taken courses in basket weaving, copper work, woodwork, pottery, silkscreen printing, photography and watercolour. My endeavours have been influenced and supported by my husband Bryan, who also shares an interest in the arts.

I began weaving in Estevan, where the resident artist Pam Perry taught a beginners‘ class in this craft. From there I went on to learn various weaving techniques from books and articles. In 1980, I attended a four-harness weaving course in Regina under Peggy Pitfield but have not yet acquired a loom to allow me to use this knowledge. I do all of my weaving on tapestry and Navajo looms that were made for me by my husband.

 I have had two one-woman shows in Estevan, the first, a mixed media show in 1973, and the second, a weaving show in 1982. My works have also been shown in various exhibitions, including the Handcraft Festival in Battleford and Mendel Gallery in Saskatoon.

Since moving to Nipawin in 1983, I‘ve had several of my weavings selected to hang in the Little Gallery in Prince Albert during their Winter Festival, and have won several awards in that juried event.

From 1986 – 88, twelve of my weavings toured the Province in an OSAC-sponsored two-person show which also featured the works of Saskatchewan weaver Pat Anderson.

I have also had three one-woman weaving exhibits in the Nipawin Art Gallery, once in September of 1996, in June 2001 and again in November 2006.

 Two of my weavings toured the Province with the OSAC show ―Informing the Image‖ in 2004 and 2005.

For tapestry weavings, I usually use photos from my collection. After making my choice, I draw out a cartoon on Bristol board, the size of the finished work and outline the general idea for the piece. At this time, I make some choices as to the yarns I might need to get the effect that I have in mind. I use yarn with some texture to depict the landscape as I see it, and sometimes I dye white wool for the completely blue skies.

All yarn ends are sewn back down the warp threads as the weaving progresses. After the piece is taken off the loom, the warp threads are all sewn back down the adjacent warp thread. Weavings woven on the Navajo loom have rolled selvedges to stabilize the pieces. Depending on the way the piece flows, it can also be woven on its side.

After the piece is finished, I sew a length of narrow lace along the seam line to protect the piece from stretching when it is attached to the frame / stretcher. These frames and looms are all made by my husband Bryan."  

 "Lilies" by Judith

  Bluebell Woods in England" by Judith

You can reach Judith at: (306) 862-9785 

 → CTN member, Deborah Hickman, who is now teaching at Pangnirtung, has written to tell us about ―Combs of Our Ancestors‖ at the Museum of Inuit Art Queen‘s Quay West, Toronto, April 4 - June 10, 2009

Deborah writes: A significant new tapestry created by the weavers at the Pangnirtung Tapestry Studio on Baffin Island in Nunavut is currently on display in Toronto. It is significant in that it heralds in a whole new approach to tapestry creation by the tapestry artists of this small northern community. In addition to working with the talented artists of their home community they are inviting Inuit artists from all over Canada to collaborate with them to design for tapestry.

 Collaboration on tapestry design is not entirely new to the weavers. Geela Keenainak, Igah Etuangat, Anna Etuangat and Kawtysee Kakee have been working on individual Leclerc fabric looms for many years, creating tapestries based on drawings provided by artists in their community which they interpret into tapestry. These narrative limited edition tapestries, focusing on Inuit culture and stories have delighted visitors to Pangnirtung and to the galleries in which they are exhibited for over three decades.

The weavers have desired for some time to return to weaving on the 12 foot wide Shannock loom purchased in 1990, something they have not been able to do for several years due to lack of commissions. Working side by side to clean and sew skins into tents and clothing has been the way of Inuit women for thousands of years. The weavers found they much preferred working together in a similar fashion to create large tapestries. Four commissioned tapestries were made over the years on the Shannock loom, the largest being a 22‘ wide x 10‘ high landscape which hangs in the lobby of the Legislative Assembly in Iqaluit, a gift from the Uqqurmiut Centre in Pangnirtung to the people of Nunavut.

With no commissions on the horizon, as the Interim Studio Manager and Arts Advisor I planned a ‗promotional tapestry‘ which would tour galleries and other venues, stirring up interest in unique commissioned tapestries. ‗Interweave -Katujiqatigiit Nuviqsaningmut‘ was funded by the Canada Council for the Arts through the Aboriginal People‘s Collective Exchange program. We invited Inuit artist Germaine Arnaktauyok living in Yellowknife to spend two weeks in the Studio. Learning about tapestry and its specific qualities and construction was an important piece in the collaborative process resulting in a design entirely different from the Studio‘s usual work.

The exhibition "Combs of Our Ancestors" is a one tapestry exhibition curated by Ingo Hessel, the resident curator of the Museum of Inuit Art. The exhibition tells the story of the tapestry‘s creation through a ―working wall‖ with photographs, quotations and the materials used in the design and creation. The framed original drawing and the seven and a half foot wide by five foot high tapestry create an impact in the small but intimate space within the museum. The original drawing features three combs from the Thule people, ancestors of present day Inuit. In the tapestry the combs take on a monumental presence, in stark contrast to the serendipitous presence of the three tiny Thule combs on display in the museum‘s collection.  Deborah Hickman can be reached at: pang_tapestries@qiniq.com

Pangnirtung Tapestry Studio under direction of Deborah Hickman and "Combs of Our Ancestors"

→ Barbara Heller has just had a new exhibit at the Elliott Louis Gallery in Vancouver – Visit the website to see images and read her husband‘s poetry: gallery@elliottlouis.com

Personal Statement : Contemporary ideas can be conveyed through an ancient art form and gain a wider audience because of the seductive power of the woven surface. Tapestry is seemingly innocuous in its association with home, and conservative in its association with royalty, but it can carry a subversive message to those who take the time to look beneath the surface. Good art must be passionate. It must engage the viewer on many levels, conscious and unconscious, formal and emotional. I want to create an atmosphere of fruitful ambiguity—answers stop people from further thought and I want people to feel and to think when they view my tapestries… and then, perhaps, to go home and act.

Barbara Heller "Bokhara Algorithm" and "Kilim Algorithm"

The Future Reliquary Series deals with three apparently separate but, in my mind, connected histories: weaving, computing, and religion. Weaving is a binary system of up/ down, just as computing is a binary system of on/off. The first computer was a jacquard loom complete with punch cards instructing the loom to raise or lower warp threads depending on the position of the holes in the cards. The most intricate and expensive brocades could be woven cheaper and faster by machine following a binary code. Weaving was now one step removed from the human hand. Today‘s computers are merely fast jacquard looms programmed in binary code to do other tasks and thinking is now one step removed from the human mind.

Religion is not only a store of faith, it is a store of history and social values. In the middle ages, the sale of shards of the bones of saints and pieces of the True Cross became a large commercial enterprise. These holy relics were housed in beautifully sculpted metal reliquaries and displayed in churches to be worshipped as the concrete symbols of faith and history. I am particularly fascinated by the reliquaries that hold the arm bones of saints, shaped like a hand and arm, usually in gold and often encrusted with jewels.

Today, we are creating a new religion, worshipping the technology we have created. Some years ago, I bought a new computer and wanted to recycle the old one, not just throw it in the garbage. Recycling depots for e-waste were not yet in existence, so I took the computer apart to at least recycle the plastic shell. What treasures were revealed within! I took apart a keyboard. I took apart a radio, then a mobile phone, a CD player. I saved the innards, the future relics of the saints of the connected society.

These tapestries depict the future holy status of today‘s e-junk in the context of the ancient fabrics that gave birth to the binary system. In these tapestries, one code of up/down (weaving) morphs into the other code of on/ off (computing). The pattern of the mother board or silicon chip morphs into the pattern of a traditional ethnic textile—contemporary computer parts as the concrete symbols of the birth of a religion. And the slits in the woven arm as the receptacles connecting the computer tower to the outer world.

Ethnic textiles are still woven all over the world by hand. No machines intervene as the weavers record their personal stories, their faith, and their culture in the patterned cloth. Complex stories are told in simple binary form.

