Final Weaving

Margot Gersing

I did not go into this process with a specific plan or idea in mind. I decided to approach it like this because I really enjoyed the freedom and exploration that I had when I was making the sample. Even though I didn’t  have an explicit direction for how I wanted it to turn out I knew that I wanted it to be quite graphic. Part of the reason I knew it would turn out graphic is because it is my style but I also really like the combination of bold graphic shapes and textiles. I think it is a really interesting combination to have bold defined shapes in such an organic and free flowing artform like weaving. 

Even though I didn’t plan out what the final product would look like, I wanted the piece to look cohesive. To combat this I came up with a set of heuristics that I would follow throughout. I chose a color palette and decided that there would be pops of color and the rest filled in with white. I wanted the shapes to be organic and random and for each one to have a different texture. I really enjoyed playing around with shape, color and texture and giving each shape a unique personality and character. At the bottom of the piece I wanted it to end naturally and almost suggest that it could keep going.

I learned so much about the technique of weaving from doing this project. The shapes that I made I figured out quickly were actually quite difficult to make. I ended up basically exclusively using a fork, which took a long time. After I finished the piece, there were parts of it that I wasn’t so happy about. In the critique I asked if I should add more or fix certain parts because I felt like it might need it. The class agreed that I should leave it alone, this was good to hear because if I had not asked them I probably would have kept going. If I could do this again, or for my next piece, I want to try making something much more minimalist. Both of my weavings were very busy and colorful and I think it would be a challenge but fun to try something more simple.