I am a process artist. What does that even mean? What kind of bullshit art language am I throwing around? Let me explain what this means to me as an artis. The definition of process art is “where the pocess of making art is not hidden but remains a prominent aspect of the completed work.”
Recently, I had the pleasure of reconnecting with an old friend Kris who, in some ways, has lead a parallel existence. She is a project manager by day and like myself, she managed to find her way to the spinning wheel some time ago. I’ve always known her to be a bit of a “Renaissance
Anne Merrow, one of Spin-Off’s editors posted a great article a while back titled When Spinning Teachers Disagree. I thought this is an important article to share, as it aligns strongly with what I teach in my spinning lessons. The answer to every question is “It depends.” One of my favorite phrases is “we live in
Following PlyAway, I always come home renewed with lots of good ideas. Today, I wanted to talk about the term “art yarn.” I had a great class with Devin Helmen this year. Devin has been spinning on spindles for more than thirty years. He is published in both Ply and Spin-Off magazines and has some
I often promote in my streams and classes the need to support local farms. This is our supply chain. Call me selfish, but I want to ensure that I can still get the fiber I want five, ten or twenty-five years down the road. The fiber arts community is small; only we can help it
Recently, a viewer in our live stream pointed out that when I talk about my job as a librarian, I always use the phrase, “I get to…” For example, I often say “I get to go to work” instead of “I have to go to work.” I also tend to use this same language when
What is the first thing you think about when you think of fiber arts and spinning? I bet its not mentorship! But perhaps it should be. Mentorship is one of the real driving forces behind the resurgence of fiber arts since the 1970s. Even with the advent of specialty publications and the internet, skills are
Let’s start today with a hot button topic; diversity. When we look at the roots of spinning and weaving across the world, spinning is, in some way, a part of every cultural heritage across the globe. However, when you attend a fiber event, like PlyAway, Stitches West, or the Wisconsin Sheep and Wool Festival (or
Guest post by Dorothy from Dorothydrinkslondon.wordpress.com Instagram Dorothydrinksldn A review of London pubs by Dorothy Gale. You know, that little Kansas girl that basically saved Oz? Well, she’s grown up now, and not drinking in Kansas anymore, Toto. Ever wonder what type of alcohol represents a type of fiber? Well, we have put our
Now where, as in most cases, the spinning motivation is the spinner’s enjoyment, not the yarn, and where, for reasons of psychic economy, that enjoyment need is frequently satisfied at a low level of achievement, there is consequently little drive on the part of the spinner to spin better. We cannot argue that there should