CTN member, co-editor, and treasurer, Barbara Heller lives and weaves in Vancouver, BC and can be reached at: bheller@telus.net

 CTN member, Monique Lehman had two works in the Beijing Fiberart Biennale

Monique writes: "There were over 300 fiber works at the Beijing Fiberart Biennale exhibition. The artworks were hanging in two huge exhibit spaces on two levels at the University of Tsinghua. Lin Lecheng was the most important professor on the organizing committee. His energy and enthusiasm for international fiberart was incredible. He had a few assistants and a beautiful translator who followed him everywhere. Each artist had an opportunity to talk with Lin for few minutes during the dinner reception.            

All the artists where picked up at the airport and there was always someone to assist us and to translate for us English-speakers. We received VIP treatment from the Chinese artists.

The entry fee was $300 which included the catalog and return shipment of the artwork from the exhibit to the artist. Also included were 2 nights in a hotel located near all the embassies, almost all the meals, guided excursions to Olympic sites and the Summer Palace, an incredible banquet where I had a chance to sit next to the organizer of the Olympics and Beijing‘s main art curator. The entry fee also covered the seminar where we politely listened to bad translations.

Last year I had no time to weave anything spectacular but I did receive one of many honorable mentions. Lia Cook received first prize for a jacquard tapestry. The next Biennale will be in 2010 and I encourage everyone to participate.

Go to this website for more information to watch a video in English; http://www.china.org.cn/video/2008-11/28/content_16866492.htm

Monique and her tapestries "Earth" and "Blood donor"

 Monique Lehman lives and weaves in Pasadena, CA and can be reached at: lehman@artcenter.edu

 → Sola is back in Vancouver and about to embark on another large tapestry project which we will be privileged to watch as it is woven. To read about her last project and see the images, go to www.trifectagallery.com and click on Sola‘s name half way down on the left.

The Las Vegas Tapestry is currently for sale and on view at Atlantic Aviation, 275 E Tropicana, Suite 100, lobby, (terminal at the far SW corner of McCarran Airport across from the MGM). Read Kristen Petersons A&E feature about Sola http://www.lasvegassun.com/news/2009/apr/23/her-tapestry-saga-no-yarn/

The website has several photos and good detail shots of this amazing undertaking. To quote from the website: "This entire 7 x 11 foot tapestry is woven from recycled sweaters, unraveled. Sola worked in almost complete seclusion for 8000 hours over three years in a tiny almost empty apartment near the Hard Rock Hotel in Las Vegas. She is 72 years old, a former concert promoter, beauty queen and is quite eccentric, though very stable in her eccentricities. May 1 she will be on her way to Vancouver to begin an Olympic Tapestry for the winter games." There are more good photos at: http://www.lasvegassun.com/photos/galleries/2009/apr/22/solas-tapestry/

 → CTN member, Murray Gibson has been involved teaching tapestry at L‘Arche while he is a professor in the department of Art at St Francis Xavier University, Antigonish, Nova Scotia - (reprinted with the permission of StFX Communications: Tapestry in the community- StFX, L‘Arche, Service Learning partner in crafting Noah‘s Ark, building friendships)

Twelve pieces of tapestry, woven with love and care, hung proudly in a place of honour on a wall in L‘Arche Abelard House on West Street. On Jan. 9, dozens of people were visibly moved by the heart warming stories and power in each piece of art…

 Murray Gibson and student frm L'arche in front of Noah's tapestries

"Joining and sharing are key components of what we have accomplished over the last few months,‖ agreed Murray Gibson, who in September initiated an unique pilot project in his StFX weaving studio. Through Service Learning, students in his Art 222 class, partnered with members of the L‘Arche Horizons and Cornerstone programs to create a multi-part tapestry of Noah‘s Ark to hang in L‘Arche‘s Abelard house. The focus of the course was ‗tapestry in the community‘ and he says it was created to provide an enjoyable and meaningful learning experience. Students and L‘Arche core members, like Parnell Davis MacNevin and Tommy Landry, found they were weaving friendship as much as art through the term."

"I like coming every Wednesday and learning how to do different things, " says L‘Arche core member Miriam MacDonald. "It takes the university to a whole other level," says student Olivia Giuliani of Ottawa, ON who spoke of her time with L‘Arche core member Mark Bowie as life altering. "It‘s not just a class. It makes me rethink how I live…Everybody gets so busy that you don‘t go out of your way to make those connections, but this is part of your course."

 At the beginning of the term, StFX students were each partnered with a member of L‘Arche. Then each group set about making coasters together. For the larger project, L‘Arche members each chose an animal and wool colours for the Ark, and based on this inspiration, the student partners wove the tapestry. Mr. Gibson and his class created 12 individual tapestries, including a macaw, camel, dolphin, giraffe, dove, cat and of course Noah‘s Ark – creations that saw as much as 40 hours of weaving work each. The project will be continued with 12 more tapestries this term when the course is repeated in the second term…

Two separate groups of people came together to produce this beautiful work of art. "Art can be a bridge," Gibson said, "and it was almost a literal bridge that brought us to Abelard House and L‘Arche over to the StFX campus. It‘s been a great privilege to be welcomed into your community." The StFX students gave generously of their knowledge, skills and talents in the act of creating, and then in giving it away, he said. They have also taken away gifts learned from their L‘Arche friends of compassion, understanding, respect and responsibility. "You have opened up more new thinking for us, there‘s so much we can learn about ourselves and our capabilities, and we‘re grateful for our growing friendship," Leuschner said.

 Student frm Saint Francis Xavier and student from L'arche at the loom 

Murray Gibson lives and weaves in Antigonish, NS and can be reached at: gibsonm@eastlink.ca To see Murray‘s tapestries visit: http://people.stfx.ca/mgibson/index.html

→ “Sin Maiz No Hay Pais”, ( Without corn there is no country):

 Every January/February for the past seven years tapestry weavers have been attending a retreat at Jean Pierre Larochette‘s and Yael Lurie‘s studio in El Tuito, Mexico. In 2008, the subject of the retreat was corn. The students were each given a cob of corn to photograph, draw and eventually weave a tapestry from. Why corn? According to information posted at the Museum of Anthropology in Mexico City, "Maize is the foundation of rural life and therefore of the culture of Mexicans, as an axis of the productive economy, as an organizer of time and space, as an essential and irreplaceable element in cooking, as a raw material in many crafts and finally as the center and guide for knowledge accumulated over millennia that is constantly enriched." We learned the Monsanto has plans to bring their genetically modified corn seeds into Mexico. There were many protests in Mexico City. As tapestry weavers we felt we could help bring awareness of this concern to the outside world as well as supporting the Mexican people. As time went on, the group became known as the corn maidens. For the past year, students from the retreat wove small format tapestries to be exhibited in Puerto Vallarta at the Naval Museo in February 2009. On the first day of the retreat the tapestries were unveiled. Four tapestry weavers from California: Jackie Wollenberg, Sonja Miremont, Elaine Todd-Stevens and Victoria Stone; two from Canada: Christine Rivers and Elaine Duncan; one from Mexico: Gabriel Canales and of course, Jean Pierre Larochette wove corn tapestries. Ann Dumper from Canada could not attend this year due to an injury, but she wove a tapestry as well. The show was well received as locals, tourists, friends and family came to view the tapestries. Because of the positive response to the show, the weavers are weaving more tapestries and it is hoped that the show will travel to California and Oaxaca in Mexico during 2009 and 2010.

"Sin Maiz No Hay Pais" - tapestries by Elaine Duncan

Submitted by CTN member, Elaine Duncan who lives and weaves in Errington, BC, and can be reached at: elaine@elaineduncan.com

→ CTN member, Jan Austin has some thoughts on using photographs in designing a tapestry in response to a question on the e-mail tapestry list:

"When using a photograph as a design basis I am unsure what to do with the white spots of light reflection or sunlight. If I incorporate them into the tapestry they somehow end up looking like unrelated white spots. Is it better to remove all the photographic highlights due to the lighting and just use color shading to make contours?"

