Update: Conferences, Calls for Entry, & Workshops in Australia & Tucson, AZ

alpacas grazing in Sonoita, AZ

Fibers Through Time 2008: Connections With the Past

April 3 - 6, 2008

Tucson, AZ
Sponsored by: Arizona Federation of Weavers & Spinners Guilds, Inc.

Our Board of Directors and Conference Committee are delighted to bring you Fibers Through Time 2008. Because of scheduling conflicts at the Central Arizona College, we have moved our Fifth Biennial Conference to a new site – the Holiday Inn Palo Verde in Tucson, Arizona.

We will celebrate our Connections with the Past by sharing old traditions including historic patterns in the center pieces and scarves, and learning more about the history of fibers grown in our area from our keynote speaker, Dr. Glenna Dean, as she talks with us about the Archeology of Cotton.

Please join us in learning more about our crafts and their connections to the past and be inspired to stretch our abilities and imaginations to plan for future endeavors.
Elaine Ross, President

Keynote Speaker
Glenna Dean, Ph.D.
Dr. Glenna Dean's fascination with archaeology was sparked by 1950's National Geographics and her mother's few recollections of her own grandmother's Cherokee childhood. Glenna acted on this fascination by beginning her college archaeological field school the week after graduating from high school. Glenna says “I guess I was born curious about the past – I’ve been fascinated by how people lived in the past ever since I learned to read. I’ve always wanted to be able to experience first-hand what I’ve read about too, so I learned to spin and weave and dye yarns and make clothes and tan hides and all kinds of things. I love touching the past, whether it be an artifact or the pollen grains left in a pot from cooking supper a thousand years ago.”

Holding graduate degrees in archaeology and botany, Glenna specializes in archaeobotany, the study of people's interactions with plants as revealed in charred seeds, broken plant parts, pollen grains, basketry, sandals, and other textiles made of plant fibers. She came to the Historic Preservation Division, part of the Department of Cultural Affairs, State of New Mexico in 1994 and became the New Mexico State Archaeologist in October 1997. Her job is largely public outreach, meaning that she gives talks to groups, writes articles for publication, helps get important archaeological sites listed on the State Register of Cultural Property and the National Register of Historic Places, and stages the New Mexico Archaeology Fair in a different small town every year. She also works with the Office of the Medical Investigator, law enforcement officers and Indian tribes on the best things to do after human bones are accidentally discovered by hikers or during construction.

“The Archaeology of Cotton”, her keynote topic, seems straightforward enough: cotton was grown by Ancestral Puebloans in New Mexico and Arizona before the advent of Columbus. Spanish explorers remarked on the cotton fields lining the Rio Grande in the 16 and 17 centuries before sheep and wool c th th ompletely replaced the native crop. Cotton is the “natural” fiber of choice in today’s society. What’s the big deal? Prepare to be entertained and enlightened!

Juror’s Choice Exhibit
Claire Campbell Park, Juror
Claire Campbell Park is an artist, lecturer and curator. Her interests include color, fiber, mixed media, sculpture, weaving, basketry and cultural diversity. She received an M.F.A. from UCLA in 1978, and immediately became Head of the Color and Fiber areas at Pima Community College in Tucson, Arizona. Pima Community College is the nation’s eighth largest community college with 75,000 students. Teaching at Pima Community College has given Claire the opportunity to work with thousands of students from extremely varied geographical, cultural, economic, vocational and educational backgrounds and this has led to a creative philosophy that is both inspiring and accessible to a broad audience.

Claire exhibits and lectures nationally and internationally. Exhibits include “Made in California 1900-2000: Art, Image and Identity” Los Angeles County Museum of Art, “The Twelfth International Biennial of Miniature Textiles” Szombathely, Hungary and “The International Textile Competition” Kyoto, Japan. Lecture venues include the Louvre and Ecole Nationale Sup6rieure des Arts D6coratifs, Paris; Seian College of Art, Kyoto; Apeejay College of Fine Arts, Jalandhar, India; and the University of South Australia, Adelaide. Claire researched Moroccan textiles and served as an exhibit consultant for the Textile Museum in Washington, D.C.

Claire also leads retreats and workshops on Creativity, Culture and Spirituality - most recently for the Newman Center at the University of Arizona, and on Seeing Color and Light for the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum.

Conference Schedule
Thursday, April 3
Pre-conference tours
Wine and Cheese Party 6:30 to 8:30 pm
(transportation provided)
Registration 1:00 to 7:00 pm

Friday, April 4
Workshops 8:30 to 11:30 am
Vendors 11:00 to 5:00 pm
Workshops 1:00 to 4:00 pm
Vendors 7:30 to 9:00 pm
Dinner 5:30 pm
Keynote Speaker

Saturday, April 5
Workshops 8:30 to 11:30 am
Vendors 11:00 to 5:00 pm
Workshops 1:00 to 4:00 pm
Vendors 7:30 to 9:00 pm
Dinner 5:30 pm
Awards

Sunday, April 6
Workshop visitation 8:00 to 9:00 am
Workshops 9:00 to 12:00 pm
Vendors 10:00 a.m. to close

Juror’s Choice Exhibit will be open during lunch breaks Friday, Saturday and Sunday, one hour before the start of morning workshops Saturday and Sunday and Friday and Saturday evenings from 5:00 to 9:00 PM. Volunteers will monitor the gallery during these times. Participants must deliver their entries to the Barcelona room off the main lobby no later than Friday morning at 8:00AM. All entries must be picked up at 1:00PM on Sunday.

