September 2022 Program – Susan Brooks – Textile Artist, Author Teacher

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HGB September 2022 Program – S. Brooks

Susan Brooks – Textile Artist • Author • Teacher

Handweavers Guild of Boulder
September 2022 Day & Evening Program

Susan tells us:

Creating art using fabrics and papers provides the opportunity to build layers giving a sense of protection, safety, and security. I create my own fabrics through dyeing, botanical printing, resists, and painting and then am able to add dimension and detail through the use of stitches. I have focused on the elements in plants to imprint the images of leaves and flowers to create another layer of delicate beauty and interest.

Differing techniques are used to express differing emotions. Deconstructed silk printing is used for a very organic look. The use of painting thicken dyes on plastic has been used for my women monoprints. The morphing of the dyes give a feel of surrealism. Botanical dyeing, plant-based dyes, and prints, introduce the beauty of nature into my work. The love of the stitching, connecting threads, to hold the pieces together.

The tactile feel and visual beauty of fabric has been a motivation to creativity. As a child, I was fascinated by the possibility of transforming a flat piece of cloth into a uniquely crafted article of clothing. After a journey of making dolls, garments, and quilts, I am now driven to experiment with new techniques in dyeing, painting, and embellishing fabric. I enjoy sharing my passion with others by teaching these techniques and broadening my own exploration in fabric art. My aspiration is to tell a story, engage the viewer in a dialogue and challenge them to a deeper emotional experience.

I Hear Your Voice:  Art Inspired by Listening to Marginalized Women

After almost 8 years volunteering in the women’s prison and currently going in as a visitor, Susan has learned to listen to the women, their stories, and the longing in their hearts to be whole and healthy. Women have profoundly influenced her art she has met not only in prison, but women who have been trafficked, fighting cancer battles, in the struggle to realize their value, as well as refuges raising their families in hostile lands.

The Healing Art of Hand Stitch

Susan will take us on her journey of learning the art of hand stitch and how it led to a deeper and more profound experience. She will share her own vulnerable family history and how long periods of stitching made the connection between the eyes, hands, head and heart ultimately leading to personal freedom.

Learn more about Susan at https://susanbrookstextileartist.com

  • September 12, 2022 – Guild Day Meeting 10:00 am
    I Hear Your Voice:  Art Inspired By Listening To Marginalized Women
  • September 13, 2022 – Guild Evening Meeting 7:00 pm
    The Healing Art Of Hand Stitch
  • Handweavers Guild of Boulder monthly meetings are open to the public and held at the Mountain View Methodist Church
  • Meeting details – https://handweaversofboulder.org/meetings.html

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May 2022 Program – Al Canner – Cavandoli Weaving, Macramé & Knotting

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Al Canner – Cavandoli Weaving, Macramé & Knotting

Handweavers Guild of Boulder
May 2022 Day & Evening Program

 

Al Canner began creating macramé works, both wall-hanging and sculptural, in the 1970s. Since his retirement from professional pursuits in 2013, he has devoted much of his energy to knotting, usually producing five or six works each year. His pieces have been shown at local, national, and international juried exhibits.

Beyond Plant Hangers and Owls: Knotting in Three Dimensions

Al will discuss the kind of knotting that he does (known alternately as Cavandoli weaving/knotting/macramé) and show selected pieces from his body of work, highlighting techniques that he has developed over the years and demonstrating the result of innovative approaches, such as juxtaposing cords of significantly different gauge.

The Power of the Double Half-Hitch

Building upon the themes introduced in the morning talk to the Guild, Al will delve into the various techniques that he has developed—or, in some cases, stumbled upon—in his knotting journey. Included will be various techniques for mounting cord and beginning a work, for creating bulges and indentations, for fashioning corners and curves, and for finishing.