 This is indeed a dilemma. First of all, despite the fact that these bright spots of light appear white in the photograph, they probably aren't. If you are weaving ocean water and it has "white" spots, you could try weaving them with a thread of the blue from the water mixed with the white. (or if you are using 4 strands, maybe use 2 white and 2 of the water colors).

 The fact is that it's a lot harder than you would think to weave a tapestry from a photograph. The camera does not "see" the same way as our eyes, so it makes its own interpretation. I think that photographs are very useful for designing tapestries, but I don't usually use the actual photograph as a cartoon. I've been thinking about how to use photographs in a very loose way. One way to do that is to make color copies of the photo until the image begins to break down and soften a bit. If you make a line drawing cartoon by tracing the photograph, then you might feel more comfortable using the photo as a rough guide instead of trying to copy it exactly.

When I was in grad school, painting from photographs was completely FORBIDDEN. We were expected to paint only from direct observation so that we could carefully observe the actual colors and the depth of the subject. Of course this can be very impractical, as it's tough painting outside in the snow! And some subjects just refuse to sit still.

The camera alters both color and depth so sometimes paintings from photos come out looking strangely flat. I'm sure there are lots of painters and tapestry weavers who successfully interpret photo. It's just something I have not quite figured out yet.                                Jan Austin can be reached at: nitsuanaj@verizon.net

Handspun Yarns for Tapestry Weaving: Textural Effects by Deborah Behm

One of the intriguing aspects of tapestry weaving is the potential for exploring texture. Not only does work in yarn provide texture by its very nature, the choices in yarns and the variety of techniques available to the weaver give the medium a range which many other artistic media cannot easily achieve. Texture can be implied through the use of images, light shifts, value changes and hue. Importantly for me, texture is inherent in the physical structure of the weaving. This article will discuss textural possibilities in tapestry and some ways to explore them using handspun yarns.

The simple act of using yarn, any yarn, gives tapestry a surface texture unlike that found in other media. No matter how smooth a yarn we use, yarn has a surface haze which is activated by the abrasive action of weaving under and over warp threads. (To demonstrate this, bend a piece of yarn over your fingers and examine the yarn surface closely. Even the smoothest synthetic cord will have fibres projecting from the yarn.) Knowing this, we can select spinning fibres to produce yarns which will increase or decrease the physical texture of our weaving. Because they are not factory processed, handspun yarns tend to retain the properties of the fibres from which they are spun and will display a wide range of elasticity, twist variation, coarseness, sheen and so on. When selecting fibres and handspun yarns for weaving, it is well worth sampling yarns in a tapestry in order to understand how they will interact with the warp threads and with each other. The Striped Sample shown was woven with a variety of wool and mohair singles weft on a commercial singles wool warp. The differences among fibres, including surface appearance, weaving pack down and warp coverage can be seen from stripe to stripe. From this sample, we can see that using a Churro wool roving with its strong tendency to display kemp will give a tapestry a very different look than if we wove the same piece using adult mohair or Lincoln fleece.

Properly spun tapestry yarns begin with fibre selection and a consideration of preparation techniques. Suppose the weaver wishes to minimize the halo effects of the yarn in her tapestry, emphasizing her images instead. To this end, she may choose to spin from wool with a longer staple length, combing it rather than carding it and spinning with a short, smoothing draw and tight twist. This would provide her with a weft more likely to enhance pictorial details than would a carded, low twist, long draw yarn in a fibre such as mohair or angora. When spinning for her piece, she may also select a single fibre type rather than mixing wools with other fibres, since surface texture is generally more consistent when one smooth yarn is used throughout a tapestry. On the other hand, if the primary focus of the piece is texture, the spinner may select handspun fibres and preparations which inherently produce more textured yarns. She may also choose to mix fibres in order to dramatize changes in surface texture, or she may decide to do both.

In "Mickey," I used a carded preparation of English Angora rabbit wool spun with a semi-long draw in order to highlight the softness and length of the cat‘s fur. The delicate nature of angora yarn and its strong tendency to halo would have overwhelmed this small weaving had I used angora for the entire piece. By combining it with smoother wools and alpaca, I was able to bring out important elements of the image while still providing some crisp details and a variety of contrasts in value and texture.

In "Meditation," texture is the main focus. For this piece, I spun 2-ply yarn from a prepared roving of California Red wool (an extremely rough, hairy wool, with a high kemp content). I combined this yarn with other, smoother wools such as Romney, Lincoln, Texel, Shetland and Borderdale for contrast. Adult mohair top and llama were added to the yarn mix. These yarns are not quite as kempy as the California Red and their use helped prevent the hairiness of the California Red from overwhelming the tapestry while providing textural interest of their own.

Other fibres will produce interesting surface effects because of their physical properties and the way in which they are spun. Spun from tow (the shorter waste fibres left behind from the preparation of line flax), flax yarn will tend to be rough, fairly matte, but still have more light reflective qualities when compared to carded, woollen spun wool yarns. Spun from a strick, line flax will produce a much smoother, stiffer yarn which can help to emphasize the qualities of light in tapestry images and allow more detail in these images than would a heavily textured yarn.

Cotton, a cellulose fibre commonly used in tapestry warps, is not used as frequently for weft, especially by handspinners. Its lack of memory and the fact that its short staple length give it low resistance to abrasion make it a difficult handspun fibre to use unless it is tightly spun and plied; however, judicious use of a well-spun cotton yarn highlighting its matte surface (cotton preparations for handspinners are rarely mercerized) in a tapestry, combined with wools and other protein fibres can produce lovely contrasts in surface textures. A well-spun, multiple ply cotton yarn can also be used to give crisp detail in tapestry weaving.

Although its qualities of light reflection, surface sheen and beauty are incomparable, the use of silk in tapestry should be carefully considered. Silk, especially dyed silks and particularly with naturally dyed and mordanted silk yarns, are notoriously prone to light damage. Silk yarns, no matter how well spun, tend to disintegrate with time, so I usually weave silk as a carry-along thread in combination with wool and mohair, to provide chromatic highlights or, in the case of silk noil, textural contrasts to smoother yarns. I spin silk with high twist and I nearly always ply my yarns. Silk is extremely strong, but as a low twist singles, it does not withstand abrasion well and its light-reflecting properties are subdued.

Ongoing research indicates that other, man-made fibres such as rayon (and its variants like tencel) are more lightfast than silk. From an historical perspective, these are relatively new fibres so I use them where nothing else will provide the sheen and lustre my tapestry requires.

Recently, new fibres are being introduced or reintroduced to the handspinning market. These include bamboo (an "old" fibre now reintroduced in a variety of forms), seacell derived from seaweed, soy (a fibre now released for many markets after decades of experimentation), ingeo from corn and latte fibres derived from milk-based by-products. Most of these fibres are produced using extensive extruded chemical processes, making them similar to rayon. Current versions of these fibres are primarily intended for the clothing, accessory and home apparel markets. The fibre preparations I am able to purchase now have a hand and appearance which I don‘t find conducive to tapestry use (for example, seacell by itself is very stiff and somewhat sticky, although its hand improves considerably when combined with wool), although, as new sources are constantly appearing, these other fibres have potential for their surface appearance and light refraction. Bamboo and its companion fibre, ramie, derived from a Chinese seagrass, have properties similar to line flax in their tensile strength, smoothness and sheen. In some cases, bamboo and ramie top rivals silk in lustre without its sensitivity to light. In general, more experimentation with these fibres is needed before their usefulness and durability in tapestry weaving can be determined. Textural effects using handspun yarns can also be provided by the way in which the yarn is spun. I find this to be one of the most interesting aspects of using handspun yarns in tapestry. The range of yarns available to a handspinner is limited only by her imagination. She can spin fine, medium or heavy singles from the fleece, from carded or combed preparations, using woollen or worsted techniques. She can use these singles alone, combine them in weft bundles, ply or cable them. Her yarns can be smooth and slick. Cabled yarns (for example, 2 Z-spun, S-plied yarns, plied together Z) are more rounded than comparable conventionally plied yarns of the same grist and tend to give a smoother, more regular surface to a tapestry. At the other end of the texture scale, the spinner can spin boucles and other designer yarns to emphasize dramatic surface effects in her weaving.

