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Ancient art form incorporates modern themes in show at St. Olaf

By David Gonnerman '90
September 12, 2003

?Layers of Meaning: The Evolution Of Pick-up Double Weave? will showcase the work of contemporary textile artists weaving with an ancient art form at St. Olaf College?s Flaten Art Museum in Northfield, Sept. 15 through Oct. 19. The show is free and open to the public.

Annie Creek - detail
A detail from "Annie Creek" by George-Ann Bowers.
The exhibition includes eight artists: George-Ann Bowers, Jan Doyle, W. Logan Fry, Elizabeth Kuhn, Jennifer Moore, Eileen O?Brien, Paul O?Connor and Marie Westerman. Westerman is also serving as guest curator for the show, joining Gallery Director Jill Ewald for the project.

These artists carry on the history of a textile form with ancient roots in Peru, Asia and Europe. Vikings introduced the form to Scandinavia, and Scandinavian weavers ? particularly in certain areas of Norway ? used pick-up double weave to create pictorial tapestries, coffin covers, coverlets and other goods. The plants and animals depicted in them carried symbolic imagery understandable in a largely illiterate culture.

This art form has inspired much experimentation and innovation in recent years. Always a challenging form of hand weaving, it continues to fascinate artists. ?Because it?s taught only in folk art form, most of these artists have managed to personalize it,? explained Westerman. Some of the show?s artists have adapted the traditional methods to modern themes.

Digital Evolution - detail
A detail from "Digital Evolution" by W. Logan Fry.
Fry learned pick-up double weave in the Norwegian tradition, but his work reflects his interest in technology and its use in recording and transmitting information. One of his works depicts a message, in bitmap format, broadcast into deep space in 1999.

O?Brien was trained to weave double cloth while living in Sweden. Now she creates textiles with folk art motifs that reflect her personal vision.

Some of the weavers adopted pick-up double weave as a natural extension of loom-controlled forms. O?Connor began to manipulate double-woven threads to create patterning he could not achieve by threading and treadling alone. Doyle achieves her playful, symbolic designs by visualizing them as she weaves, working from only a small-scale drawing.

Origin of Dreams - detail
A detail from "The Origin of Dreams" by Marie Westerman.
Westerman taught herself to use the interweaving layers of threads to render detailed, photorealistic imagery in textile form. Her pieces incorporate the images of such photographers as Ansel Adams and Jim Brandenburg. ?In this series,? she said, ?images of nature and of human technology are combined to describe the tension that exists when human intentions and expectations meet natural reality.?

Moore developed a unique approach, with one layer frequently set up in a twill pattern. Her work explores geometric patterning and mathematical progressions. Kuhn, like some of the other artists, adds a third full layer of warp and weft threads to increase color and visual impact in work that expresses her social and political concerns.

Bower?s works reflect a mastery of layered textile art. Her weavings take their inspiration from natural, geophysical forms. ?I find imagery in tree bark or rock formations,? she said. Some of her pieces are three-dimensional, incorporating surface relief and even using wire armature.

The Flaten Art Museum is located in the Dittmann Center for Art and Dance on the St. Olaf campus. Visitor parking is available in the lot adjacent to the Dittmann Center. The Gallery is open Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday, 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.; Thursday, 10 a.m. to 8 p.m.; and Saturday and Sunday, 2 p.m. to 5 p.m. Admission is free.

Contact David Gonnerman at 507-646-3315 or gonnermd@stolaf.edu.