Learn more about Al at https://www.cannerfiberart.com/

  • May 9, 2022 – Guild Day Meeting 10:00 am
    Beyond Plant Hangers and Owls: Knotting in Three Dimensions
    Email president@handweaversofboulder.org for Zoom access information
  • May 10, 2022 – Guild Evening Meeting 7:00 pm
    The Power of the Double Half-Hitch
    Email eveningchair@handweaversofboulder.org for Zoom access information
  • Handweavers Guild of Boulder monthly meetings are open to the public – non-members please email the appropriate contact link for Zoom access information.

www.handweaversofboulder.org
www.hgbsale.org
www.facebook.com/HandweaversGuildBoulder/
www.instagram.com/boulderhandweaversguild/

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April 2022 Program – Liz Spear – Handwoven Art to Wear

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Liz Spear – Handwoven Art to Wear

Handweavers Guild of Boulder
April 2022 Day & Evening Program

 

Liz Spear is a maker of handwoven fabrics, and more recently has been incorporating nuno felt into her designer creations as well as surface design fabrics from fellow fiber artists. These collaborations, known as Liz Spear & Friends invigorate her creativity and emphasize the one-of-a-kind nature of her clothing. She exhibits these garments mostly in North Carolina as well as the HGA Convergence conference.

She grew up in Minnesota, in the Mississippi River Valley attending Winona State and St. Cloud State University. She became a full- time craftswoman in 1978, working with clay. While in Iowa she made “pots” in the Earthworks studio of Alexander.  During that time her weaving interests prompted her to collect yarn, threads, fabrics, looms and begin weaving a few rag rugs.  In 1992, Liz attended Haywood Community College’s Professional Crafts Program in Western North Carolina, where she developed her studio practice of weaving yardage and cutting and sewing that yardage into comfortable, classic garments for women.

Liz spends part of each year teaching and mentoring students through workshops and demonstrations. She is a member of Southern Highlands Craft Guild. She has taught at John C. Campbell Folk School, Penland School of Craft, and Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts.

More of Liz’s work can be viewed at lizspearhandwoven.com

Photo & Credits: Liz Spear

  • April 11, 2022 – Day Guild Meeting 10:00 am
    Run…away Fashion from the Hands of Makers
    A trunk show of inspiration
    Email president@handweaversofboulder.org for Zoom access information
  • April 12, 2022 – Night Guild Meeting 7:00 pm
     Composing and Combining Textiles
    An evening chat with Liz
    Email eveningchair@handweaversofboulder.org for Zoom access information
  • Handweavers Guild of Boulder monthly meetings are open to the public – non-members please email the appropriate contact link for Zoom access information.

 

www.handweaversofboulder.org
www.hgbsale.org
www.facebook.com/HandweaversGuildBoulder/
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March 2022 Program – Karen Pierce – 44 Years of Basketmaking

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HGB March 2022 Program – K. Pierce

Karen Pierce – Taking Stock: 44 Years of Basketmaking

Handweavers Guild of Boulder
March 2022 Day & Evening Program

 

Karen Pierce – Willow Bend Studios – Colorado Springs, Colorado

Karen uses traditional basket weaving techniques and materials from around the world in unconventional ways to create one-of-a-kind pieces. She weaves free hand without molds and color the fibers with dye or paint.

Weaving is a slow and rhythmic process that is like a form of meditation. As a piece grows, she loves to watch seemingly lifeless materials join to form a new body of their own with a unique look, touch and smell.

HGB March 2022 Program – K. Pierce

Karen Pierce started weaving baskets when she was in her mid-twenties. Four-plus decades later, she and ceramist husband Marc Jenesel create one-of-a-kind Raku and woven fiber sculpture in their studios in Colorado Springs, Colorado. They show their work at galleries and high-end juried craft exhibitions in the U.S. Karen will share with us her journey of applying what she has learned to her own unique style of fiber art.

