Machine vs Weaver

I've been thinking about machines, and what I've come to see as mechanical weaving.

I'm pretty sure sure humans made machines so we can do things faster and easier. With machines we can make more things in a given time, or need fewer trips to transport material or output, or recreate more or less the same output without repeating the entire series of steps for each one of the output. I'm a firm believer, (you tend to be if you do any time in IT,) machines and output are only as good as how they are made and used; humans who make and use them must know what they're doing. Skills needed to use machines aren't necessarily simpler than, but are certainly different from, doing the same task without machines.

Ben, being an amateur digital and film still photographer, ponders automagical vs manual photography often. I enjoy the discourse, but in the first instance, I disagree with him; in weaving bigger and badder machines surely enables one to get away with learning less, and/or produce outcome disproportionately favorable to the maker's knowledge/skills. And yet I have experienced instanced where - what's the word? - "artistry"? added to or exceeded works of superior technique/competence.

In the 90's, there was a big discussion on what is now the Yahoo Group on whether weaving on computer-controlled looms still fell in the purview of handweaving, and though I didn't really know how computer-controlled looms worked, nor fly shuttles for that matter, I thought the latter was even less hand-weaving. Still do. But I digress.

The two last drafts I've been weaving annoy me. If you have a weaving software, the kind of networked twill drafts, and may other, can be created eye-wateringly quickly. The way I work, the only time-consuming, or personally involved, bits are correcting long floats, (my software finds them for me,) and the threading of the loom. Unless I'm after a specific size/shape/expression, designing on the computer can be soulless. As for weaving on the computer controlled-loom, you feed the draft into the loom, (my retrofit setup is a tiny bit more complicated but not by much,) and weave. I press the one air-compressor pedal for each pick, and I throw/catch the shuttle with my hands.

I used to be not displeased with my detachment from my weaving; I thought it was a cool, calm approach I haven't been able to establish in other areas of my life. The stuff coming off my loom are still what I make, and never who I am. On occasion I worried about the disdain I feel towards my finished pieces, but I saw it as a kind of maturity/objectivity as a weaver, and if the right piece came along, I was confident I could gush like no other.

There is nothing wrong with the mechanical weaving if I were into geometric/mathematical problem solving, but it appears I now want a little more ..."involvement". I don't know what I mean, or whether I'll know when I'm doing it, and at this point I hesitate to call it the catch-all "human factor". I don't know where the paradigm shift came from; if it this the next step of maturing, did it come form soaking up Randy from his video, or from the goings-on with Group R? Or did you put a spell on me? Or did I always have it, and that's why I haven't learned most functions on Fiberworks after 10 years, and still do some things manually when a click of a button can save me hours, days and weeks? (And a double weave blanket with two faces on both sides?!)

Way back, when Connie was a weaver, she had a rod/bar (third pic; in front of her work table) on which she hung scarves; they stayed there until Connie was satisfied each piece was truly finished. I envied her level of involvement, and I'm still more a quality control inspector at the end of the process, but I find myself rebelling against quick-and-dirty weaving.

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Not all is lost. In contrast to my usual flat cloth, I like the textures emerging in these two, the different expressions created with long vs short floats in different directions, mixed with plain weave bits. On the loom, they feel rough, and that's something I've never had on any loom of mine.

Why Do You Weave Cloth?

During the month of June, I'm inviting you to guest-post here on Unravelling.

Subject: Why you weave cloth, instead of weaving tapestry, knitting, embroidery, sewing, sculpting, making ceramics, or carving wood and stone. Please express your personal take/thoughts/opinions, (biased ones welcome!) rather than merely posing questions, though you are welcome to refer/quote others and/or write about things/ways you rejected. Critique of other reasons/views are OK if they are not personal attacks but well-considered/reasoned. e.g. why/how something doesn't make sense to you. You don't have to a weaver to the exclusion of other art forms/disciplines/techniques, but view loom weaving as your main area. If you were a serious weaver (by your definition) and moved on to other art forms/disciplines/techniques for creative reasons, I'd love to hear why and what you're doing now.

It's immaterial if you are a "professional" or an amateur; ditto, the number of hours you actually spend on the loom per week/year. 

