Weaving

The first two weeks of this project i have spent weaving. It has been quite an intensive period in which to generate and resolve my ideas. Initaially i experimented with different patterns and yarns to try and figure out the direction i wanted to go in. At this stage though my weaves felt a bit muddled, there was too much going on in them and i needed to work on the composition.

I discovered designer Malhia Kent, following a talk from weave design studio Dash and Miller. I really like her eclectic mix of pattern and colour, it made me think of my own research of the different and unusual shapes in fairgrounds and i was inspired to take this approach in my work.

(Work by Mahlia Kent)

http://www.malhia.fr/html/fr/

(sketchbook page, coloured pencil)

I worked from my drawings to capture the qualities in them. I decided to weave the two sides of my warp separatly to achieve a nice contrast of design. It took a while to find a technique that worked for this. The above weave is still a bit rough, but i like the texture that the floats create and the spaces within it.

                                         

I think this weave is more successful, i built up a repeating pattern so that the piece is more composed yet still has a random feel to it. I also added sections of wire which create an open structure and will mean i can manipulate the shape of the weave. I intend to explore the possibilities of what the weaves can become once they are off the loom and ways i can develop them.

                           

For this piece i worked in a much more refined manner, changing the lifting pattern but not the colour and adding smaller floats of unusual yarns for a bit of texture. I like the subtle detail here and the way the warp comes through more. However because the design is so small it risks being unnoticed, i think it might work better on a larger scale, which i would be interested to explore through embroidery.