The Weaver
My life is but a
weaving between my
Lord and me. I cannot
choose the colours;
He worketh steadily.
Oftimes He weaveth
sorrow, and I in foolish
pride forget He sees
the upper, and I the
underside.
Not 'til the loom is silent
and the shuttles cease to
fly, shall God unroll the
canvas and explain the
reason why.
The dark threads are as
needful in the Weaver's
skillful hand, as the
threads of gold and
silver in the pattern
he has planned.
VerseMarks by J-MAR
Felted picture by Rene from Christmas gift exchange
On Designing by Anni Albers- a book review written by Editor TATP.
Anni Albers' twelve essays, bound together in a book called "On Designing," puts into words the experience of the craftsman and artist.
She talks of the use of materials, to know one's materials, the need to experiment, to learn its limitations and its strengths, to immerse one's self in the material, to not be tied by any preconceived ideas about the material, to use one's intuition.
To circumvent the No of the material with the Yes of an inventive solution, that is the way new things come about - in a contest with the material. It is this knowledge that rules are the nature
of Nature, that chaos is senseless, that is thus transmitted to and through a work that is art.
Function is a very important part of the design. The designer should be anonymous in a good design. No personality in the design.
The good designer is the anonymous designer, so I believe, the one who does not stand in the
way of the material; who sends his products on their way to a useful life without ambitious
appearance.
Our crafts and our art are a personal reaction to the political and economic stresses and strains of our time. Her essays are written between the First and Second World Wars and some after World War II. She refers to nervous disorders being on the rise at a time when we have become more divorced from hands on creating. She talks of the process of taking something that Nature has produced and taking it through all the steps of production to finished project. We somehow need and thoroughly enjoy this process - something that the spinner knows, who purchases a raw fleece, washes it, cards it, spins it and knits, crochets or weaves it.
She talks of fabric in our homes, how this softens our environments which would possibly be otherwise stark and harsh. For example, carpeting, curtains, placemats, tablecloths. Function is very important, easy care qualities, keeping out light, privacy, sound barriers. Use of colour, a less permanent and less expensive use of colour that can be more easily changed. The fact that the fabrics wear out is welcome as it enables change which helps our mental health. She says that too often we fall into the trap of having too much, too many decorative features, that make the rooms too busy. We keep things too long that we made for short term use.
She discusses art versus craft. She believes that art exists for its own sake. Art is not functional.
Only in work having no immediate purpose - in art work - do we try to practise
her (Nature's) way of shaping things and thus give up our inconsistency.
Art is constant and it is complete.
At the beginning it was a little difficult getting used to her language and how she describes the art and craft experience. She puts into words what we, the craftsmens' and artists' experiences. Her forthrightness in describing 2450 craft items as useless and with little artistic value is an elitist attitude but I have had the same reaction to craft items at sales. She believes that craft MUST be functional. I enjoy her description that art can be useless, it does not need to be functional. Art has other redeeming values, of vision, expressing human values and reflecting Nature's laws of harmony, rhythm, and relationships.
Using today's standards this is an old book but the ideas are not dated. The theme of art versus craft is a constant current debate. The essay about double weave seemed a little out of context with the rest of the essays but it carried on the theme of craftsmen using their material for its best use.
I liked this book and found it thought provoking.
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We are saying farewell to Linda this month as she prepares to move to southern BC. We miss her already but we shall stay in touch.
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North Peace Spinners' and Weavers' Fibre Fling at Peace Gallery North, Fort St. John,
April 10-25, 2015. Reception on Friday evening of April 10.
Function is a very important part of the design. The designer should be anonymous in a good design. No personality in the design.
The good designer is the anonymous designer, so I believe, the one who does not stand in the
way of the material; who sends his products on their way to a useful life without ambitious
appearance.
Our crafts and our art are a personal reaction to the political and economic stresses and strains of our time. Her essays are written between the First and Second World Wars and some after World War II. She refers to nervous disorders being on the rise at a time when we have become more divorced from hands on creating. She talks of the process of taking something that Nature has produced and taking it through all the steps of production to finished project. We somehow need and thoroughly enjoy this process - something that the spinner knows, who purchases a raw fleece, washes it, cards it, spins it and knits, crochets or weaves it.
She talks of fabric in our homes, how this softens our environments which would possibly be otherwise stark and harsh. For example, carpeting, curtains, placemats, tablecloths. Function is very important, easy care qualities, keeping out light, privacy, sound barriers. Use of colour, a less permanent and less expensive use of colour that can be more easily changed. The fact that the fabrics wear out is welcome as it enables change which helps our mental health. She says that too often we fall into the trap of having too much, too many decorative features, that make the rooms too busy. We keep things too long that we made for short term use.
She discusses art versus craft. She believes that art exists for its own sake. Art is not functional.
Only in work having no immediate purpose - in art work - do we try to practise
her (Nature's) way of shaping things and thus give up our inconsistency.
Art is constant and it is complete.
At the beginning it was a little difficult getting used to her language and how she describes the art and craft experience. She puts into words what we, the craftsmens' and artists' experiences. Her forthrightness in describing 2450 craft items as useless and with little artistic value is an elitist attitude but I have had the same reaction to craft items at sales. She believes that craft MUST be functional. I enjoy her description that art can be useless, it does not need to be functional. Art has other redeeming values, of vision, expressing human values and reflecting Nature's laws of harmony, rhythm, and relationships.
Using today's standards this is an old book but the ideas are not dated. The theme of art versus craft is a constant current debate. The essay about double weave seemed a little out of context with the rest of the essays but it carried on the theme of craftsmen using their material for its best use.
I liked this book and found it thought provoking.
####################################################################################
We are saying farewell to Linda this month as she prepares to move to southern BC. We miss her already but we shall stay in touch.
##################################################################################
Happy Spinning and Weaving. Happy Spring!
