Icelandic Textile Center Art Residency Catalog
2019
Icelandic Textile Center Art Residency Catalog 2019
Terese Molin Klara Espmark Hanna Norrna Marie Van Praag Meg Rodger Britta Fluevog Kelly Ruth Barbara Dinnage Aya Tsukui Sanna Vatanen Allyce Wood Johanna Norry Sarah Finkle Emma Shepherd Linda Barlow Susan Purney Mark Janet A Sanders Morris Fox Dana Buzzee Delia Salter Jennifer Jones Annette Mills Tara Kennedy Mariaan Pugh Hannah Epstein AKA hanski Liilian Saksi Monika Rauh Sandra Leandersson Selene Gaytán Anne-Marie Groulx Diane Deery Richards Edina Széles Lisbeth Degn Helia Paulina Mejía Ffranses Ingram Anja Alexandersdottir Carol Cooke Mireia Coromina Portas Päivi Vaarula Chardi Christian Lina Svarauskaite Kelly Thompson Orit Freilich Petter Hellsing Josefin Tingvall Marion Gouez Rachel Simkover Marion Hingston Lamb Elizabeth Schweizer My Kirsten Dammand Cindy Weil Deborah Gray Marled Mader Sofie Karlsson Angie Y. To Heather MacKenzie
Terese Molin Sweden
I drew influence from the environment in Blönduós. The light and colours of the sky, water, snow and air. Weaving landscape images that represent both my inner images of longing and sentiment together with the views that were presented to me in Blönduós. I’ve been showing the two weavings I made at a small gallery outside of Gothenburg, Sweden and am now working on new pieces with the horizon as an overall theme. I’m very pleased with the working period and wish to return someday.
Reflection 101 x 117 cm cotton, linen dyeing, double weave photo by Terese Molin
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January 2019
Stillness is the move 175 x 117 cm cotton, linen dyeing, double weave photo by Terese Molin
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Klara Espmark Sweden
I came to the Icelandic Textile Center with an open mind and without a fixed idea of what I would be working with during the stay. I was curious to see how the landscape and the surroundings would influence my work and what would come out of my month in Blönduós. I work mainly with embroidery and I am interested in nature, memories, time, stillness and repetition. During my stay at the Textile Center I began working on two embroideries, both in their way influenced by the landscape that surrounded me. One depicted a mountain horizon, a mix of a personal memory and the stunning view that met my eye every time I looked out the studio window. In my other work I took another perspective, studying a tiny lichen and then embroidering it in a large scale format. It reminded me of a landscape, a shoreline or maybe a map. At the Textile Center I found the calm I needed, and was able to find my way back to a focus and concentration that I had been lacking for a while. It was immensely valuable to me to have this time of uninterrupted work and I will carry the impressions and memories from my stay in Blönduós with me for a long time.
View 43 x 135 cm linen fabric and cotton thread embroidery photo by Klara Espmark
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January 2019
Lichen (detail of work) 137 x 102 cm linen fabric and cotton thread embroidery photo by Klara Espmark
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Hanna Norrna Sweden
The secret unweaving of Pulse and Psyche is a weaving approach to Hilma af Klint’s text Studies for the soul [Studier över själslivet]. Through a practice of ritual weaving Hanna Norrna makes space for esoteric perspectives on matter and consciousness to be embodied through a feminist view towards women’s work. In The secret unweaving of Pulse and Psyche Hanna has constructed five scenes from Hilma’s text that are depicted in five spatial installations: Roses Lilies, The veil, Common emotions and downward thoughts, Foot bleeds and Trembling indivisible entities. The scenes revolves around a connection between the weaver and the mystic through feeling, emotion, flesh and soul.
The secret unweaving of Pulse and Psyche (installation views) silk, copper, glass, bronze weaving photos by Hedda Rabe
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January/February 2019
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Marie Van Praag Belgium
During my stay in the residency I worked on a series of poetic reflections of my life. The series is a combination between a poetic sentence and images in fabric. The work has different layers, both in meaning as in its physical form. The reflections are a combination between the things I’ve seen in Iceland and the things I experienced at home. The influences of Iceland entered more and more in the pieces as the residency evolved.
Toen ik stilstond en rondkeek (When I stood still and looked around) different sizes of fabric (around 30 cm2) combination of fabrics and sheepwool embroidery, painting photo by Pawel Czermak
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February 2019
TOP & BOTTOM
Toen ik stilstond en rondkeek (When I stood still and looked around) 30 x 35 cm (top), 25 x 25 cm (bottom) fabric and wool embroidery photos by Marie Van Praag
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Meg Rodger Scotland
My time at the Icelandic Textile Centre was set aside to explore how I could bring together my life as a shepherdess and my creative art practice. At home in the Outer Hebrides of Scotland, I run a flock of Hebridean sheep which share the same ancestry as Icelandic sheep having been brought to our respective islands by the Vikings during the 9th Century. While in Blönduós, I visited sheep farms and exchanged knowledge with regards to animal husbandry in our different climates and cultural contexts. It was fascinating to find that we shared so many challenges not just to do with sheep but family life, work and remoteness. In the studio, I focused on exploring the different qualities of these North Atlantic sheep fleeces which have two layers: ‘tog’ long outer fibres and ‘thel’ lower short fibres. Working with the ‘tog’ fibres, I knitted a cowl version of a Röggvarfeldur. This was a woven Viking fabric that incorporated the longer ‘tog’ fibres resulting in a fur-like cloak. It was very valuable and used as a trading ‘pile’ to exchange with other items. I felted the ‘thel’ fibres, to explore the genetic variations within the North Atlantic sheep in terms of fleece colour. My Hebridean sheep are only black while Icelandic sheep come in many colours. This is a work in progress that I hope to expand upon by gathering more fleeces from other North Atlantic sheep. A þráðaleggur is a piece of sheep leg bone that was used as a way of storing thread. Pride was taken in the meticulous way in which the threads were wound around the bone to create pattern. The materiality of the bone and thread interested me and I explored this by winding weaving threads around the horns and skulls of Icelandic sheep.