Combining smooth, fine yarns with heavier textured yarns in tapestry will produce both actual surface texture and implied textural depth. In "Meditation," the smaller, pod-like structures are woven with smooth, fine, tightly twisted 2-ply alpaca yarns spun from commercial tops at a sett of 12 epi, while the rest of the piece is woven at 6 epi (cotton warp doubled), using heavier 2, 3 and Navajo- plied yarns spun from carded rovings. The differences in yarns combined with the changes in sett caused the pods to physically recede in the tapestry. They are literally pushed back by the heavier structure of the yarns around them, similar to honeycomb effects in loom weaving. In terms of figure and ground, the dark pod areas at the bottom of the piece appear to come forward more than the lighter pod areas at middle ground, implying shifts in perspective as well as shifts in texture. (At least, this is what I was attempting in this piece!) Because a handspinner has so many possibilities available to her, she is able to produce these effects more easily and exactly to her tastes than if she relied solely on the commercial yarns currently on the market. Her yarns will highlight tapestry texture by their very nature.

Tapestry weavers who work with handspun yarns, especially yarns which display strong inconsistencies within the yarn structure as in designer yarns, must be aware that these yarns tend to emphasize irregularities in warp tension and beat. Combining yarn weights, particularly in conjunction with textural weaving techniques such as eccentric weft placement, may distort the weaving considerably. The weaver who wishes to control these factors should actively control her weft placement at all times, using bubbling or arcing appropriate to the yarn type and weight and being aware of her beat. Problems should be corrected as soon as they begin. The weaver will likely have more "hills and valleys" in her tapestry. Frequent use of filler wefts and building the tapestry in sections rather than working straight across the piece will help minimize these effects.

Of course, the handspinner can choose to explore and emphasize textural techniques in her weaving. For example, traditional techniques such as pick and pick, hatching and hachure can be dramatized by the contrast of a tightly spun, smooth, lustrous yarn against a rougher yarn with a flat finish. When she moves into weaving techniques which are in themselves textural–soumak, knotting, outline, wrapping, wedge weaving and eccentric weft placement–handspun yarns will enhance those techniques. In "Meditation," I used a bulky yarn spun directly from Texel wool fleece and then wove 2 small sections of soumak stitch near the top of the tapestry. The textural effect here is very strong–those small sections come forward and read as cloud-like formations. Where I needed more emphasis between foreground and background or in areas of close value, I wove in outline stitch in smoother yarns as I built up a section in the tapestry. Since these stitches are so prominent, it is easy to overuse them, especially when they are worked in heavier handspun yarns, so I use these techniques sparingly.

Because they are controlled by an individual handspinner rather than spun to factory standards, handspun yarns are especially pliable in surface treatments used after a tapestry is woven and finished. My Striped Sample was brushed after the piece was washed and blocked. The textural difference between the brushed and unbrushed sides of the tapestry are apparent. The effects in this sample helped me decide which areas to brush in "Meditation." Sections woven with the California Red yarn were brushed with a cat brush to draw kemp hairs to the surface, while the lighter top segment was left unbrushed. One needs to proceed carefully here, since the effects of brushing and other surface treatments are permanent. Test a small area on a sample piece or on the back of the tapestry proper, then work slowly, stopping to examine the effects as you go.

Using handspun yarn in one‘s tapestry weaving will not automatically produce more effective work; however, through knowledge of her fibres, an understanding of the way her yarns are spun and through much exploration of their use in weaving, the handspinner can expand and combine the potential of her craft with the art form of  tapestry. No matter how perfectly spun, a handspinner‘s yarns will always show evidence of "the maker‘s hand." Those yarns can become an expressive, cohesive, essential component of the tapestry itself.

 CTN member, Deborah Behn lives and weaves in Regina, SK and can be reached at: deb.b@sasktel.net

News Items from the American Tapestry Alliance:

• ATA Educational Article - "Glossary of Tapestry Terms" Jan Austin, tapestry artist, has put together a list of tapestry terms from various sources. Feel free to use this as a resource to build on. You can contribute your terms by sending them to Mary Lane marylane53@mac.com and we will update the page. www.americantapestryalliance.org/Education/Ed_Ar/Glossary.html

• Connections Catalog - Order Form: ATA produced a catalog for the Connections: Small Tapestry International Exhibition and it is now available to order! We have a separate form for ordering it from our catalogs page. www.americantapestryalliance.org/NandR/Catalogs.html

• ATA Award for Excellence in Tapestry - Margaret Swanson

The first award in 2009 for Excellence in Tapestry went to Margaret Swanson in March for her tapestry "Red Sails in the Sunset" exhibited at the Southern California Handweavers Biennial Conference. Congratulations! www.americantapestryalliance.org/NandR/ATAawards/ATAaward09Swanson.html

• American Tapestry Biennial Eight - ATB8 Entry Form: New plans for our next Biennial! ATB8 Call for entries for exhibition venues in 2010 can be downloaded from its main page. www.americantapestryalliance.org/Exhibitions/ATBs/ATB8/ATB8.html

• ATA Web Gallery Exhibition – LAND: If you haven't viewed this exhibition yet, you should check it now! Six gallery pages of images from the LAND exhibition held last year in conjunction with the Tapestry 2008 conference event. If you didn't have the good fortune of traveling to Australia at that time then your luck improves because here is the exhibition you otherwise might have missed! www.americantapestryalliance.org/Exhibitions/Land/Welcome.html

• ATA Website - Tapestry Topics Online v35 n1: "Sustaining Creativity" - the latest edition of Tapestry Topics – has color images online for your enjoyment: www.americantapestryalliance.org/Members/NLv35n1/NLv35n1.html

Sonja Miremont on Tapestry Mounting Techniques

By Mimi Heft, and printed in the TWW Newsletter

The March meeting took place on the 21st at Sonja Miremont‘s home in Petaluma, [CA] situated where this charming small city transitions to bucolic farmlands. Sonja presented various methods of mounting tapestries and other textiles, with an emphasis on preservation of the works as much as on displaying them. Working with her husband, who specializes in acrylic manufacturing, Sonja has a variety of options, depending on the delicacy of the piece, aesthetics, etc. Acrylic, of which Plexiglas is one familiar brand name, is superior to glass in that it is much lighter, thus safer in earthquake country: it is less likely to come off the wall, and if it does fall, is less likely to break and damage the piece. Like glass, fine art-framing quality acrylic is available with UV protection; also available in a non-glare finish that is nearly invisible (although this can get pricey). The two drawbacks to acrylic are that it easily scratches, and it will develop unsightly milky streaks if cleaned with water — problems avoided by hanging the work in a low-traffic area, keeping it well protected during transport, and using an approved acrylic cleaner such as Brilliantine spray.

…Box Frame Mount The acrylic box protects three-dimensional textiles; in this example, an antique, pleated and Pressure Mount The textile is sandwiched between the backing board and acrylic face, held in place by friction. This method is especially god for pieces with frayed/damaged areas, or irregular shapes that would be difficult to hold in position.

Acrylic Bar Mount Mounted to the wall with screws is an acrylic bar that has affixed to it the hook side of wide Velcro tape. The soft, loop side of the Velcro is stitched onto a piece of wide bias tape/other such cloth that is in turn carefully stitched the back of the piece along the top, away from the edges so it doesn‘t show. The tapestry sticks to the bar, easy-peasy, and completely hides the mount. Sonja also uses a very long bar mount that handsomely displays her sampler/test weavings.

Retablo-Style Mounts A good method for any small piece, it is sewn to a backing board of acrylic or wood cut to the piece‘s size and shape (or slightly larger, if using it to frame the piece), and to which a wood block is affixed (with screws). The wood block has felt on it to prevent damage to the wall, plus one or two eyelets for hanging; the backing board has holes drilled around the edges for the thread to pass though. The tapestry is sewn on through the board; if hiding the board, the warp fringe is pulled over to the back of the board and stitched down in clusters. The block pushes the piece away from the wall for an appealing, floating effect.