Rules: None, really. Choose your title; on-line pseudonym if you like; your one link most welcome. I do encourage you to link to others when referring to their opinion/work.

I reserve the right to ask you to delve in/clarify, but I unlikely to edit your words. Email me? I do so hope to hear from you.

For Trapunto's Viewing Pleasure

You realize, Trapunto, I put off making an October exhibition warp just for you? No, not really.

I used A in the wood grain piece. I wasn't sure if I wanted to use a high contrast weft again, (in which case my first choice would have been B,) or analogous: 1 is much darker than the warp, 2, slightly lighter, and 3 the same yarn as the warp, which looked deliciously textured. I chose 2 so the design can be seen from a distance but the texture can also be seen from the right angle. It had been a while since I wove in analogous colors, (the weft is slightly bluer and whiter than the warp purple,) and it's restful and lovely. In contrast to the shapes and lines in this draft!

The colors in this are truest of the three pics.

This is the contrast I see when I weave, except the weft is slightly bluer and darker.

Love this angle.

Am I the only one who gets joy and relaxation out of remedying such phenomenon? I have to save every millimeter of this weft as this is the green that has been discontinued in this size.

Deanna of DEA Yarns is petite and cute and lovely; she finished knitting this top the night before we met. She has asked hubby/boss Adam to see if there is any of the green left in 20/2, so fingers, toes and eyes crossed, everyone. Meanwhile, I think I'm getting even ...wider!

My warping mill and "pillars" warp yarns await downstairs...

PS: My mother just rang me to say she bought an Ashford 8-shaft table loom (60cm wide) and the stand/pedals that can be attached to four of the shafts. I thought of buying her something like that last year before I went home, but decided against it because of space constraints. She has missed the complexity of more-than-four since she sold her monster Glimakra in 2006 so we had been looking all over for an 8-shaft table loom with a bit of distance between the shafts and the breast beam. Though Ashford's length is not long, it was the most easily available and affordable on account of her having walked into a sale this week. Now I'm thinking that is a really interesting setup: she gets the benefit of the east of pedals, but the freedom of the table loom! I can't wait to try it out when I see her next.

Something Wonderful!

A couple of good weavers I know have recently received their first commissions. I'm so happy for them, and I know they will do well.

Congrats, and enjoy the making. (And well-done to the clients with good taste!) I hope you blog about the projects, too!

More Misc Thoughts

Sometimes it takes me a long time to allow myself to change my mind, but once I do, I'm apparently very fast to move on. The current purple and green scarf is super quick to weave; I've done 130 cm in two sittings, and will finish it tomorrow. (I could finish today, but then I might want to cut off my arms tonight, so I'm going easy.) Three days to weave a piece has been one of the quickest in recent years, and I'm pleased about that. The rapid changes/movement in the pattern helps, too, as do one-shuttle weaving! But the design feels so mechanical, and I'm not in love with the piece. In fact, I'm back to feeling rather detached and wishing this would find a good home, fast. I have started to want something more "human" in my cloth, whatever I mean by it.

* * * * *

I've been coveting three books, but haven't bought them because a) they are expensive, b) I don't know if I will enjoy reading them and/or use the knowledge gained in my work, and c) I just paid for a Symposium because it's right here in Nelson. As regards the three books, the cheapest I found was from The Book Depository (who ships free worldwide) at NZ$104, OR, Amazon in England for NZ$84 plus NZ$29 for shipping. Ouch! I haven't checked the possibility of buying them from different places - too much math!

Anyhoo, I have read some reviews of one of them, but I'd love to hear whatever you thought of any of these if you have them, or if you've seen them in libraries or guilds. Please, please, please tell me anything, however trivial or quirky. (And remember to bring out the violins for those of us  who live in small towns without big bookshops or libraries!)

Folding Techniques for Designers - this one I saw in Wellington but the prices at two different bookshops were approximately double The Book Depository price and I was unwilling to pay that much. I wasn't sure if I would ever read it, but I sure enjoyed the diagrams.

Magical Materials to Weave - I'm interested if she discusses fibers other than wool; I assume she does and I'm wondering if they are things I can buy here, or via the Internet

Weaving Textile that Shape Themselves - Ditto, I guess.