þráðaleggur sheep skulls 20 x 28 cm sheep skulls and weaving threads wrapping photo by Meg Rodger
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February 2019
Rรถggvarfeldur Cowl Icelandic wool knitted photo by Meg Rodger
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Britta Fluevog Canada/Estonia
Estonian Singing Revolution Inspired Ladder to Better Democracy naturally dyed wool quadrupal weave photo by Britta Fluevog
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February 2019
Ladders to Better Democracy wool quadrupal weave, double weave, double weave twill photo by Britta Fluevog
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Kelly Ruth Canada
In a post truth world where people have gone mad and few take the time to try and hear each other, I find myself needing to slip into another dimension. Longing to be closer to the truth and find hope in folding time, connecting points in history with points in the future. Earnestly hoping this age does not result in an irreconcilable collapse but rather that we come out the other side equipped with the ability to move forward in tolerance, freedom, fairness and acceptance. Drawing on Plato’s theory of Forms, I am building a collection of 5 felted sound machines representing each of the 5 Platonic Solids. Much of the wool used was from Icelandic sheep fleeces and was felted and dyed using natural dyes at the residency. These sound machines when exhibited will exist in a cluster within a space and will each be creating droning sounds. The sound composition will be designed according to light reactive sensors which will affect the pitch of the drones. Plato wrote about the Forms in around 360 BC. Plato understood these 5 Forms known as the Platonic Solids, to constitute the building blocks for the entire physical universe both organic and inorganic. Each Form has been ascribed to represent each of the four elements, fire, water, earth and air with a fifth element that is meant to represent ether, universe or spirit. Lately I have been researching the archetype of a woman or women weaving and spinning time and destiny, which is found in many legends from cultures around the world. Narratives can be found in Greek mythology, Norse mythology, North American First Nations, African, Hindu and Celtic legends. In my practice I work both in textile and sound, performing improvised sound with contact microphones and effects on my weaving loom. Audiences have told me that my sound performances transport them to imagined histories and futures as well as various landscapes. By exploring this archetype, I am interested in alternative imaginings of a future not yet written, and improvisation; using creativity to respond to unfolding realities, rather than performing what has previously been written. Additionally, I am interested in the world of the Forms, the concept of the existence of a world of truths or ideas that we can tap into and bring into our own physical dimension. In Plato’s theory he suggests that all forms in the physical realm are merely representations of the true Form and as a result are never ideal or perfect. I think this is a fitting metaphor for humans grappling with finding the solutions needed to shape their ideal societies. I plan on exhibiting the Forms in both as an installation but also will perform amongst them. Having the time and space at the residency allowed me to solve many logistical questions that I had in realizing the artwork. I am so grateful for the opportunity and know that my work is stronger because of it. 16
February 2019
TOP
Dodecahedron 25 x 25 x 25 in wool felted natural dyed wool photo by Kelly Ruth BOTTOM
Sketch of work in Progress Sketch of installation/performance
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Barbara Dinnage United Kingdom
This, my second residency at Blönduós to concentrate on tapestry weaving, was specifically to work on the old Norwegian Tapestry loom and make a larger piece of work. ‘Little Yellow Book’ depicts items often found on my kitchen table - Architects scale rule, wooden ruler, pin cushion, silver dish, African wire basket sitting on a Loganair serviette, bowl of porridge, dinner plate, mugs of tea & coffee, Nordic Cookbook, Shetland’s Birds book, a pile of notebooks and my yellow diary from 2018, when I first came to the textile centre.
Little Yellow Book (on the loom) 42 x 72 cm (finished size) Einband wool, cotton warp tapestry weaving photo by Barbara Dinnage
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February/March 2019
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Aya Tsukui Japan/United Kingdom
I fell in love with Icelandic sheep fleece. Before coming to the residency I had sent boxes of fabric I was planning to work with, but upon visiting the wool washery, I fell in love with raw Icelandic sheep fleece. It was a joy to work with this tactile and playful material - washing, dyeing, and separating fibres. I loved how it felt, looked and even smelt. Arriving to Blรถnduรณs in February to its otherworldly serenity was magical. The sense of space and stillness, what felt like a peaceful isolation from the world allowed me to work at my own pace with clarity I did not have in my prior life. I loved the time spent at this place and I would like to be back there.
sweater with armpit hair 130 x 58 cm old sweater, dyed Icelandic sheep fleece photo by Natalia Podgorska
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February/March 2019
Blue 60 x 65 cm wool, Indigo dyed Icelandic sheep fleece pile weaving photo by Natalia Podgorska
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Sanna Vatanen Finland
During my residency in Blönduós I worked on my book ’Knit. Stitch. Crochet. with Leftoveryarns! Vol. 2’, a sequel to the book published with the same name. Because the first book was partly photographed in Iceland and because of the ecological theme of my work, I was interested to live and work in the Northern Iceland for a longer period of time, surrounded by the powerful landscape. The book was published in Finnish as a special, hand-sewn limited edition in November 2019 and will be translated into English later on.
Quilt Cardigan photographed in Myvatn, Iceland, April 2019 photo by Sami Repo
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March 2019
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Allyce Wood United States
My work begins with material definitions and how I can interpret concepts of language and softness. Digital jacquard tapestry stems from its place between traditional handicraft and computer programing, two systems with their own languages. For me, it is a way for our online experiences to become tangible, remade through a warm material. When I was a resident artist at the Icelandic Textile Center, I began to work in a new way. My process was that of a researcher, a craftsperson; I was always exploring the messaging and language of my medium as well as the icy view out my window. My phone, a usual nuisance, became a way to stay connected, a portal to this specialized world. One weave besot another, the images stacking up on my long black warp. By creating softness, codes, and layering systems I can speak to transformation and seclusion. My artworks offer a way into questions like ‘where are we when things get cold?’ and ‘what happens when we are taking in too much screen-based content?’ There is a potential to let these moments spiral out before us but by taking the time to reflect, we can stitch these patterns together to allow us to see deeper truths about our relationships with others and ourselves.