Cloth-Wrapped Board Mount A popular and easily produced method for small works, the tapestry is stitched to an acid-free, archival backing board wrapped tightly in cloth (preferably lightfast). In some cases the tapestry is first wrapped onto a foam-core backing, which is then attached to the cloth-wrapped backing board. The board is then finished on the back with another piece of cloth and a wire loop or cord for hanging. Other Mounts You can be as creative as you like, provided the material is neutral so as not to damage your piece. One example is a very dimensional weaving that Sonja mounted onto a substantial, rough-hewn piece of wood; the rustic look of the wood enhances the organic textures in the piece.

Discrepancy between wealth created and wealth earned widens for visual artists

Ottawa, February 4, 2008/ -- Recently released statistics from Hill Strategies http://www.hillstrategies.com/ shows that the discrepancy between the wealth created and the wealth earned by visual artists has widened. While the cultural sector contributes more than $46 billion to the Canadian economy, visual artists earned an average of $13,976 in 2005. This is down from $20,936, in 2000, and $6,824 below the Statistics Canada low-income cutoff. Breaking the numbers down gives an even bleaker picture. The median, or typical, earnings for a visual artist is less than $8,000 placing them in a position of extreme low-income. CARFAC has discovered that even Governor General Award winning artists find it difficult if not impossible to make a living from their art. Some have incomes that fall significantly below the national average and others work full time jobs to subsidize their practice.

*Artists create wealth -- but not for themselves*

Artists create value in the communities they inhabit, both in economic and social terms. The presence of artists in a neighbourhood attracts skilled workers and increases property values as has been seen on Queen West in Toronto and Vancouver's East Side where condo developments threaten to displace artists' studios. A recent study by the Conference Board of Canada shows that the direct impact of the cultural sector in 2007 was $46 billion and the indirect impact was $84.6 billion or 7.4 percent of GDP.

The Conference Board study also listed several social benefits of participation in the arts such as personal development, social cohesion, community empowerment, local image and identity, imagination and vision, and health and well being.

*An opportunity to invest in our economy*

Visual artists can be part of the solution to Canada's current economic troubles. According to the Canadian Conference of the Arts, the costs of creating jobs in the arts and culture sector are the lowest compared to other sectors of the economy. While other sectors have been shrinking, the number of visual artists has increased 56% since 1991.

When including all disciplines, the number of artists is slightly larger than the number of Canadians directly employed in the automotive industry. The cultural sector as a whole has nearly double the level of employment of the forestry sector and more than double the level of employment in Canadian banks. Given the structures already in place, the sector can quickly mobilize to achieve the objectives of creating jobs, increasing economic and creative activity. Despite encouraging investment in the arts, the federal budget does little to help individual artists, the backbone of the creative economy.

The recommendations CARFAC made to the Finance Committee can be found at http://www.carfac.ca/2009/02/canadian-artists-worry-they-will-get-left-behindles-artistes-canadiens-craignent-d%E2%80%99etre-laisses-de-cote/lang-pref/en/

CARFAC (the Canadian Artists' Representation/le Front des artists canadiens) is the national association of Canada's professional visual and media artists. CARFAC defends artists' socio-economic and legal rights through advocacy and professional development and produces a schedule of artists' fees that is widely recognized as the national standard. The Status of the Artist Act empowers CARFAC to negotiate with national organizations on behalf of all visual artists in Canada.

Editor’s Note: CARFAC is an excellent organization and is vital to those considering themselves an artist in Canada. Consider joining and supporting this organization.]

Tapestry On-Line:

From Belinda Jessup, Project Officer: Craft Australia, Level 1, Suite 7, National Press Club, 16 National Circuit, Barton ACT 2600 T: 02 6273 0088 F: 02 6273 6088; belinda.jessup@craftaustralia.org.au

I am writing to introduce myself as the editor of the Tapestry2008 blog. http://tapestry2008.blogspot.com/

I am also the project officer at Craft Australia and we have a free online newsletter 716 craft design that may interest your members/readers. There is the link for our newsletter and the subscription page. http://www.craftaustralia.org.au/newsroom/newsletter.php?id=index; http://www.craftaustralia.org.au/subscribe/ There is also information about Craft Australia and the Victorian Tapestry Workshop‘s newsletters on the blog, and information about the Australian and international craft and design sector. http://www.craftaustralia.org.au/716/ 

Craft Australia is the national advocacy organisation for the professional craft•design sector and is assisted by the Australian Government through the Australia Council for the Arts, its arts funding and advisory body. Craft Australia is supported by the Visual Arts and Craft Strategy, an initiative of the Australian Government and all state and territory governments.

Other Websites to Visit

www.tapestrycenter.org - The Gloria F. Ross Center for Tapestry Studies website has a completely fresh look and many brand new features! Please visit our information-packed site to learn more about tapestries around the world. Our current news is configured into a blog format on the Home page. You will find useful menus along the top banner and along each page‘s right side. Try out the Search feature that appears on the right side of every page. View our site map to explore all corners of the website.

Our Resources pages contain a wealth of useful information, from appraisal guidelines and bibliographies to textile preservation, and much more. We welcome suggested additions to the numerous web links that we provide. The illustrated GFR Tapestry Gallery presents over one hundred tapestries orchestrated by Gloria F. Ross from 1963 to 1997—you can search them by the artists‘ and weavers‘ names and by the tapestries‘ titles.

http://www.tapestryline.com/ - Line Dufour

 http://www.katekitchenart.com/index.html - Kate Kitchen

 http://www.wnyc.org/slideshows/knit - radical lace and subversive knitting exhibit

http://www.weavecast.com/archives.html - wonderful podcasts by Syne Mitchell

 http://www.donnealpoterefirenze.it/allegati/Press%20communique%206%20Tapestry%20makers.pdf - an interesting website about Les Gobelins and its history with info on tapestry as well

http://www.papierfalten.de - German Origami association – art of folding napkins

 http://.www.friendsoffiberart.org - new website of Friends of Fiber Art International

http://web.mac.com/patwilli1/ - Pat Williams‘ wonderful website

http://www.lunaticfringeyarns.com/tapestrysupplies.php - new source for Paternayan yarns and more

http://textilegallery.unl.edu/liacookpage - exhibit of work by Lia Cook

 http://www.meabhwarburton.co.uk/meabhs%20site/tapestries.html - small format tapestries of Meabh Warburton

 http://sherriwoodardcoffey.com/ - work of Sherry Wood Coffey

 http://www.npm.gov.tw/en/visiting/exhibit/exhibit_08.htm?docno=569 - Silk tapestry weaving exhibit

Blogs to Enjoy

http://debbieherd.blogspot.com/ - from Australia

http://ixchel-tapestryweaver.blogspot.com/ – Ixchel Suarez

http://tapestry2008.blogspot.com/ - Victorian Tapestry Workshop

http ://www.kathetoddhooker.blogspot.com/- Kathe Todd Hooker

http://tapestry13.blogspot.com - Tommye Scanlin

http://kspoeringtapestries.blogspot.com/ - Kathy Spoering

http://www.desertsongstudio.blogspot.com/ - Lyn Hart

 http://www.tapestry.co.nz/blog/ - Marilyn Rea Menzies

http://www.austintapestry.blogspot.com/ - Jan Austin

http://thepassingstranger-brenda.blogspot.com/

http:// dianehorowitz.blogspot.com– Diane Horowitz

http://tapestryworld.blogspot.com/ - Juana Sleizer

 http://krystynasadej.blogspot.com - Krystyna Sadej

http - Monique Lehman ://moniquelehman.blogspot.com/

Helpful Hints on Mounting and Shipping Tapestries by: Terri Stewart

Becky Stevens and I helped put up and take down the ATB7 Exhibit at the Scarfone-Hartley Gallery in Tampa at Convergence last summer. What a wonderful experience! And what an eye opener on what worked well in regards to mounting, packing and shipping, and what was downright scary.