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We recently switch all our phone services from the default Telecom to our ISP, which doubled our bandwidth, which finally allowed me to see Randy, Brian and others. Up to dressing the loom is half the work, weavers. I've watched it three time so far and I'm in dreamland every time, but it's time to listen to what they say and learn. Other artists are, of course, just as wonderful, but R&B are special, folks!

Misc Thoughts

Group R, which is set to change its name, met this Monday. I'm glad I stuck around because after three horrible (for me) meetings, I had a productive, meaningful one. Not sure what others thought, but I hope they were glad. Pat and Jo are moving in unexpected directions, Ronnie keeps coming up with new ones, and Maria, oh, Maria was sewing a mock up as we spoke, after being unsure of one she did a few days ago. I love watching people work. I haven't changed my plans per se, but I had a breakthrough, a cleansing and letting-go experience, because of our conversation and the company. So much so that though not directly related, on Tuesday morning I played with diluted gesso, store-bought stencils and cereal boxes.

The gesso et al. is due to signing up to Carla Sonheim's Junk Mail Artist Book online course. (The one course she offers I never thought I'd ever sign up for even if it was free!) On the day NZ$ was behaving badly. (It's come back up some more since.) But never mind, I find Carla's videos and instructions soothing and encouraging.

When I was still in Japan, Group R discussed Keri Smith's books/methods of pushing oneself to go beyond one's preconceived boundaries. I love the concept but I still cringe at some of the more "violent" suggestions. I'm conservative like that; I can't deface a perfectly good map, (especially if it's an old one,) or destroy a good book to create something else. But Carla's nudges I can take, even if sometimes I have to view/read, think, contemplate, take a walk, have a nap, and decide to trust Carla not to lead me astray. It helps that many of her suggestions are the same as/similar to what we did in Ronette's drawing course.

I got the 2013 Sketchbook Project sketchbook in the mail. It's new and improved: the pages are slightly fatter/squarer, there is no perforation line on the left side, and the cover is an ordinary brown cardboard. I can't remember how the 2011 one was bound, but I don't think it was with just two staples; they assume many participants want to reconstruct/reconstruct and this will be super easy. Overall, it feels more naked and in need of a lot more TLC. I haven't done anything with it, and I hope magic markers won't bleed, but everything looks good.

Last night I got a whole lotta linen from Mette, and I now have a plan for my "Friendship" piece; I haven't worked our anything specific/practical, but I like my idea. Hummm.... What am I saying? I love my idea.

I took off the navy blue cashmere warp from the last post; I'm not putting it on the warping board one end at a time. I think I did more damage to it rewinding, so I'm going to put it back in a chain, and we're having time out from each other. On the big loom is the purple warp, and I started weaving yesterday. It seems to me this style of wavy/swirly networked twill has been done to death, but I've never done an asymmetrical one so I thought it's a good idea for a short warp.

The first is a wood-grain design; I love the way the color of the cloth changes depending on where I stand. In fact, I took Ben for a walk around the loom last night. 

 A bit of both. The color in the first two pics are pretty accurate on my monitor.

 When I'm weaving, the cloth is even greener than this.

Though this is a blurred pic and the colors off, do you get the sense that from slightly to the back of the beater, the green almost disappears and I can only see bumps of the design.

To my shock horror, I discovered this olive green color has been discontinued in 20/2 width; it's a color I don't much like on its own but discovered in the "Prayers" and the subsequent warps that it does wonders in combinations particularly with purples, pinks and reds. Oh, bother! There is a slightly whiter, slightly yellower green, so I'd have to switch to that eventually.

The second (and last on this warp) maybe be a more bubble-like design.

After these two, I'm dying to put on the last, short, hot pink warp, but I think it's high time the "pillars" warp went on. Before Monday, I still wasn't sure if I wanted to do the October exhibition with the group on account of my feeling so bad after the last meetings; I also contemplated asking the group if I could skip the meetings but just exhibit, (on account of the size of the gallery and mine being among the bigger pieces planned,) but I'm ready to commit to the exhibition this week, and to "sacrifice" the big loom to 20 meters of dusty gray warp. I'm allowing a blindingly colorful Log Cabin warp to go on the four-shaft, though, and will proceed concurrently. At least that's the plan.