For complete information regarding the conference, visit the Arizona Federation of Weavers & Spinners Guilds website to view a downloadable version of the registration booklet. You do not need to be a member of an Arizona guild to register!

custom tapestry forks by John Jenkins of Magpie Woodworks

TAPESTRY 2008: The Fine Art of Weaving

April - May, 2008

Australia

Contemporary woven tapestry's rich colours, strong images, tactile and malleable surfaces, range of scale from small to monumental, and handcrafted expertise, make it an exciting artistic medium. It possesses a powerful physical presence and is able to impart permanence through its timeless qualities together with images relevant to the modern world.

It has a short history in Australia, developed through the contemporary craft movement, community tapestry projects, the Victorian Tapestry Workshop and other artists and arts organizations. The main influences here are from European traditions dating back to the medieval period. In the Renaissance, Raphael's tapestry cartoons depicting the “Acts of the Apostles” established a close relationship between teams of tapestry artisans and painters. This way of working continued through to William Morris who brought about changes in design for tapestry, refined the use of colour and reinstated tapestry as an art form of its own right. French painter Jean Lurcat and Scottish master weaver Archie Brennan then developed and shaped the European and related North American and Australian movements in the 20thC. However other models for tapestry production exist in Scandinavia, South America, the Middle East and Asia where images intrinsically linked to the warp and weft structure are produced, with no reference to painting. In these cultures tapestry is firmly part of weaving culture. This project highlights the global diversity of tapestry and the exciting new developments in relation to weaving/Fine Art. The aim is to increase a wider understanding, create awareness and appreciation, encourage critical debate and provide alternative models for artists to develop. Through this stimulation tapestry can continue to evolve into relevant forms for the future.

THE PROGRAM – 2 APRIL-7 MAY 2008, Canberra, Australia
“TAPESTRY 2008” builds on the momentum of previous events in Australia and overseas and explores the relationships between visual art, tapestry and the craft of weaving, internationally. It brings together weavers in the community, professional practitioners, educators, students, collectors, critics, theorists and historians from around the world for exchange of ideas, interaction, practical learning, exposure to new works and informed debate. The conference stimulates critical discussion and the program of exhibitions, focussed talks with tapestries in collections and institutions including National Gallery of Australia, Parliament House, Department of Foreign Affairs plus practical workshops and seminars reaches a wide audience and provides development opportunities for artists.

The Conference – Friday 2- Saturday 3 May 2008, The Australian National University, School of Art.
Papers presented on tapestry and its relationship to art/weaving to investigate and seek solutions to issues of originality, creative content, authenticity and appropriateness of design process with a view to developing the art practice. Themes addressed include but are not restricted to:
Sharing experiences and the relationship of the artist/weaver to tapestry
Investigations of the techniques of weaving and tapestry cross-culturally
Community engagement with tapestry to create a sustainable and relevant future
Increasing the profile - collectors, the patron and tapestry for public places
Cultural diversity – tapestry from specific cultural traditions
Engaging with new technologies and applications - contemporary developments/perspectives
Creating greater income for artists through design, collaboration, industry involvement
Creative marketing, web profile and raising public awareness
Producing opportunities for international exposure and commissions

Master classes and Seminar Program – 30 April – 7 May
Workshops with leading professional artists to investigate approaches to technique/design/image-making including 3-hour seminars on developing professional skills and running a community tapestry project.

Exhibition Program – 2 April – 4 May
Lao PDR Tapestry: “Weaving Dreams and Aspirations”
ANU, School of Art Foyer
Fine silk tapestries from the rich artistic tradition of Laos where the weaver works directly at the loom creating a composition of patterns, symbols and motifs. She invests her life in the fabric and it tells of her hopes, dreams, ambitions, sense of self and position in the world.

“The Fine Art of Tapestry Weaving”
School of Art Gallery
Aino Kajaniemi, Finland, Susan Mowatt, Scotland, Yasuko Fujino, Japan, Sue Lawty, GB, Sara Lindsay, Australia, Jane Kidd, Canada and Fiona Rutherford, GB.

“LAND”
The Tapestry Foundation of Victoria Open Entry International Award Exhibition to encourage emerging artists and recognise professional artists.

“En Pleine Air Tapestries - A Month at Bundanon: Tapestries and Drawings by Cresside Collette”
curated by Alison French, at the Drill Hall Gallery, Canberra.
There will be focussed talks at public venues displaying tapestries in Canberra .