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March 2019
THIS PAGE
‘Arching, floating vision and alum’ & ‘Parallel circles shine, through the grasp, in my eyes’ OPPOSITE PAGE
Parallel circles shine, through my grasp, in my eyes (detail) dimensions variable cotton, wool, polyester, metal hardware digital jacquard tapestry and embroidery photos by Istvan Virag
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Johanna Norry United States
When I moved into my room in the Kvennóskolinn - on the walls were the framed ‘yearbook’ images of the young women who had attended the school. My room just happened to include 1949-50 - the same years of another research-based art project of mineand I almost immediately decided that I would focus on this one group of women and research them and see what I could find. I began to make layered linen portraits - digitally manipulated and enlarged to tabloid size - of the women I was learning about. It seemed like the appropriate response to my research into these women and the month that I spent surrounded by their photos. In all my internet searching, mostly what I found were their obituaries. These young women in the photos would be in their 90s if they were still alive, after all. I searched for each woman’s name, and with just the comedic translations provided by Google translate, was able to learn a lot about them. One thing which appeared in nearly every obituary, was an added note from one of the students in this class - Ása Marinosdóttir. She shared memories of their time at Kvennóskolinn, particular to each woman she wrote about. Several were women she was in a small singing group with called Sjöstjarnan, “The Seven Sisters” after the constellation in the Pleiades. This memory helped me focus - I decided I wanted to learn who all the members of the singing group were. I knew two, Ása and Ebbil. I talked with Jóhanna Pálmadóttir and I learned that one of the women in my photo, Erla Jakobsdóttir, still lived in Blönduós. She reached out to her and made arrangements for her to come to the center and meet me. In anticipation of her coming, I made a portrait of her - the third or fourth one I had made. She arrived with Aðalbjörg Ingvarsdóttir, who had served as the school’s last headmistress before closing in the late 1970s, and with several photo albums. One photo, to my great pleasure, was of the singing group and I was able to figure out the remaining five members. I continued to make portraits of women from the singing group - Stina, Anna, Antonia, Ebbil, Ása, Ísabella, and Ólafia - until I ran out of linen. Erla shared with me photos not only of their school years, but also their reunions. Their class got together every 5 or 10 years and often travelled together. The photos of their get togethers tell the story of their changing lives. I was an anthropologist before I was an artist, so research has always been a part of my process, artistic or otherwise. It’s simply the approach that makes the most sense to me. I scratch, then I dig, then I uncover and respond.
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March 2019
In addition to the seven portraits I made, I also wove an Icelandic weaving pattern, knitted a traditional Icelandic wool sweater, wove a small tapestry inspired by the landscape and photos that I took on the bus ride to Blönduós, constructed a strip quilt inspired by the colors of the view from my window, and made odd sculptures from horsehair, sheep roving and silk worm cocoons. I consider it my role as an artist, one who mines archives, photos and databases, to rescue stories and memories from their existence in the space between “no longer” and “not yet;” to really see the faces of the young women hidden in full view on the walls of my room, and to hopefully provide them a new context.
Stina (left), Ása (center), Erla (right) 20 x 15 in each linen, thread layered appliqué, free motion embroidery photos by Johanna Norry
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Sarah Finkle United States
Within my practice, I work with wool and other natural materials to create wearable spaces and fiber sculptures. The Textílmiðstöð is such a incredible place and gave me time to explore these ideas. Not only is the environment and location beautiful, but the people are so wonderfully kind and sharing. I learned so much about the history of the Kvennaskólinn, the connection to the sheep and wool farming, and traditional Icelandic weaving techniques that I was able to explore within my own work. I loved being able to fully experiment using materials, tools, and techniques all made available to me while in Blönduós and at the residency. Learning about the varafeldur and other ways wool has been used historically, and having resources like the wool washery to learn about the processing of wool allowed me to see the material in a new light and experiment with it in ways that I continue to use in my practice. The location, everyone at the residency, as well as the other residents make this such a wonderful place to spend time, explore, and restore yourself and your practice.
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March/April 2019
THIS PAGE AND OPPOSITE
Glit 22 x 30 in raw wool and wool yarn weaving photos by Cornelia Theimer Gardella
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Emma Shepherd Australia
My time in Iceland was an afďŹ rming, yet humbling experience, one that helped connect me to the long and enduring history of weave. The changing colours of the landscape, the people I was surrounded by, and the beautiful historical looms gave me inspiration for new ideas, and ways of processing colour, texture and pattern in a tangible form. For me, Iceland and the making of cloth are linked together, both very insular and isolated, both challenging in some ways, but both spectacular in others.
Unnamed Swatches (2) linen / paper yarn leno photo by Emma Shepherd
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April 2019
Unnamed Swatches (1) natural fibres multiple weaving techniques photo by Emma Shepherd
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Linda Barlow United Kingdom
The main focus of my residency was to respond to the environment in and around Blรถnduรณs and translate this into painting and drawing. I hope to return one day and make a woven tapestry of one of the paintings. I also found inspiration from being around such an interesting and diverse group of fellow artists. This was one of the most enjoyable and inspirational residencies I have done and the sketches and work I did there will inform my work for a long time.
Towards Akureyri, April 30 x 30 cm oil and cold wax on Arches paper painting photo by Linda Barlow
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April 2019
Akureyri, April 70 x 56 cm oil and cold wax on canvas painting photo by Linda Barlow
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Susan Purney Mark Canada
Inuenced by an extensive study of line and pattern, I focused on mark making and textile book forms. These forms explore the book format as a starting point. But I also pushed the textile component into new, innovative forms, to examine how cloth can be manipulated, folded, cut, and stitched into alternate and evolving conďŹ gurations of shape, size and dimension. I created several books during my residency, ďŹ rst making small pieces as experiments and then working those into larger and more complex forms. The residency gave me the opportunity to delve deeper into my projects and shape a course of study that I will continue into the future.