What worked: The usual Velcro-slat method was the best in hanging the tapestries. Some pieces were made to have rods, which most often were not included and had to be made by the gallery. Detailed instructions and pictures from the artists helped us hang the tapestries properly and repack them for the next venue. The gallery also took pictures as they unpacked the pieces to document any damage that may have occurred in shipping. This also helped us repack the work as much of it was done in layers. The layers often consisted of: a soft cloth to roll the tapestry(s) in; bubble wrap; ribbon / cords to tie it all together before putting it in the shipping container. Packaging tape often tied the items together. Many of the shipping containers were heavy duty; PVC pipes, cement form tubes, or a box within a box arrangement, and wooden crates. A couple of boxes were too light-weight and did not hold up and were replaced with sturdier stuff. This applied to a couple of Post Office shipping tubes as well. One tapestry was simply wrapped in brown paper. Amazing that it arrived undamaged but the bag was replaced with a box later.

Things to keep in mind when exhibiting your work: If a venue or organization states that work must be ready to hang in a certain method, please comply! It can take quite a bit of time and expense for a venue to come up with the proper materials to fit your work so it can be displayed and removed without damaging the facility or your work. This is your responsibility. Have return shipping labels, forms, whatever is needed to have your work returned to you included with the shipping package. Don‘t assume that this info can be lifted from the original package. That info is often covered up or destroyed because of a carrier‘s labels and/or packaging tape that is removed to unpack the work. If you use the Velcro-slat method, make sure the slat(s) are pre-drilled to accept nails or screws. Include the nails/screws if possible in a small bag. Make sure the piece is marked ―top‖ either on the back of the piece or on a picture/drawing if it isn‘t obvious as to which way is "up."

 Shipping can be expensive, so watch how much bubble wrap and such is really necessary to protect your work without going overboard. However, don‘t be cheap on the actual shipping container. Make sure it is sturdy! Shipping companies do not always handle items gently. Please, no packing peanuts! Use butcher paper, bubble wrap, or foam. Newspaper is o.k. if the piece is totally protected in other wrappings so the ink does not transfer to your work.

Exhibitions

 "Vers Libre II", 50"x68" woven by Tamara Jaworska and recently exhibited at Prime Gallery in Toronto, On.

• February 11 to September 17, 2009 – “When Women Rule the World: Judy Chicago in Thread” – Textile Museum, Toronto, ON

• May through June, 2009 – “James Koehler” at the Chase Gallery, Spokane WA

• May 9 to June 13, 2009 – “Delicate Matters” – Tapestries and textile sculpture by Hillu Liebet – Black Swan Arts, Somerset, England

• April 7 to June 30, 2009 – Solo show of “Tapestries by Barbara Burns” at Maine Fiberarts, 13 Main Street, Topsham, ME 04086 - www.mainefiberarts.org Sunday May 31, 2009 Gallery Talk 1:30, reception 2:3- to 4pm – gallery hours 10 to 4pm – to see more of Barbara‘s work visit www.Burns-studio.com

 • May 5,2009 to July 6th 2009 – “Connections: Small Tapestry International 2009”; San Jose Museum of Quilts and Textiles, San Jose, CA

• April 4 to June 10 2009 – “Combs of Our Ancestors” - the Museum of Inuit Art, Queen‘s Quay West, Toronto, ON. www.miagallery.ca

• May 8 to June 6 – “Garden of Light” – pastel drawings and woven tapestry by Thoma Ewen at Chez Lucien in the ByWard Market, Ottawa, www.moonrain.ca 

• June 1 to August 15, 2009 – “Pomp and Propaganda”, Danish Art Tapestry in Royal Castles – Elsinore, Denmark

• June 12 through September 6, 2009 - “Small Expressions 2009” Exhibit at The Faulconer Gallery, Grinnell, Iowa

• June 11 through 14, 2009 - “SOFA WEST” (Sculpture Objects Functional Art), an exciting art exposition, comes to Santa Fe, New Mexico, on, with over 40 galleries/dealers representing hundreds of artists. Santa Fe Convention Center. Receive special room rates at La Fonda hotel near the Plaza by mentioning ―The GFR Tapestry Center‖ when you register; call 800-523-5002.

• Tapestry- & Textile-related Lectures at SOFA WEST by GFR Tapestry Center trustees and director: 1. Alice Zrebiec, Thursday, June 11, 2:30 pm, on the work of fiber artist Olga de Amaral 2. Lotus Stack, Friday, June 12, 1:00 pm, A Textile Curator‘s Private Tour of the Expo 3. Ann Lane Hedlund, Friday, June 12, 2:30 pm, ―Hot Trends in Native Southwestern Tapestry Weaving‖ 4. Sue Walker, Saturday, June 13, 2:30 pm, ―A Remarkable Flowering: Tapestry in Australia"

• until July 7, 2009 – Textile Museum of Canada, 55 Centre Avenue, Toronto – “Cutting Edge” exhibit

 • July 1 to 31, 2009 – “Small Neighborhoods: tapestries by Michael F. Rohde” at Weaving Southwest, Taos, New Mexico

 • August 29 to September 20, 2009 – “Connections: Small Tapestry International 2009” at Earlham College, Richmond, IN

• September 18 through October 30, 2009 – “James Koehler” at the Translations Gallery, Denver, CO

• October 1 to November 30, 2009 – Textile 09 – “Collaboration, Distribution, and Communication” the Biennial of the Art Institute of Kaunas, Lithuania. www.biennial.lt

• until January 17, 2010 – Victoria and Albert Museum, London, England – “Maharaja, The Splendor of India’s Royal Courts”.

 • WEARING WEALTH AND STYLING IDENTITY: TAPIS FROM LAMPUNG, SOUTH SUMATRA, INDONESIA; April 11 through August 31, 2009 | Hood Museum of Art, Dartmouth College, Hanover, NH. This exhibition and its accompanying book initiate a historical chronicle of tapis from the earliest mention of this textile type to the roles it fulfills in the 21st century, laying bare the complex networks of trade and the negotiation of cultural iconographies that have informed the making of this spectacular art. Located between the two maritime routes connecting East and West Asia, Sumatra, the fabled Isle of Gold was for centuries the source for much of the world's pepper. In the southern tip of Sumatra, the peoples of Lampung, or "Pepperland," poured the profits of their trade into ceremonial materials and adornments. The ornate tubular dresses known as tapis were hand-woven from cotton and silk threads, colored with ancestral dye recipes, embellished with gold- and silver-wrapped threads, embroidered with silk or pineapple-fiber threads, and appliquéd with mirrors and mica. These sumptuous garments communicated a family's global contacts, social station, and clan identity. Guest curated by Dr. Mary-Louise Totton, assistant professor of art history, Frostic School of Art, Western Michigan University, the exhibition combines over fifty tapis from the Stephen A. Lister Collection with contextual archival and contemporary photographs. Dr. Totton's text of the same title will be published by the Hood Museum of Art at Dartmouth College and available through the University of Washington Press in spring 2009. This exhibition was organized by the Hood Museum of Art and is generously supported by the Evelyn A. J. Hall Fund and the William B. Jaffe and Evelyn A. Jaffe Hall Fund. The exhibition book will available in the museum gallery or upon request by calling (603) 646-2808.