Channeling Randy

Well, not really. I'm trying to correct the tension of the navy Log Cabin warp, and yes, there are most definitely two colors; I know this because when I hold the chain, for a one-color warp it looks as if two dye lots were mixed.

It was supposed to be a quick job first thing morning; I was hoping to unwind, in reality and figuratively, rewind, and move on to threading the big loom, then something else afterwards. But it was 2PM before I knew it and I needed a break.

It's amazing what we weavers do with a few sticks and a bit of string, isn't it? I feel so... smug. OK, back to it.     

By the way have you been able to watch the Craft in America vid? I get as far as the first Quilt Maker (I think) talk about her grandfather, but no further; I only know Randy doesn't do plaids. Because he's a Romantic. These folks were supposed to keep me company while I worked on the navy warp.

Do I have to go to a larger city with better Internet connection? 

Santa Fe Revisited

Even though we've established I don't shy away from issues once I decide which ones I'm tackling, (even if it takes long to write/publish,) especially if there is a chance for me to learn/improve, this has been a difficult one to share.

On Friday, May 4, Pat came-a-visiting with a friend, Jill. Who happens to be Jill Hoppenheimer. Of Santa Fe Weaving Gallery. You remember Pat has always encouraged me in this direction. I don't exactly know where SFWG stands in the grand scheme of things, but knowing they stocked Randy''s scarves, I remember never being able to say the name of the gallery out loud four years ago, not did I feel bad I didn't make it in back then. 

We had a robust discussion on colors and the relationships of places with colors. (One of my absolute fav subject!) I took notes, but you know how notes on robust discussions go: cryptic. The upshot of all this is, she took two of my pieces and requested eight.

Sure, I am happy; finally an outlet outside Nelson, New Zealand, population 50,000. Some of my stuff are going to be in the same physical space as The August One's. But I've been so overwhelmed I haven't had the time to enjoy it. 

In the first instance, I don't know how I'm going to fit the various projects on my calendar; I've discovered a local selling opportunity for which I only need perhaps three would love to take part in if I can manage; if I were quicker there was yet another opportunity but I've let that one go. And with some gardening and the recent too-early cold spell, my left arm is making a fuss.But what really worries me and keeps me procrastinating is my lack of technical competence; it makes me want to crawl back into bed some days, or see my imaginary ulcer (always in glowing green) if I'm already there. 

So I try not to think of it and carry on. Strange, when none of the projects are urgent, I have a harder time prioritizing. You'd think I'd enjoy such luxury.

Please forgive me for disabling comments on this post; it's still difficult to talk about. But not for long long; I get less emotional once I start thinking of colors and materials and structures and such. 

And now for something completely pleasant, click here!  I don't know if I wrote this before, but at the end of the workshop in 2006, I half-wished Randy and Brian would decide to adopt me and take me away from my life. Seriously. I was going to send for my things later, including B.

"Important" to Whom??

Good post by Connie Rose, again. I love reading about how she thinks and approaches her creative life.

I have a different view. I think and talk and write and read about and search visuals of weaving pretty much non-stop. (As if you hadn't noticed...) This is all-too-often interpreted as wanting public recognition/validation. (I hate seeing knowing nods, especially by teachers who should know better!! I've got to learn to phrase my questions better.) I'm only looking for discussions about weaving, if not textiles. Or garments. Or fashion, to a lesser degree. Or exhibitions. Of any kind. Or other art forms and makers. I also like to discuss how I can improve my work; suggestions of practical methods most appreciated.

My goal so far and in the foreseeable future has always been and is to impress myself; I'm not worried about the world just yet because I haven't made something you, ummm, should be impressed with. (Perhaps this is why I'm suspicious of compliments.) My immediate problem is, I don't know what will impress me, except without technical improvements in the first instance, it ain't gonna happen.

So then, like Connie says, I've got to let go and see what whatever/whoever takes me take me wherever, perhaps, but that's so hard for a control freak.

Aging is...

 

I've been working on quick/simple/not-serious self-portraits off and on for a while. This was taken when I was three, no, one, by an uncle who was a commercial (print advertising) photographer. I've been paying attention to shapes of face/head parts and I thought, this afternoon, that I'm going back to looking the way I did when I was very young.