Points of Contention 8 x 18 x 18 in paper, fabric, thread and nails paper lamination, dyed fabric and mark making photo by Susan Purney Mark
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April 2019
From Sea to Sky 6 x 12 x 12 in paper laminated paper, mixed media and stitch photo by Susan Purney Mark
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Janet A Sanders Canada
I was thrilled to be offered a two-month residency at the Textile Centre in Blönduós for April and May 2019. What an opportunity to work to my own schedule developing designs for Patchwork and Quilting. My aim was to produce the designs for two wall hangings and execute them while there. Throughout April I worked on “Hrafnar Ódins” (Odin’s Ravens), which linked Icelandic, Irish, Scottish and Northern Canadian imagery, within a traditional hexagonal knot formation. Unfortunately, this piece is currently being quilted professionally. My second piece (illustrated) created in May is called “Broken, Fractured and Reaching Out”. It is dedicated to those individuals whose lives have been deeply affected by mental health issues, abuse, addiction, prejudice and loss, recognizing the toll it takes on those who support sufferers; social workers, police, support workers, medical professionals, counsellors, and especially family members. I hope to remind them they are not alone. I chose a fabric with a beading design. Beading is important and significant to the indigenous peoples of the Northwest Territories where I live. Historically the indigenous peoples of North America have suffered from the immigration of other peoples. Their suffering resulted from the arrogance and prejudice that came from what was often a willful lack of understanding but really from the fears we all have of the unfamiliar, the different. Our indigenous peoples continue to suffer: the indignities of prejudice and the resulting insecurities of home, hearth and welfare. The design is a metaphor of the dissolution of the well-ordered mind. The ordered patterns of the triangles within the hexagons dissolves and eventually falls apart across the panel. And the quilting reflects the disordered state of mind. There is a lone person in the corner: small and overwhelmed by the chaos around her/him. A string of beads is intended to be read is a virtual lifeline. Over the two months of my residency, I enjoyed experimenting with a mixed media landscape, patchwork using local fish skin, and adapting designs from the book “Íslensk Sjónabók” ornaments and patterns found in Iceland, which I adapted for quilt design. I am grateful to The Northern Arts and Cultural Centre of The Northwest Territories for a generous grant for my Residency.
Broken, Fractured and Reaching Out 104 x 73.5 cm printed cotton, black batting, cotton thread (quilting) and coloured glass ‘seed’ beads hand rotary cut, machine piecing and quilting photo by Janet A Sanders
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April/May 2019
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Morris Fox Canada/United States
I am an interdisciplinary artist-practitioner and writer based in Toronto, Canada. My work haunts peripherals, considering erasure in duplication: both as loss & gain. Manifesting whence goth is in globalization, I frame narratives within my own subject-position, preoccupied with the transmissivity of media and material. We are culturally post-monument yet obsessed with the memorial, acting as feedback; the traces we leave accumulate into necro-systems, channeled back into ourselves we chew ashes. Meaning migrates from one platform to another—a necropolitan line carrying ghost signals. I hope to enkindle funereal shrouds—simultaneously mourning rituals and digital dusting—material cultures embedded with layers of meaning. This connection between material fibre processes engaged in proto-computations and immaterial performance as commemoration, as emptying objects, as video-poetry form queer fragments of social cloth—archives interweaving histories with the contemporary. Accompanying these shrouds, Morsesignals of converted elegiac poetry into coded sonic space further dematerializes a translation of the media—words/cloth into sounded queer codes, harmonic dirges of what remains and what is offered as protective concealment. I see these works performing as queer fragmentation, to speak through evidence and remains while looking towards its visionary potential to be resurrected & interred.
Cairn Shroud 457 x 91cm wool, polyester, retroreflective thread plain weaving photo by Morris Fox
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April/May 2019
SOS funerary cloth 360 x 66.69 cm wool, polyester plain weaving photo by Morris Fox
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Dana Buzzee Canada
Goddess Worship is a series of sculptural soft drawings by Dana Buzzee, made while in residence at the Icelandic Textile Centre. The forms of cuffs/restraints/ropes/clasps/and chains are abstracted throughout this series, reflecting the focus of Buzzee’s work over the past several years: honouring Leatherdyke herstories by considering them through their own contemporary lived experience and fantasies. The works that make up Goddess Worship see Buzzee looking beyond their Leatherdyke love affair, incorporating a consideration of ecofeminist ecofetishist sapphic handicraft. What Buzzee stitches together with these works is aimed at mending the damage that TERF-rhetoric has proliferated throughout these lineages and communities as act of healing queer espionage. Throughout these meditations Buzzee grapples with rejecting binary thinking reflected throughout their own identity but also by subverting patriarchal conventions. These works build up a new remembering of personal queerness reconciling feminized handicraft, identity, and spirituality as a site of resistance and pleasure.
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April/May 2019
THIS PAGE AND OPPOSITE
Goddess Worship size varies wool knitting photos by Cornelia Theimer Gardella
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Delia Salter United Kingdom
My work in textiles is always an expression of my personal connection to the land: its topography, geography, natural history, human impact, myth and story. I communicate this through various textile media but always using natural fibres. Often I use plant dyes to produce colour that has a direct association with the location in which I am working. At the Textile Centre in Blönduós I explored the properties and possibilities of local materials such as Icelandic wool and horsehair, and produced plant dyes from birch, angelica, lupin leaves and lupin flowers. A body of work begun in Blönduós and still ongoing considers the myth of the Norse god Odin and his two pet ravens, Hugin and Munin whose names in English signify Thought and Memory. As you get older there are times when your own faculties of thought and memory are not as dependable as they used to be. With this in mind I began making irregular-shaped felted pieces employing knitting, horsehair and sand on a basic ground of hand-felted, raven-coloured wool. The work incorporates gaps and holes, breaks in connections and unfinished edges, depicting the increasingly fragile nature of our thoughts and memories.