For more information, please contact: Rachel Tardelli Vermeal, Communications and Public Relations Coordinator; (603) 646-2426; Rachel.Vermeal@dartmouth.edu

Consider Entering

• May 30, 2009 – “Nine Lives”, part of World of Threads Festival – open to Canadian fiber artists. You are invited to enter a textile piece of work using a cat theme. Your own image or interpret a cat painting by Oakville‘s renowned Lyn Estall. See www.lynestall.com for her work. All the requirements and entry forms can be found on the World of Threads Festival website. Entries need to be received by 4:00 p.m. Fri. 30, May, 2009. For more information, please contact CTN member, Ixchel Suarez: ixchelsuarez@gmail.com  or go to www.worldofthreadsfestival.com

• July 31, 2009 deadline - CALL FOR ENTRIES - “WISH YOU WERE HERE: FIBER ART POSTCARD” EXHIBIT Tohono Chul Park is seeking submissions for ―Wish You Were Here: Fiber Art Postcards‖, our second non-juried exhibit of artist-made postcards open to artists working with fiber-based media. In a similar manner as tourist postcards, fiber art postcards in ―Wish You Were Here‖ will document real or imagined places, trips, experiences or events in the state of Arizona. Postcards may be constructed using any of a variety of fiber art and surface design techniques such as quilting, weaving, embroidery, and handmade paper. Postcards will be exhibited in Tohono Chul Park's Gallery from September 10 - November 16, 2009. Artists living anywhere in the world may participate by creating a postcard and mailing it to our gallery without an envelope. Postcard submissions must be postmarked from July 1 to July 31, 2009. Completed Entry Form with SASE and $5 entry fee are to be sent separately.

See Entry Form for detailed instructions. Entry Form in pdf format is available on Tohono Chul Park's website: http://www.tohonochulpark.org/upcoming.html. Or send a SASE to Peggy Hazard, Assistant Exhibit Curator, 7366 N. Paseo del Norte, Tucson AZ 85704. For more information, contact Peggy Hazard at 520-742-6455 x217 or peggyhazard@tohonochulpark.orgMondays-Thursdays

• August 29, 2009 – ―Fiberart International 2010‖, an exhibit of contemporary fibre art –for more information, visit: www.fiberartinternational.org , fiberartinternational@yahoo.com, or write to: PO Box 5478, Pittsburgh, PA, 15206

Feb. 12, 2010 Early Bird Deadline (will be entered in a draw for a cash prize (TBA)), Feb. 26, 2010 Regular Deadline – Focus on Fibre Arts, Edmonton Alberta, has a 2010 Contest Theme - ―Green‖ - It‘s not just a colour. It represents lots. It‘s spring. It‘s wood nymphs and water sprites on the forest floor. It is the green of Ireland. It‘s little green men from Mars. It‘s jealousy. It‘s hope and joy. It‘s nature and growth and so much more. It‘s Robin Hood and his merry men. It‘s immaturity. It‘s youth. It‘s an ecological movement and a political party. It‘s the ‗go‘ in a traffic light. Green symbolizes so many ideas in different times and places of the world. What does green bring to your mind? Mix a little blue and yellow together (or any other colours you desire) and show us your artistic interpretation of ―Green‖.For more info and entry forms, visit: http://www.focusonfibrearts.org/2010competition.html or call Shirley at (780) 469-1783

• January 29, 2010. - Another exhibit with a ―Green‖ theme: Call for entries. “Green: A Color and a Cause”. Juried. Exhibition to be held April through September 2011 at The Textile Museum in Washington, D.C. Entries should be represented by digital photos in JPEG format, with images of all entries copied onto one single CD. Limit six pieces per entry. Label each JPEG with name, title, and size (slides allowed, but digital is preferred). Include an artist's statement and a list detailing name, date, size, and medium of each piece. Entries via YouTube video also will be considered. Send entries to Eastern Hemisphere Department, The Textile Museum, 2320 S Street NW, Washington, DC, 20008. For more information contact eh@textilemuseum.org or Lee Talbot, Associate Curator: (202) 667-0441, ext. 45

Workshops / Conference Seminars to Consider

• May 27 to June 6, 2009 – James Koehler: - ANWG Conference, Spokane WA www.anwg2009.org – 3 day workshop on tapestry, I day on cartoon development, 2 three hour seminars too.

 • August 17-the 21st - Archie Brennan and Susan Maffei will give an intense five day workshop in Oregon at the Damascus fiber school near Portland, Oregon. Focus on cartoon development, controlled shape making, and shed control. For all information, call Pam Patrie at(503)250-1642 (cell) or e-mail: pampatriestudios@yahoo.com , 7835 SE 29Th Ave, Portland Oregon 97202. The session includes a mid-day meal; host homes may be available, and a list of bed and breakfast places are available. There will be a discount for returning students and ATA members.

• August 17-21, 2009 – Introduction to Jacquard Weaving – Louise Lemiux Berube – centre de textiles Contemporains de Montreal – General information -Jacquard weaving is done on two fully computerized Jacquard handlooms and Pointcarré software isused. Photoshop is also used for special design effects and composition.

To reserve a place, please send as soon as possible a deposit of half of the registration fee. We will accept participants on a base of first come/first serve. Payments can be made with a VISA or MasterCard number. To register, please contact Nicole Gagne at the MCCT nicole@textiles-mtl.com or by telephone : (514) 933-3728

• August 22 to 26, 2009 – James Koehler: - hachure, hatching, and colour gradation, Harrisville NH

• September 10 to 14, 2009 – Introduction to Jacquard Weaving – Louise Lemiux Berube – centre de textiles Contemporains de Montreal

 • James Koehler: - individual studio classes on an ongoing basis are available by appointment contact James at (505) 466-3924 or jkoehler@nets.com for more information

• Learn-to-spin vacation workshops in Nova Scotia by the sea – www.thespinnersloft.ca

• Jane Hoffman is offering a natural dye workshop in the beautiful mountains of Arizona Title: "Harmonious Hues: Create a Color Palette with Natural Dyes" Date: August 14, 15, and 16, 2009 Skill Level: Beginning and Intermediate Description: This 3-day comprehensive workshop shows you how to create a rich palette of beautiful, lightfast and washfast color from natural dyes. We will be using native, cultivated, and imported dye material including plants from Jane‘s dye garden. She will share her knowledge and methods for producing many shades of color from each dye-pot. You will learn to prepare the dye, to mordant and dye protein yarn, and to experiment with color by using post-mordant baths, exhaust baths and over-dyeing. Instruction fee: $300 (covers instruction for three 8 hour days) j.hoffman@frontiernet.net, www.blueriverretreat.com

• Joan Baxter Classes for this year - 2009: August 3rd – 8th – Tapestry Summer School, Laesoe, Denmark. General tapestry class for all skill levels. Information from Helle Rans, Birke Alle, Byrum, Laesoe, Denmark email: helle.rans@c.dk September 5 – 7th – An Introduction to Tapestry Weaving The basic toolkit of tapestry techniques. Three day workshop in my studio

• British Tapestry Group Conference: September 12th - Lecture on Tapestry .... ―Where do we go from here? A personal view of ways forward‖ September 13th - Colour A one day workshop exploring how the use of multiple threads can create not only vibrant colour but also texture, mood and atmosphere. Students will work from the imagination, from real objects and from photographic sources. This class is for those who have already done some tapestry. More info about the conference from britishtapestry@yahoo.com                  September 15th - 19th - Design 1 Design for Tapestry 1 - collecting and working with source material. Five day workshop in my studio and in the surrounding countryside                                                                                                                                                 September 21st - 23rd - Colour 1 Developing mixing, matching and blending techniques. Three-day sample based on workshop in the studio

The tapestry classes from my studio are part of a modular advanced studies programme I am developing for those who want to gain and improve tapestry skills and learn about professional practice. This kind of flexible in-depth learning is not available anywhere else in the UK. Classes are very small, five students maximum, and are a mixture of formal teaching and independent working, suited to the pace of the medium. Tuition fees are £180.00 for a three day class and £250.00 for a five day class. Students must arrange their own accommodation. Please contact me: joanbaxter434@btinternet.com, for more detailed information.

• Maiwa in Vancouver is once again offering their fabulous series of workshops and lectures this fall visit their website for more information. The course calendar will be posted in full online at http://www.maiwa.com/symposium/index.html toward the end of April and the printed copy will be available early June and sent directly to everyone on our mailing list at that time. “The Maiwa Textile Symposium 2009: Every Thread Has a Story”

14 Lectures and 5 Events will be held in October 2009.

38 Workshops will be held in September, October and November of 2009.

The course calendar will be posted in full online at www.maiwa.com toward the end of April and the printed copy will be available early June and sent directly to everyone on our mailing list at that time. Please call 604 669 3939 if you would like to be added to the mailing list. Registration will open June 22 2009.