ARTISTIC BENEFITS and OUTCOME
The program will take place 20 years on from the International Tapestry Symposium, held in Melbourne in 1988. This previous event was the first truly global event of its kind in the world and the impact was far-reaching. In the last two decades there have been considerable changes that have impacted on the field in a range of arenas including economies, interest in minority/traditional/sustainable cultures, directions of art/architecture/design to the exploding world of technology. What place has tapestry now? Finding the answers to this question is crucial for the dynamic future of this art form. The program for TAPESTRY 2008 has been carefully considered and designed to address the emerging issues and to seek solutions. As such there are many anticipated opportunities and outcomes for artists and the wider public.
Bringing people together from many traditions, fields of art practice and countries will be an important aspect as many individual artists work in isolation; groups are separated by distance, financial constraints and lack of networks encompassing the breadth of the weaving/tapestry/art field. Often artists are pigeon-holed in art, craft, design fields and not provided with the opportunity to cross-fertilise ideas and ways of working or practically work across/between or change disciplines. Participants will be able to engage in discussion, compare techniques and consider new approaches, stimulating ways to move forward. They will be able to practically engage in master classes to learn weaving/tapestry/art skills from their own discipline or another. Tapestry 2008 will re-invigorate the perception of the practice, introduce emerging artists to the field, arm professional practitioners with new perspectives and professional skills and confirm a valued place for tapestry in the cultural landscape.

****Information subject to change. Please e-mail: Valerie.Kirk@anu.edu.au and ask to be added to the TAPESTRY 2008 group mailing list if you are not already on the list.*********************


Call for entry:

THE AUSTRALIAN NATIONAL UNIVERSITY
“LAND”
The Tapestry Foundation of Victoria
Award Exhibition
The Australian National University, School of Art
9 APRIL – 3 MAY 2008

Laura Stewart, “In My Garden” detail

A major tapestry event will be held in Canberra, Australia in 2008. There will be a program of
exhibitions, focussed talks with tapestries in collections and institutions, practical workshops, seminars and symposium, TAPESTRY 2008: The Fine Art of Weaving 1-4 MAY 2008. This will build on the momentum of previous events in Australia and will explore the relationships between Fine Art, Tapestry and Weaving. The event will bring together practitioners, educators, students, collectors, critics, theorists and historians for exchange of ideas, interaction, practical learning, exposure to new works and informed debate. In recognition of the strength of contemporary tapestry world wide, there will be an open submission award exhibition.

EXHIBITION ENTRY
1. Tapestries must address the theme “LAND”. This could be but is not restricted to depicting the landscape from traditional or non traditional perspectives, dealing with issues of land
ownership, preservation of land, economics/social/cultural/spiritual issues relating to land,
ecology, environmental issues etc
2. The exhibition is open to all tapestry weavers internationally. Students through to professional weavers are encouraged to submit works.
3. The tapestry must measure 10 cm in height by as long as you want (i.e. horizontal landscape
format). Tapestries will be hung in one line with space between the works at eye level.
4. No frames, but tapestries finished off ready to hang by pinning or Velcro sewn on the back.
5. There will be a major award of $1000 and an award of $500 for an emerging artist (student or working in tapestry for less than 5 years).
6. The judge’s decision will be final and no correspondence will be entered into.
7. Entries must be delivered to ANU, School of Art, Textiles Building 105 ACTON ACT 0200,
AUSTRALIA, by 21 March 2008. They must be free of all freight and other charges.
8. An A4 page with a title, an artist’s statement about the work, details of the artist, sketch or
design work for the tapestry, suitable to photocopy and present in a folder for viewers to access
should accompany the work in hard copy and in digital form on CD if possible.
9. Artist’s name and title of the work must be attached to the back of the tapestry.
10. Entry form must be returned with the work.
11. Insurance for the work in transit and while at the gallery is the responsibility of the artist.
12. Sales of work can be arranged directly between buyer and artist.
13. It is the responsibility of the artist to arrange and pay for the return freight of the work within 2 weeks of the exhibition closing.
Please distribute this information to anyone else interested.
Please e-mail an expression of interest in participating to: Valerie.Kirk@anu.edu.au
……………………………………………………………………………………………………………
ENTRY FORM
The Tapestry Foundation of Victoria Award Exhibition
The Australian National University, School of Art 9 APRIL – 3 MAY 2008
Entries and forms must be delivered to ANU, School of Art, Textiles Building 105 ACTON ACT
0200, AUSTRALIA, by 21 March 2008. They must be free of all freight and other charges.
Name
Address
Phone number
Email
Established artist or emerging artist/student
Permission to use image of tapestry for publicity yes no ?
Title of Tapestry
Date of production Dimensions
Details for return of work:
Artist’s Checklist:
_ Entry Form
_ A4 statement/bio/etc hardcopy and if possible on cd.
_ Tapestry finished and ready to hang with pins/Velcro on back
_ Artist’s name and title of work on back of tapestry
TO BE DELIVERED to ANU, School of Art, Textiles, Building 105 ACTON ACT 0200,
AUSTRALIA, by 21 March 2008.