More details on the HGB website – www.handweaversofboulder.org

 

  • March 14, 2022 – Day Guild Meeting 10:00 am
    Growth and Change
    Email president@handweaversofboulder.org for Zoom access information
  • March 15, 2022 – Evening Guild Meeting 7:00 pm
    Learning to Adapt
    Email eveningchair@handweaversofboulder.org for Zoom access information
  • Handweavers Guild of Boulder monthly meetings are open to the public – non-members please email the appropriate contact link for Zoom access information.

www.handweaversofboulder.org
www.hgbsale.org
www.facebook.com/HandweaversGuildBoulder/
www.instagram.com/boulderhandweaversguild/

2022 Colorado Weavers Day – Craft & Community

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Colorado Weavers Day will be here before you know it!

The Handweavers Guild of Boulder is the host for the 2022 Colorado Weavers Day events.

Colorado Weavers Day, is an exciting time to meet other weavers and spinners across our state, learn what other guilds are doing, and be inspired by our wonderful crafts of weaving and spinning.

Our theme this year, Craft and Community, along with our terrific line up of speakers, will be inspirational and energizing.

Event Fee: $20.00 – two-day Zoom presentation – open to the public

Register Online: Register with a credit card on-line until May 4, 2022 
https://handweaversofboulder.org/cwd.html

Register by Mail: Download form and register by mail until April 15, 2022
https://handweaversofboulder.org/resources/Documents/cwd2022/CWD2022-registration-form.pdf

Subscribe to Colorado Weavers Day for updates: https://handweaversofboulder.org/cwd.html

February 2022 Program – Carol James – The Sprang Lady

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HGB February 2022 Program – C. James

Carol James – The Sprang Lady – Low-tech Textile Methods

Handweavers Guild of Boulder
February 2022 Day & Evening Program

 

Carol James has been exploring low-tech textile methods for 30 years focusing more recently on the technique called sprang. She has examined sprang items in collections across the US and Europe, and is known for her ability to replicate these historic textiles. She has created modern garments deemed worthy of the Handweavers Guild of America fashion show.

Carol has taught in Canada, the US, Europe, and New Zealand. Students describe her as patient, knowledgeable, and passionate. She spent much of her COVID time charting sprang lace designs and writing instruction sheets. She is the author of numerous articles, 4 books, and 2 instructional DVDs.

More details on the HGB website

Learn more about Carol at https://www.spranglady.com/

 

January 2022 Program – Lynn Smetko – Weaving by Design

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HGB January 2022 Program – L Smetko

Lynn Smetko – Weaving by Design

Handweavers Guild of Boulder
January 2022 Day & Evening Program

 

Lynn Smetko, a weaver of 25 years, enjoys the design phase of weaving the most. She combines a fascination with weaving, technology and art when designing for her 40-shaft computer-assisted loom. Photo-editing and weaving software are used to create weave plans that not only define fabric, but an entire piece. Lynn is a past president of Complex Weavers, past editor of the CW Journal, past president of the Fort Worth Weavers Guild, and also belongs to Cross Country Weavers, Contemporary Handweavers of Texas, Dallas Handweavers and Spinners Guild, and HGA. Her articles have appeared in the CW Journal and Weavers.

 

 

Design Deliberations 

Designing can be hard work. Do you have trouble deciding what or how to design for weaving? Are there too many choices or not enough? Are you stuck in a rut with your designs? Sometimes the best ideas come from considering the work of others. Many different approaches to weave design will be explored while looking at inspiring examples.

A Design Journey 

Follow one of Lynn’s design journeys which will take you through the many deliberations inherent in the design process. We will look at how a design begins with an inspiration and follow it through creating a draft, weaving, evaluation, and display. We will also see how one design can lead into another, improving the concept with each iteration.

 

More details on the HGB website

Peggy Turchette – The Pavlova Project

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HGB December 2021 Program – P. Turchette

Peggy Turchette – The Pavlova Project

Handweavers Guild of Boulder
December 2021 Day & Evening Program

 

The Pavlova Project – A Collection Exploring the Life and Art of Anna Pavlova

The Pavlova Project, in simplest terms, is a “Visual Biography.” It tells the life story of a real historical person, Anna Pavlova (1881-1931), who was not only the most famous ballerina of her day, but also a bold and pioneering woman with her own ballet company who travelled across the entire world. I tell this story through the costumes and fashions that she wore.