Lectures from Charllotte Kwon (Canada), Stephen Huyler (USA), Michel Garcia (France), Morimoto Kikuo (Cambodia), Nilda Callañaupa Alvarez (Peru). Sheila Paine (UK), Ashoke Chatterjee (India), Linda Cortright (USA), Fernando Alvarez (Canada/Peru), Bappaditya Biswas (India), Denise Lambert (France), Jawaja Leatherworkers (India), Elizabeth Barber (USA), Mimi Robinson (USA)

Events:

An Exhibition of Andean Weaving: The Center for Traditional Textiles of Cusco with an introduction by Nilda Callañaupa Alvarez.

 An Exhibition of Cambodian IKAT: The Institute for Khmer Traditional Textiles with an Introduction by Morimoto Kikuo.

On The Banks of the Ichhamati: A Special Exhibition of hand-woven art pieces depicting the story of the Blue Mutiny. Presented and Introduced by Bappaditya Biswas.

Slow Clothes: An Evening fashion event with Bai Lou, Bleu de lectoure, Qiviuk Boutique and Maiwa

• Helping Hands and Distance Learning Program - ATA http://americantapestryalliance.org/Members/Programs.html#Distance

 Barbara Heller coordinates the DL program and Joyce Hayes does the Helping Hands. They are not classes in that there isn't a set curriculum that would be offered. Rather, the ATA volunteer mentor and the student of either program would design the year-long study between the two of them.

There are several teams of mentor/student working in the DL program, the one for intermediate tapestry makers. The program has been in place since 1995 and a number of people have participated. Because it is a volunteer service from a more experienced weaver to both the student and to ATA, those who've served as mentors deserve a big thanks!

More Conferences to Enjoy

• May 22-24 - 2009 Handweavers, Spinners and Dyers conference, Olds, Alberta –- As 2009 is the UN International Year of Natural Fibres, the theme is “Discover Natural Fibres - Doing What Comes Naturally”. See Conference 2009 for further information.- http://www.hwsda.org/conferences/2009

 • May 1-3, 2009 – “Fibre Unleashed: Pushing the Limits” – Ontario Handweavers and Spinners conference – http://www.ohs.on.ca

• June 26 to July 3, 2009 – “U.N. International Year of Natural Fibres” with a calendar of events - Olds College celebrates fibre week - http://www.naturalfibres2009.org/

• July 21 to 24, 2009 – 15th European Textile Network Conference in Austria – www.etn-net.org/etn/211e.htm

• August 19 to 22, 2009 - Gibson’s Landing Fibre Art Festival - http://www.gibsonslandingfibrearts.com/welcome

• July 18 to 25, 2010 - Convergence 2010 in Albuquerque, New Mexico – “New Visions: Ancient Paths” – http://www.weavespindye.org 

Opportunies to Contemplate

• Leighton Studios at the Banff Centre – 8 studios in the Canadian Rockies are available to professional artists on an ongoing basis – for more information and to apply email info@banffcebtre.ca or write to The Banff Centre, Office of the Registrar, Box 1020, Banff AB T1L 1H5, 1-800-565-9989 – or go to the website www.banffcentre.ca

• Call for exhibition proposals from the Craft Alliance satellite gallery in St. Louis MO. – proposals accepted for solo or group shows in all craft media – for more info: Exhibitions co-ordinator, Craft Alliance, 6640 Delam Blvd., St Louis, MO 63130, exhibitions@craftalliance.org

• Carnegie Gallery in Dundas Ontario – call for EXHIBITION PROPOSALS – deadline May 31, 2009 - Solo and group proposals in all designer craft and visual art media accepted. Solo Proposals: 10 slides or CD images. Group proposals: 15 slides or CD images. Please identify slides with a number, your name and an accompanying slide list. For CDs identify each file (image) with a number and an accompanying hard copy list with corresponding numbered descriptions; identify your CD with your name. No files to be sent by e-mail. Hard copies in all cases for resume, artist statement, a written description of your intended exhibit (not more than 1 page). Include a self-addressed stamped envelope if you wish to have anything returned. Other information for those sending applications by CD: Submit PC compatible files only in JPEG format (width or height for tall images: approx. 1000 pixels). Submit slides or digital images (not both). No PowerPoint or Videos Send to: Exhibition Selection Committee 10 King Street West, Dundas, L9H 1T7 For more information, visit: http://www.carnegiegallery.org/

• Nancy Hoskins as been invited to be the textile host on a tour of Egypt. Information about the October 23rd - November 4th tour “The Textiles of Egypt” with Nancy Hoskins and Christine Pearson can be found on the website http://www.activetravel.com.au/>www.activetravel.com.au

After almost 15 years of arranging textile focused tours to Asia, we at Active Travel have decided they deserve their own entity. So now WARP&WEFT will be our reference point for our textile tours.

All of our 2009/10 programs are up on our web site - www.activetravel.com.au and click on specialist tours and then on Warp & Weft Textile Tours tab on the right side. Here you will find:

- Egypt with Nancy Hoskins – October 2009

- Bhutan with Christine Pearson – September 2009

- Laos and Vietnam with Valerie Kirk – January 2010 - West Timor with Ruth Hadlow – June 2010

Classified – Supplies for your Tapestry Needs

• CTN member, Trena Coulter carries for your convenience, fine Australian yarns in 366 colours from which to choose for your tapestry weaving, hand and machine knitting and all kinds of needlecrafts. In information, e-mail her at: textiles@trenacoulter.com or visit: www.trenacoulter.com

• CTN member, Karen King now offers for your tapestry weaving, needlepoint and other fibre art projects, Paternayan crewel and Paterna Persian yarns in over 600 colours. This high quality yarn is colourfast, and dyes beautifully with both acid and natural dyes. Karen is based in Calgary and strives to fill orders quickly. For more information, please contact her at: (403) 284-4048; toll-free at: 1-866-666-9276. You can also visit her website at: www.aubussonhouse.com. By snail mail, write to Karen at: 5016 Barron Drive, N.W., Calgary, AB T2L 1T6.

 • CTN member, Madeleine Darling-Tung carries for your mail-order convenience, Spelsau yarns from Norway, specifically spun for woven tapestry, rug and upholstery weaving. Currently she is have a 15% off sale through June 30th, ‗09 of these Spelsau yarns: Tynt Kunstvevgarn, (fine 2 ply) in 121 colours, @ 2,600 m/kg; Aklegarn, (medium 2 ply), @ 2,100 m/kg, Ryegarn, (heavy 2 ply), @ 280 m/kg and Ullspissgarn, (medium 1 ply), @ 1,100 m/kg. As well, I still carry La-Mieux Quebecoise, @ 1,980 m/kg. For more information, please contact her at: (250) 539-3699 or by e-mail at: madeleinedt@shaw.ca.

 • "Weaving Southwest" offers a very nice website with many examples of southwest tapestry weaving in their significant gallery space. Consider a visit to: www.weavingsouthwest.com or in person, on your next visit to Taos, NM. The lovely Rio Grande yarns are very popular with many tapestry weavers. They also carry the Churro sheep yarns and a variety of weaving-related equipment.

From Teresa Loveless: I am proud to say that I am the new owner of Weaving Southwest! I am Rachel Brown's granddaughter. I bought this beautiful shop in October 2008. Pat (Dozier) is doing well. She recently moved to Santa Fe and seems to be loving it!

We have changed our website to what it was five years ago. We are currently working on a new website that will include much more information and the option to buy online. We would love to link to your website! Weaving Southwest, Rio Grande Yarn Supplies, 216B Pueblo Norte, Taos, NM 87571; (505) 758-0433

• I have one loom for sale as I am now only weaving tapestries in small format. In good condition, a Macomber, 8 harness, 48", with a bench, 3 reeds and lots of accessories, I will sell for $650.00. For more information on this loom currently located in Sunapee, NH, please contact Jill Mongomery at (603) 763-2635; e-mail: geojill@comcast.net