Bhakti supports the idea of the open source jacquard loom that Marguerita Benitez is proposing. Here's a quote from Bhakti's blog about it:
I know Margarita Benitez from a workshop I taught a number of years ago, and have been in contact ever since. She is a bright, energetic artist, a giving teacher, and an innovator. In her Kickstarter project, she is asking for $10,000 to create a computerized jacquard loom, which will be open-source--meaning anyone else can use her data to create their own loom.Although my own work is tapestry and done with the simplest of looms, I continue to be intrigued with the designing potential of jacquard. The technology is more affordable and more accessible that ever before, and the idea that it could become even more so in the future is very exciting. Take a look at Bhakti's blog and find the links to Benitez's information, if you're curious.
Now... a few photos from the past two days at the museum with the ending of the cloth. First, it was cut off on Friday morning with a group of students on a tour standing around to see it:
Chris discussed the exhibit and Anne Wilson's concept for the cloth that had been woven before we began to cut it off.
Hailey snips a few threads; several of us who were there and who'd taken part in the weaving shared the cutting off experience.
The cloth was laid out on the prepared tables. It's so long that it has to be folded in places. Here Geri, Jo-Marie, and Pat inspect and discuss the next steps to be taken.
Ray worked on an area that had been very loosely woven and was able, with careful manipulation, to pull the wefts nicely together.
I began a half-Damascas end finish; Nick looks on. After I compled the half-Damascus across, Geri took over to work the warp tails into the weaving, then Nick and Dana clipped them off.
Ray tackles one end while Nick and Dana complete the other end.
I'm working on joining the two lengths together.
The fabric built up too thickly on the cloth beam to be continued so the first length had to be cut off several weeks ago. Many additional yards were woven in the second section... the second part is what's spreading to my left and snaking around on the table that's closest. Ray is in the distance working on the end of the first cloth.
Here's the way Ray's meticulous end finishing looks... just amazing, I think!
The museum doesn't open until 1 p.m. today (Sunday). When I get there I'll continue with the joining process. I hope it will be complete by 5 today!
The whole cloth will be on display at some time in the future at the museum. Check the KMA website for information about that. Anne Wilson's work will next be seen in Houston at the Contemporary Arts Museum Houston in Hand+Made: The Performative Impulse in Art and Craft, May 15-July 25, 2010. Here's information from the website:
Hand+Made: The Performative Impulse in Art and Craft features twenty artists who innovatively expand the traditions of art and craft through the incorporation of performance. The exhibition features a series of on- and offsite performance events, including crochet nights at the Museum in which visitors are invited to crochet works from an installation created by Sheila Pepe, a performance of Anne Wilson’s Wind-Up: Walking the Warp, and a series of public events around the city in which Gabriel Craig creates small articles of jewelry for those he encounters. A complete schedule of dates and locations will be available on the Museum’s website.
an amazing endeavour. K.
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