Included with Pavlova in my collection are her friends, teachers, dance partners, and other important people in her life. Through archival photographs and the written word, I have meticulously researched almost 100 costumes and fashions and have recreated them in one-quarter scale. They are presented on 16” vinyl manufactured dolls which serve as mannequins.

Every outfit I have recreated has a story of its own, and if the dressed mannequins are viewed in chronological order, they tell the story of Anna Pavlova from her childhood in Russia in the 1880’s, all the way to her final performance in London in 1930. I drew inspiration for my project from a famous collection of miniature fashions called Le Theatre de la Mode, which was created after World War II by the couture houses in Paris. This collection, displayed on wire mannequins, celebrated the survival of the fashion industry in Paris following four years of Nazi occupation. It toured the world in 1947, the year I was born.

Peggy Turchette:  Artist’s Bio

I grew up in Boston, Massachusetts and attended the New England School of Art & Design, concentrating in Commercial Illustration. While still in school I began working as freelance illustrator, always supplementing my art income with dog walking. In 2003 I moved to Boulder, Colorado, where I continued freelancing and dog walking while attending the School of Botanical Art & Illustration at The Denver Botanic Gardens. In 2010 I reluctantly closed my illustration studio and turned to dog walking as my full-time job, while caring for elderly parents.

Meanwhile, I had become enchanted with the extraordinary story of ballerina Anna Pavlova, a story that right away I knew was one worthy of being shared with others. There was no one collection anywhere in the world dedicated to this ground-breaking woman. I realized that as a visual artist I had a unique opportunity to introduce Pavlova to contemporary audiences in a completely original way. This collection is what I came up with. It is my way of sharing Anna Pavlova’s story with you.

Anna Pavlova (1881-1931):  Historical Notes

Anna Pavlova lived in a time of shifting societal values, of war and revolution, a global pandemic, economic inequalities, and political uncertainties: vast numbers of struggling or displaced persons were on the move. In short, it was a time with many similarities to our own. But in an era when most women were entirely dependent on men and rarely left their domestic environs, Pavlova made it her mission in life to introduce her art form to others. For the first half of her life she trained and then performed at the Imperial Ballet in St. Petersburg, Russia. Then, for the following two decades, she and her troupe continuously crisscrossed the globe by steamer ship and locomotive, performing thousands of times in large cities and small villages.

She believed deeply in the power of dance to promote a less divisive, more harmonious world. Wholeheartedly embracing peoples of other cultures, her performances bridged ethnic, religious, and political divides. She connected to a wide variety of audiences in a way both universal and intensely personal. Anna Pavlova’s exceptional life, her unflinching dedication to her art, and, most of all, her generous spirit of inclusivity. still resonate with and delight us today.

More details on the HGB website
Visit the Pavlova Project on Instagram https://www.instagram.com/pavlovaproject/

  • December 13, 2021 – Day Guild Meeting 10:00 am
    Email president@handweaversofboulder.org for Zoom access information
  • December 14, 2021 – Evening Guild Meeting 7:00 pm
    Email eveningchair@handweaversofboulder.org for Zoom access information
  • Handweavers Guild of Boulder monthly meetings are open to the public – non-members please email the appropriate contact link for Zoom access information.

www.handweaversofboulder.org
www.hgbsale.org
www.facebook.com/HandweaversGuildBoulder/
www.instagram.com/boulderhandweaversguild/

 

 

Luana Rubin – Founder of eQuilter.com

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HGB November 2021 Programs – L Rubin

Luana Rubin – Founder of eQuilter.com

Handweavers Guild of Boulder
November 2021 Day & Evening Program

 

International Quilt Trends
Take a trip around the world with over 200 quilt images featuring trends in contemporary quiltmaking. See how quilters in different countries use their own culture as inspiration for unique works of art, and how the minimalism of Modern Quilting continues to expand as a design trend.