Thought and Memory: Munin 17 x 13 cm Icelandic wool felting, knitting photo by Delia Salter
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May 2019
Thought and Memory: Hugin 14 x 13 cm Icelandic wool felting, knitting photo by Delia Salter
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Jennifer Jones United Kingdom
The tide was out and I walked down to the waters edge where, minutes before a small flock of shore birds had been searching for food. I could not help but note the pattern of their foot prints intermingled with mine. A reminder that we all leave a mark on this planet no matter who we are or what we are about. These were my first thoughts at the start of my stay and they were to influence my work during my residency. Looking around the studios, traces left behind by previous residents jumped out at me from every piece of equipment, shelf and drawer. Discarded and leftover materials, jumbled up yarns and warp ends in boxes, paper bags of washed horsehair and greasy Icelandic sheep fleece in carrier bags. Even the back stairs down to the basement, the wooden treads worn and warped from years of footfall trace the preferred route of the students who were schooled there. During the month I hand wove work using collected items from the beach, traces of the environment, I used a warp left by a previous resident which I wove with collected leftover yarns from the studio, and a dried-out coffee filter that had been left in the filter machine. I passed through this wonderful place, experiencing the landscape during a month that the mantle of the previous winters weather was cast aside and gradually the mountainsides gently awoke. The trees sprung new leaves and a fine cloth of a verdant green crept along the valley floors, punctuated by bright yellows, pinks, oranges and turquoise replacing the greys of the rocks and neutrals of snow burnt grasses. I was careful to leave my trace, a small part of a warp for a following resident to use, and took with me new friendships, a deep, stirring impression of a wild, exhilarating place populated by kind friendly people and an experience that will be with me for many years to come. JAJ/2019
Leavings various sizes monofilament, cotton, linen and found materials hand weaving photos by Jennifer Jones
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May 2019
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Annette Mills United Kingdom
I work with basketry techniques to make vessels and open structures exploring the haptic and concepts linked to transitional space. Whilst in Iceland I used my time to experiment. I made cordage from the local grasses dried out from overwintering on the land; incorporated black, dried sea kelp and plant material from local beaches into looped structures and learnt how to make felt using raw wool from the black Icelandic sheep. The whole experience taught me how to adapt my skills to incorporate an explicit sense of place into my work. The generosity of the other artists and the luxury of uninterrupted time has enabled me to push my practice forward and to challenge the way I use materials. I have continued in this vein since returning home, using a different range of local plant material and exploring different forms. This will lead to an exhibition in 2020 with the other UK artists who were residents at TextĂlsetur for the month of May. The opportunity to experience such a stunning landscape and meet the friendly people of Iceland has left me with lasting memories which I cherish, and which I am sure will draw me back one day.
Black Sand 12 x 12 x 12 cm linen, Icelandic sand looped basket photo by Annette Mills
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May 2019
Embodied Essence 20 x 20 x 9 cm lyme grass cordage, felt looped basket using handmade cordage, felt made from eece of Icelandic sheep photo by Annette Mills
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Tara Kennedy United Kingdom
My work as a textile artists is usually inspired by emotional connections so the idea of coming to Iceland and using landscape and nature was to be a new and exciting challenge. My initial response was to the structures and textures of the magnificent land formations from which I started creating knitted and felted samples, but this visual stimulus didn’t quite feel sufficient. After a few weeks of trips out exploring in the north I finally discovered the emotive feeling I had been hoping for. The awareness of immense space from the endless landscape became increasingly overwhelming. Being totally absorbed by these incredible surroundings and the continually changing scenery I started to develop some ideas for a piece expressing these sensations. It was important to me I use solely Icelandic materials applying all the colours of the land. The black sand of the beaches, the dramatic grey rock formations, the spluttering smokey blue mud pots, the beautiful aqua glacial waters, the imposing white snow topped mountains, the extraordinary brown volcanic lava fields, and greens from the lichen, moss and impressive waterfalls and winding streams. From all this inspiration I created a 37 metre long wrapped piece using Icelandic yarn, horse hair, raw sheep’s wool, fish skins and yarn dyed from Icelandic plants. By making such an extensive piece using a repetition of technique it helped me to express this continuous landscape. After exhibiting this piece at the Textile Centre as a vertical hanging I decided I wanted to photograph it in the landscape and where my feelings of space had been reinforced on an earlier visit. I took the final piece to the coast, a short distance from Blönduós, and photographed it stretched out along the shoreline. It felt appropriate and was perfectly positioned amongst all the colours involved. My experience in Iceland has left me with a deeper appreciation for the natural world and a desire to use more natural materials in my work. I also appreciated the luxury of being able to focus on making for such long hours with no distractions and I long to return one day very soon.
Continuous 4 meters long Icelandic yarn, horsehair, raw sheeps wool, fish leather, recycled fabrics, wire wrapping photos by Tara Kennedy (photographed in Somerset, UK)
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May 2019
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Mariaan Pugh Australia
During this residency my work was exploring the idea of absence making the heart grow fonder within friendships and romantic relationships, being so isolated in Iceland was a wonderful experience and allowed me to be very in touch with sentimental emotions of love whilst making my work. As beautiful as the 24 hours of sunlight was during summer it also kept me up late every night hence my series of fussy sleeper sleep masks!
Fussy Sleeper 85 x 85 cm polyester, assorted beads, embroidery thread, wadding hand embroidered sleep masks photo by Mariaan Pugh
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May/June 2019
All The Feelings You Give Me 75 x 75 cm acrylic, wool, cotton tapestry weaving photo by Mariaan Pugh
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Hannah Epstein AKA hanski Canada
Hannah Epstein (b.1985) is a Neo-Folk artist working in “Fyberspace”, a term she uses to describe the intersection of textiles and digital media. She holds an MFA from Carnegie Mellon University (2017) and a B.A in Folklore from Memorial University (2009). Raised in Nova Scotia, Epstein is a historically clashing mix of Latvian and Ashkenazi Jew. Her personal experience as a “mischling” (Hitler’s term to describe children of mixed Jewish and non-Jewish parents) has helped develop her post-identity political perspective. In opposition to any notion of inherited family, social or political allegiances, Epstein aligns herself with the multi-form potential of the digital avatar. As a folklorist turned artist, Epstein is devoted to reimagining the iconography of popular culture, highlighting the cultural negotiation between bottom-up (folk) and top-down (institutional) storytelling. Her work has been shown at The Hammer Museum, The Art Gallery of Ontario, The Textile Museum of Canada, The Long Beach Museum of Art, The San Jose Museum of Quilts and Textiles, The Museum of Contemporary Art Denver and The Rooms in St. John’s, Newfoundland. She is currently represented by Steve Turner Gallery, Los Angeles.
