Anderson Berry Farm, Bay City, Wisconsin 6-1/2″ x 7″ Tapestry. Cotton warp, wool weft.
“Experimentation in Red” 41″ x 21.5″ Cotton warp and felted wool fabric strip weft. Plain weave.
Karin’s red wool strips for this rug were part of a trove of felted wool purchased by her friend.
Untitled. 12″ x 36″ Band weaving (various techniques) Pearle and unmercerized cotton.
These bands represent two traditional weaving techniques: card-weaving and backstrap weaving with hand-held rigid heddles.
The card-woven pieces were woven on a backstrap loom with the commonly-used warp-twined-cord structure.
The rest are either backstrap-woven using a pattern heddle (Spaltegrind in Norwegian), or on an inkle loom with manual pick-up. They use supplementary warp patterns on a plain-weave, half-basket-weave background — commonly known as either “Baltic” or “European” structure.
The color red dominates traditional woven bands throughout Scandinavia and Baltic regions. Some are thicker and stronger, and would have been used as straps and belts. Other finer pieces are examples of hairbands, shirt bands, or decorative edging on clothing.
“So Lucky” (dimensions) Plain weave, rya. Cotton warp, wool weft.
“So Lucky” refers to the Norwegian symbol of luck and happiness. Read more about the weaving at An Eight-Pointed Star in Rya.
“Norwegian Cherry Tree” 31″ x 33″ Rya. Linen warp and wool weft.
Corky was on a driving trip in Norway, from Aurland to Bodø. Traveling through Hardanger on just the right spring day, he was inspired by hills that were brilliant with the bright pink flowers of cherry trees.
“Christmas Runner” 10″ x 44″ linen of various weights. Double weave
Mary’s goal since she started weaving in the early 70s has been to weave household textiles, to use and display functional and decorative pieces she weaves. Scandinavian textiles are her inspiration: contemporary functional weaving seen in shops, those seen in use in the homes of family in Norway; and historical pieces in museums.
Mary wove this narrow red runner for Christmas holiday use. It just fits on the top of her piano. And it’s RED, her favorite color.
Three of the pieces in the Scandinavian Weavers’ RED Exhibit at the Textile Center of Minnesota are tapestries. Each one depicts an image close to the heart of the weaver.
Karin Maahs’ weaving, “Anderson Berry Farm, Bay City, Wisconsin,” features a red barn. Unseen are the mountains of red strawberries Karin picked over the years, while her mother ran a berry farm on the property. Although she based her tapestry on a photograph, she knows each hill, tree, and curve of the stream with her eyes closed.
Nancy Ellison wove a red landmark, too: the covered bridge in Zumbrota, Minnesota, just miles from her farm. It’s the only remaining original covered bridge in Minnesota, so it’s a building in the memories of many Minnesotans. The wool includes handspun yarn from Nancy’s sheep, so both the bridge and its image are grounded in southern Minnesota.
The third tapestry is Jan Mostrom’s homage to a now departed friend: noted weaver and weaving teacher, Syvilla Bolson. Appropriately, Syvilla is even wearing a Norwegian sweater, and the background with crosses is reminiscent of medieval Norwegian tapestries.
Join the Scandinavian Weavers for an opening reception for the show at the Textile Center on Thursday, May 12, from 6-8. It will be a busy night! Three other exhibits are opening that day as well, and the Weavers Guild is sponsoring a meeting and talk by workshop artist Susan Wilson at 7pm.
“Square Play.” 12″ x 21″ Perle cotton: 10/2 for the warp; 5/2 for the weft. Drawloom-woven on a 6-shaft satin background.
This piece was done to explore the possibilities of the drawloom, of design, and of the impact of red in a traditional fine-linen type structure.
Most years our Scandinavian Weavers Interest Group chooses a technique to study, but two years ago we chose to set our weaving goals to focus on a color at the heart of so many Scandinavian folk textiles — red.
Please come to see this warm and lively show at the Textile Center of Minnesota Community Gallery, May 12-June 25, 2016.
For our 2016 exhibit, members chose many paths in technique and materials. We didn’t exclude the rest of the color wheel completely; our only criteria was that red needs to be a significant element of the piece. Some pieces are mostly red, and others are grand experiments in fitting red into a pleasing combination.
Lisa-Anne Bauch
Veronna Capone
Nancy Ellison
Melba Granlund
Patty Johnson
Corwyn Knutson
Judy Larson
Robbie LaFleur
Connie LaTendresse
Karin Maahs
Marilyn Moore
Jan Mostrom
Keith Pierce
Lisa Torvik
Phyllis Waggoner
This festive evening will celebrate new shows in all the galleries at the Textile Center of Minnesota. You won’t want to miss the other exhibits, either: On Borrowed Time: Postponing the Inevitable, Maggie Thompson (with an artist talk at 7pm); Hiaku Two Ways, Sandra Brick; and Joys & Tears in the Apron Strings, Yvonne Cory.
Scandinavian Weavers Study Group 