Color trends and techniques will be discussed, in this review of quilt art trends over the last year. Includes quilts from virtual exhibits from around the world during the pandemic, and future trends for quiltmaking as we emerge from the last challenging year. Be sure to bring a notebook to jot down ideas for your next year of quiltmaking and fiber art!

My Creative Life – 40 Years of Color, Fabric and Design
Luana Rubin is the co-owner and president of eQuilter.com in Boulder Colorado, and has worked as a designer in the quilt, textile, and garment industries since 1980. She is a Bernina Ambassador, and a chairholder in the Color Marketing Group, an international color forecasting association.

After getting a degree in Fashion Design at Fashion Institute of Design in Los Angeles, she worked as an import designer in Los Angeles, Hong Kong and New York. Upon discovering the quilting world in 1990, she and her husband Paul started eQuilter.com in the basement of their home in 1999.

eQuilter is a sponsor of quilt exhibitions, contests and quilt museums in the US and around the world. eQuilter also donates 2% of sales to charity, and they have raised over US$1.8 million for a variety of international non-profits.

Luana and eQuilter have been profiled in many US and International magazines, and she has been a frequent guest on PBS quilting shows – Quilting Arts TV and Fresh Quilting. Her Flickr photo pages have over 12,000 photos from quilt shows and travels around the world, with over 17 million views.  She has traveled to 49 countries, and given lectures in Asia, Australia & New Zealand, South Africa, Canada, Mexico, France, Russia, and the UK.

Luana lives in Boulder Colorado with her husband and business partner Paul, their 2 Goldens and 3 rescue cats, next to Celestial Seasonings Tea Factory.

More details on the HGB website

 

October 2021 Program – Deb Robson – Author – The Fleece & Fiber Source Book

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HGB October 2021 Programs – D Robson

Deb Robson – Author of The Fleece & Fiber Source Book

Handweavers Guild of Boulder
October 2021 Day & Evening Program

 

 

You will be mesmerized listening to Deb Robson share with you her journey as she spent four years spinning every fiber-grown-by-an-animal that she could get her hands on, and working with livestock expert Carol Ekarius to write The Fleece & Fiber Source Book, and later The Field Guide to Fleece.  These  books complete the circle of breeds and their wool for fiber lovers.

Understanding the origins and characteristics of the animals that produce your favorite fibers enhances your experience as you spin, knit, weave, and dye, adding depth and meaning to the crafts you love.  Deb began spinning in the 1970s and began noticing that hand spinners valued breeds that were often listed as “at risk of extinction” by the livestock conservation groups.

Robson has been a free-lance editor working both fiction and nonfiction, including a dozen years as editor of Spin-Off magazine, was born and raised in the Midwest, has lived across the US from New England to the Pacific Northwest, and currently lives in Fort Collins.  She is featured in a set of instructional DVDs called Handspinning Rare Wools, and presents hands-on workshops.  You can sign up for Deb’s on line newsletter to hear more about her adventures with wool.

• The Magic of Wool: You Can’t Make Anything Like It in a Lab Learn why wool’s properties are almost unbelievable – and not quite predictable.  And why it is one of the foundations of civilization and why Deb believes it can be one of its salvations.  Deb suggests that when we push the boundaries of what we know about wool, we also push the boundaries of what we think our crafts are, or can be.

• Rare Sheep and Their Wool: Treasures We Can’t Afford to Lose Deb will talk about who decides that a breed is rare (and how), and what breeds (and categories) of breeds are rare (and why). And then she will discuss why we need to keep these breeds around – both as fiber artisans and as members of human civilization. If time permits, she’ll also cover the different channels for processing wool and what to expect from each (large-scale industry, small-scale mechanical, and hand processing).

More of Deb’s work can be viewed at independentstitch.com

More details on the HGB website