The Last Clown in Blonduos install acrylic, polyester, wool, burlap rug hooking photo by Mariaan Pugh
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June 2019
Vision Seed 45 x 43 in acrylic, polyester, wool, burlap rug hooking photo by Hannah Epstein
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Liilian Saksi Sweden
My work explores textile techniques such as spinning, weaving, macramé and sprang. The main material is wool, with additional sculptural parts in plastic. I willingly restrict myself to the most basic binding methods, concentrating on the aspect of variation, repetition and color mixing. The material origin and visual impetus for my works is a specific flock of sheep. The flock, which lives on my parent’s farm in Sweden, consists of 22 named sheep. Through my relationships with the sheep, and by using their wool, I experience a sense of belonging. At the same time, it is a matter of principle for me to see both the wool material and the animals from which it is sourced as having intrinsic value. Beforehand, and during my residency, I got to know a sheep owner that lived close to Blönduós. She kept her flock in a similar way as my family, and we shared many of the same thoughts. Meeting with her and her life brought up fundamental questions about how we live our lives today; reflecting over the value of living among other animals, and how this relationship can fill an emotional gap. Meanwhile, at the Textile Center, I worked both with getting to know the qualities of the Icelandic wool and its ability to be separated, but also explorations in re-twisting and knotting synthetic yarn. In retrospect, I can see that my time at the center both introduced knitting, macramé, and other knotting techniques in my work, but most of all made me come in contact with the emotional essence of working with wool.
Acquisitions: fleeces from Funa, Þoka and Doppa
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June 2019
Re-twist work in progress ready-made yarns spinning, macramĂŠ and knotting photo by Liilian Saksi
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Monika Rauh Germany
I had made plans, once I got the opportunity to stay and work at Blönduós for a month. However, Iceland had other plans for me. So I experimented with sheepwool, horsehair, fishleather, lupins and light – this may sound like witchcraft now, but it all makes sense, if you’re on the spot and interact with your surroundings. I made use of techniques familiar to me – like felting – but I also tried out new ones – like dyeing with plants. Moreover, I found inspiration at the nearby museum, which led me to create many samples, something I am still working on. At different times of the day and at night I created cyanotypes using objects I had discovered to capture the spellbinding light at Blönduós before and after midsummer. I enjoyed being so closely surrounded by nature, allowing me the opportunity to pause for a moment and roam my surroundings - even during the bright nights – something I’ve never experienced before. I hope to return some day, perhaps during the wintertime to get to know Iceland in its dark months.
6 pm, 25 June 2019, Blönduós 210 x 297 mm photography, cyanotype photo by Monika Rauh
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June 2019
lag 3 island 35 x 25 cm Icelandic wool, natural-coloured or dyed with lupins felting, sewing, dyeing photo by Monika Rauh
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Sandra Leandersson Sweden
In our over communicative, over explaining and very digital world we forget what can not be expressed with words. That beyond logic. Creativity fades when everything should be able to measure and compare. This isolated place set my creativity free and I’m very glad and thankful for that. My intention of staying at the residence was to be in a textile context, to dye fabric, sketch future works and breathe in the nature. Since time seems to be something else in Blönduós than back home I ended up doing more than so! Arriving in Iceland I saw and was told about the lupin invasion. I was curious about the color they would give, so this was my starting point. I dyed a lot of fabric and patched them together into collage wall hangings. I enjoyed doing the whole circle of dyeing; picking the flowers, soak them and dye. This is something I can’t do in my studio in central Stockholm.
Something that only exists in your imagination 239 x 117 cm cotton natural and acid color dye, Pojangi patchwork technique photo by Sandra Leandersson
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June 2019
Untitled 54 x 40 cm cotton, cotton thread natural and acid color dye, line stitch embroidery photo by Sandra Leandersson
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Selene Gaytán Mexico
My current body of work explores the relationship between nature, mankind and memory. I am mostly interested in three aspects. Firstly, the intimate bond created from the self (when submersed in the living world). Secondly, the positive influence of nature on a daily basis. And finally, how everyday objects –natural objects in this case– transform their symbolic values, once they are associated with moments, places and experiences. During my time in the residency I worked on the project “Diarios botánicos” or “Botanical diaries” in English, a project I started back in Mexico. Diarios botánicos is the result of a compilation still life: leaves, flowers, insects, shells, etc., collected for years. The Icelandic Textile Center offered me the perfect environment to pursue my interests. The landscapes and closeness to the ocean provided me with enough material to continue with this project.
Diarios botánicos II 36 x 47 cm cotton, ixtle and brass embroidery photo by Selene Gaytán
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June/July 2019
Diarios botรกnicos I 0.90 x 1.70 m recycled fabrics lithography, indigo dye and embroidery photo by Selene Gaytรกn
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Anne-Marie Groulx Canada
Jacquard weaving is at the core of my artistic practice. I reflect on this technique as a reproduction tool and wonder: What are the unique qualities of weaving that make it worthwhile to reproduce an original through Jacquard? For me, the interest of reproducing an original to the woven format arises from the possibilities offered by the choice of materials. Fortunately, I had access to the TC2 loom for a whole month, making it possible for me to set up a warp using uncommon materials. I used polypropylene yarn as my warp and many other thermoplastics as wefts. The goal was to melt my weavings in a way to alter the original imagery. The result is a series of drawn and written elements that became translucent, distorted and hard, all because of heat. Most impressively, even though the weavings suffered heavy transformations, the woven structure is still visible. There is no other medium that could have generated such a surprising response from materials and this shift between the original digital drawing and the final piece is what stimulates my research in Jacquard weaving. Accomplishing this experimental work was only possible due to the TC2 residency at Textílmiðstöð. The freedom, the full access to the loom and the environment were all very stimulating and helped me commit in taking risks in my creative process.
