Kate Barber 05/07/2010
  Since graduating from the textiles program things haven't seemed to slow down what-so-ever. Among the many things I've been up to is my practicum, I've been priviledged to have the opportunity to spend time with Kate Barber for it, and man have I learned a lot. Kate has been weaving professionally for over 20 years, so she has a lot to offer. So far I've learned all the basics that I learned in school but backwards. Kate warps her loom from the back, were as we learned to warp from the front, so it's been super eye-opening to be doing things her way. She's very efficient and knows all the short-cuts. Well, I guess in weaving there is no such thing as a short cut, everything takes time, but since working with Kate I've learned how to avoid mistakes like tangling, threading mistakes and tension issues. I'm so thankful for her wisdom. In the first few days we wove two shawls in linen and wool yarns and then devored them using techniques that Kate is developing for her new line. It's pretty amazing stuff; after weaving each shawl with a mixture of wool and linen for both warp and weft we devored the scarves creating circles, sometimes in a counterchange, and then felted them which creates what Kate called a Wabi-sabi look (I think it's a term she picked up from a Japanese weaver friend which refers to its unevenness in the selvage). I think they are just beautiful! Yesterday I learned that all three of the pieces that I submitted to the grad show were chosen to be in it. We were all told we'd get one piece in it, so I'm super stoked that we all got three. Mine are the shag dress, my most recent Jacquard weaving (which I haven't shared with you yet) as well as the dress that I made with my chalice fabric. I'll be spending tomorrow stretching my Jacquard, and then off to the coast for moms day dinner. Workshop at West Point Grey 05/07/2010
   for his mom On Wednesday I took the day off from Kate's to teach a basketry workshop with Ana at West Point Grey Academy for their annual Arts Week. We had a lot of fun and were really impressed with how fast they picked up the technique. Many of kids even finished baskets within the 2 hour workshop. I was so impressed by the determination of the kids as they struggled through the beginning of the basket (the hardest part) and quickly became more independent and confident with the technique. We had three classes of about 25 kids each, so by the last class we were really efficient teachers. Grad show coming up 04/29/2010
 We're done, we're done!!!! So, now you can come and see our fabulous creations at the Textile Arts Grad Show at City Scape Gallery on 3rd and Lonsdale from May 14th-June 5th. All are welcome to attend our opening night on the 13th from 7pm - 9pm where there will eats and bevies and lots of lovely ladies to congratulate. I put my faith on a mountain top 04/23/2010
  Vancouver Registry 04/23/2010
 Our friends Jeanette and Steve are getting married in July and they've registered with a local social enterprise JustWork who has an Etsy store. I LOVE this idea. They even have their own section in the store. It's perfect because each dinner set is $75, great for the friends that are students (ie. me) and it's easy enough to double or triple the order if you're a family member etc. So smart. Also I just love knowing that their new home will be filled with hand-made ceramics, so it's fun to peek at what they've asked for. JustWork is an economic initiative who employs people with multiple barriers. There are several initiatives under the JustWork umbrella including JustPotters (as seen above), JustGarden, JustCatering and JustRepair. Process pics 04/20/2010
My imagery for this project is inspired by conversations around the church, hospitality and homosexuality. I will be attempting to wear my convictions when this fabric is made into a dress. The dominating image is that of a chalice which, in the negative spaces of stem, show two like-faces confronting each other; representing the likeness in gender among homosexuals who are in partnerships, as well as echoing the biblical scripture, 'God created man in His own image' Genesis 1:27 I am currently going to a Baptist church here in Vancouver where we are in an active and serious dialogue about this topic. I am extremely convicted about the importance of equality for gays in the church (and everywhere), and am feeling especially overwhelmed lately by the misinterpretation of the bible regarding the topic. I pounded flowers (representing hospitality) into the fabric to achieve texture and later dyed it in potassium to show the contrast of the chalices (silk) against the negative space (rayon). It is no coincidence that the faces are in the 'negative' space.  I later rusted the fabric with nails and found objects.   I then created a silkscreen of a chain and discharged the image on top, sometimes purposefully placing them across the mouths and eyes of the faces. I'm not extremely satisfied with the obvious image of a chain for the purpose of representing bondage, burden and restriction. I usually like to use more subtle imagery. For this purpose it works though since, when it is made into a dress, it will not be as obvious what they are. In some places I added chains with a foiling technique using gold foil.  mock up 04/18/2010
  Today at school I did a mock-up of the type of dress I plan to make with my chalice fabric. It's a pattern making technique developed by Julian Roberts called subtractive cutting. It is very counter-intuitive for me and challenges my spacial intelligence in a big way. Katherine Soucie, who did some work with Julian, visited our class a couple of weeks ago and gave us a demo of the process. I had challenges right off the bat with this mock-up, and it didn't really work out in the end, but it's not too bad for a first try I'd say. This fabric is very different from my chalice fabric in the way it will drape and hang off the body, so this is not a very telling photograph. I mostly wanted to experiment with the pattern making style before I cut into my precious fabric. I learned a lot and now know what not to do....(famous last words) Montreal here we come 04/17/2010
This is your new blog post. Click here and start typing, or drag in elements from the top bar.  pic by Lisa howarth I have officially received my acceptance in to the Fibres Program at Concordia University in Montreal. So, come July Danny and I (and Lily our cat too) will be leaving on a jet plane. YAY!! Beautiful Grandma Clara 04/13/2010
 I had the best visit with grandma tonight. She is doing really well; walking around and doing everything on her own. She even stood up to hug me good-bye. Painful waiting 04/10/2010
I am still waiting for a reply from Concordia regarding my acceptance in the Fall. I have been cruising Kijiji and Craiglist for apartments with much appreciated help from my friend Corrie in Montreal. I sent her a long list of possible places which turned out to be laughable in terms of location (apparently I'm not very good at deciphering distance on Google maps). My portfolio came back in the mail today, so I hope that's a good sign. Teachers and colleges keep on telling me that 'of course I'm getting in' and to continue to plan for the move to Montreal, but I know it won't seem real, and I won't begin hauling ass until I've heard from them. So, alas the wait continues. On a sadder and more important note, my lovely grandmother Clara has been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer. I found out tonight that it has spread to her liver. So, obviously she is experiencing the ultimate painful wait. It must be so surreal to know that you are going to die soon, and that you are actually saying good-bye to your loved ones forever (at least in this lifetime). I have taken a week off school to spend time with her while she is at Lions Gate Hospital here in Vancouver. My priorities have been really made clear since I heard the bad news, and especially after spending so much precious time with her. I know that being with her is all that matters, even though I am in the home stretch of my two year textiles program. My teachers have been more than understanding, giving me extensions on everything (thank you, thank you, thank you). A couple of nights ago I was visiting with her wearing one of my Penny Shrugs and she admired it all night long. I would take it off and shortly after she would ask to see it on me again. I told her that I would make her one and she happily complied but only under the condition that I do no use "that lovely fabric....it's too nice". Of course she deserves only the nicest yarn, and I made it for her today, only after she made some button choices yesterday (she chose the brown ceramic ones). I'll be seeing her tomorrow and adorning her with it, hopefully helping her feel cozy and beautiful |
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