Everything you need (opposite page) and detail (this page) 6 x 2 ft polypropylene, vinyl, metal melted Jacquard weaving, brocade photo by Etienne Dionne
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July 2019
The artist wishes to thank the following organizations: *Conseil des arts et des lettres du Québec* *Première Ovation* *Surface Design Association* *Les offices jeunesses internationaux du Québec* *Maison des métiers d'art de Québec*
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Diane Deery Richards United States
“...to understand other living things, their environmental conditions, and their ecological relationships in such a way as to awake in us a deep sense of our kinships with them as fellow members of the Earth’s community of life.” – Paul W Taylor This is a quote I found in a book while staying at the Icelandic Textile Center in Blönduós, Iceland. Immediately, I was drawn to the rich earth and nature of Iceland. Having only a precious amount of time to work (one month) in this beautiful land, I tried to take full advantage. Working continuously on my art, I permitted myself to “PLAY.” It’s in these rare moments without interruptions and responsibilities to engage in a deep understanding of who I am and how my art affects my life. The location couldn’t have been more perfect. Alongside the Blanda River where the river meets the Greenland Sea, the land was always changing. The tides were bringing precious plant life to the shore and then pulling it all back into the sea. Like the tides, I kept pushing and pulling different elements into my work. However, the essential role of nature always dictated the outcome. At times, it was the wind, at other times, it was the tide, but in all cases, it was the connection to the earth that created my work. This work can never be duplicated, just like the saying, “you can never stand in the same river twice.” I created this body of work on this land it is forever that specific imprint.
Splash Imprint 14 x 14 in silk powder dye and cyanotype photo by Diane Richards
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July 2019
By the Sea silk and powder dye photo by Diane Richards
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Edina Széles United Kingdom
Throughout the time I spent in Blönduós I was inspired by the colours, textures, forms and shapes of Iceland’s amazing natural landscapes. My artistic work explores creative processes extensively through a range of different textile techniques, materials and tools, as well as their relationship to the spaces and environments I experienced in Iceland. During the residency, I had the opportunity to experiment with various natural dyes which I applied to handspun yarns I made from Icelandic wool. From these, I create handwoven pieces on countermarched looms. It was great to learn from the skilled staff of the Textile Centre and the local community about the heritage and textile art of Iceland. Meeting with other artists from all over the world was a vital aspect of the residency and having the opportunity to share ideas and exhibit together was both enjoyable and inspiring.
Untitled 55 x 40 cm Icelandic wool weft, Shetland wool warp handwoven photo by Edina Széles
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July 2019
Untitled 20 x 22 cm Shetland wool, wire handwoven photo by Edina SzĂŠles
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Lisbeth Degn Denmark
I did not really know what to expect coming to the residency in Blönduós. Of course I had a plan in my head for what I would like to work with during my stay. For more than 1 year I had been looking forward to my stay. How would the place, the surrounding landscape and the other participants influence me and my work? Would I go crazy in silence and bad weather? But this stay was a gift from heaven. The best time for immersion. The quiet mornings in the studio with my embroidery. Inspiration by just looking out of the windows. New ideas popping up, just from seeing the colors and shapes of Iceland. Interesting discussions about textile art and women’s place in art. The long bright hours on evenings in the studio, giving birth to new ideas. Nothing to think of, but my embroideries. No concern about what happens at home or in the rest of the world. So sad to leave. I would so much like to come back to this wonderful place.
Lichens 20 x 60 cm painted wool and cotten thread embroidery photo by Lisbeth Degn
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July 2019
The net 40 x 20 cm painter wool and cotton thread embroidery photo by Lisbeth Degn
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Helia Paulina Mejía Mexico
As a recipient of a Mexican scholarship for artists I worked on my project “Simbiosis entre tintes” (Symbiosis between dyes) using Mexican wool from indigenous communities in Chiapas and dyes as cochineal and brazilwood from Oaxaca, mixing it with Icelandic wool and dyes in an effort to join two complete different cultures and context in my pieces. This as a way to express my respect and admiration for all the women that have been working to preserve the ancient textile traditions in the two countries and above all our differences, our work and the work of all those indigenous women in my country and Icelandic women can be joined together to create strength and softness and colors in these woven tapestries.
Horse hair bliss 60 x 40 cm Mexican wool, Icelandic wool dyed with cochineal and Icelandic horse hair woven loom tapestry photo by Paulina Mejía
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June/July/August 2019
Gígar my cratered body 60 x 40 cm Mexican wool and Icelandic wool dyed with cochineal woven loom tapestry photo by Paulina Mejía
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Ffranses Ingram Wales
Initially I came with just a crochet hook as I wanted to respond to the landscape so I spent the ďŹ rst month crocheting hats, necklaces made out of wools, ďŹ shbones, bird skeletons etc. By the time the second month started I found myself being drawn back to the world of storytelling and the characters that frequent my inner world.
Shore bird 36 x 30 cm wool on hessian proddy and crochet hook photo by Ffranses Ingram
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July/August 2019
Lulu in Iceland 19 cm Icelandic wool on y wire free stitch photo by Ffranses Ingram
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Anja Alexandersdottir United Kingdom/Iceland
Inspired by the colours in the wild of Iceland and the patterns of the Lopapeysur, the woven designs have been created using Tweed wool yarns and also wool naturally dyed with Icelandic plants. The patterns have emerged and changed as the designs went on through experimenting with different combinations of weft thicknesses as well as comparing how the colours in the weft can change the mood of the piece with simple changes such as adding neon.
Tweed with various wefts wool, acrylic twill with tweed yarns photo by Anja Alexandersdottir
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August 2019
Various samples with same pattern different wefts and lifts wool, acrylic, naturally dyed wool woven patterns photo by Anja Alexandersdottir
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Carol Cooke Australia
During my stay at the residency I formulated the desire to respond to the people of Blรถnduรณs and Iceland, rather than the landscape. Which was full of drama, light and wild beauty. But to know a country, you need to understand the people. My response was about the stories I was told from the old Vatnsdaela Saga to the modern day Viking, many of who I met at the local hotpot. While sewing at the saga table, I also got to know my supervisors and share quiet time with them most afternoons. Our exchanges about life, thoughts and ideas were all part of the whole experience, which I tried to capture in my stitch journals. Sharing stories of new and old was the basis for my embroidered works. Fragments of a countries history and a beginning of understanding of the past and the present.
She Sits Stitching 30 x 20 cm embroidered cotton embroidery photo by Carol Cooke
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August 2019
Who is the modern Viking? 90 x 50 cm cotton pillow case embroidery photo by Carol Cooke
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Mireia Coromina Portas Spain
My proposal arises from the interest in the patterns in traditional Icelandic textiles, representations that become a language. Word, weave and warp. Relating all these productions, specifically the rose of eight petals (átta blada rós), as a part of the warp of a population and of a culture, constructing a weave that captures those through an autochthonous material, wool. The weave, the wool, the representation of patterns, and this ornament as a part of the skin-surface of Icelandic people. Understanding the weave as a transmittor and holder of the Icelandic culture memory. Weaving as a memory of language, matter and space.
Átta blada rós 230 x 24 cm Icelandic wool, tracing paper and graphite loom woven and drawing photo by Mireia Coromina Portas
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August 2019
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Päivi Vaarula Finland
I translate life into textiles. Warp is the core and the DNA, weft is what life gives us. Together they make the experience and the outcome. I use my innermost feelings; by seeking the yarns, colors, forms and structures I am expressing and describing them. This was my second time in Blönduós. After my first visit in 2017, I moved to eastern Iceland to teach textiles. I had two wonderful years in this beautiful country. At the end of my Icelandic experience, I returned to Blönduós to weave the memories of Iceland.
Joy of peace of mind (detail) 200 x 50 cm wool, natural dyes woven shibori photo by Päivi Vaarula
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August 2019
Fading 70 x 170 cm wool, natural dyes woven shibori photo by Päivi Vaarula
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Chardi Christian Australia
My stay at the Icelandic Textile Residency was extraordinary. Not only because of the other artists I met and learned from, but also because of the warm and supportive atmosphere of the centre, which enabled me to create, dream and develop my work. I came with several projects. One was called “Grandmother Guardians”. I began to develop the idea of including landscapes in their bodies. This is an ongoing challenge. The other project was “The Keening Women”. I completed this while I was there. I had no idea of the impact of Icelandic landscapes on me. I was so overwhelmed by their power and voice that I began to appliqué and embroider the landscapes I encountered. I call this work, “In the Landscape”.
Keening for the Earth: Can you hear? 33 x 13 cm calico, ink and cotton thread soft sculpture photo by Chardi Christian
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July/August/September 2019
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Lina Svarauskaite Lithuania
First time I met you in 2016 spring. You showed me a harsh face with a week lasting snowstorm at the beginning of May. I accept you and chose to love you. Since then my love has developed into a never-ending exploration of your wild nature and hidden gems. Love is lasting till now. In 2019 I explored my love for you even deeper from highlands of Laugavegur trail. It was a week full of experience. I created you a confession of my Love. I created you a Love story told in fading colours inspired by your landscapes. I have woven my memories and impressions of your wild faces which you gave me a chance to feel. You gave me a chance to experience it. Love is lasting till now. My Icelandic Love which is fading and growing at the same time.
THIS PAGE & OPPOSITE
Confession of Icelandic Love 50 x 200 cm naturally dyed wool, polyester yarn loom weaving photos by Lina Svarauskaite
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August/September 2019
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Kelly Thompson New Zealand/Canada
On a previous visit to Iceland I was struck by the beauty and colours of the land and glacier scape of the south eastern Vatnajökull National Park and the Jökulsárlón lagoon and decided to reference this during my residency using the TC2 digital loom. Using images I took of ice and black lava fragments on the lower glaciers, and as a virtual traveller, sourced images of Okjökull (the first Icelandic glacier to be declared dead in 2014, with a memorial plaque, ‘a letter to the future’ inscription written by Andi Snær Magnason). My work also refers to the impacts of global melting of glaciers and the sea rising effect on island nations. Focusing on test sampling with materials on the loom, I aimed to achieve crunchy, high contrast textures that evoke the unique and dramatic lava and ice landscapes of Iceland. The month flew by with walks, good company, conversations, visits to regional art and cultural events, Blönduós swimming and hot pools, beautiful creatures, amazing colours, sunlight effects, snowfalls and on the final night a stunning Aurora Borealis, all weaving a desire to return!
OPPOSITE TOP
Testing on the loom cotton, linen, wool, paper yarn digital weave OPPOSITE BOTTOM
Ok glacier (detail) cotton, linen, paper yarns, Iceland wool digital weave photos by Kelly Thomspon
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September 2019
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Orit Freilich Israel
The month I have stayed at the residency was so inspiring for me from 3 points of view. First because of the atmosphere of the place itself with its historic background. Second are the facilities that I could use without any limitations and third the view from my window and the pure nature I saw ever hour of the day that was fabulous! Besides there were the people I was surrounded with both the artists and the management of the center! I will never forget this month as the most creative one in my life.
The Blondous views 140 x 110 cm fish skins leftovers free arrangement by colors photo by Orit Freilich
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September 2019
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Petter Hellsing Sweden
Something has happened and we are facing a renewed relationship with the materials. It is no longer possible to regard the world around us as inanimate matter. Perhaps the thing has its own agenda, in any case, we can not ignore the ecological consequences of our lack of responsiveness. An open encounter with the materials awakens in most of our deep bodily memories. The hand in the sheep’s wool, the weight of a stone or the knife’s encounter with the wood, bears the promise of creation to make us greater than human beings. The making of a thing is not just a human relational act, but the work of the hand is also an inward dialogue, between the performer / viewer and the material. During my time at The Icelandic Textile Center in Blönduós, the material was at the center and I was looking for ways to let it speak on its own terms. What can a conversation between human and materia look like? The tool becomes a transitional object, which extends the body to the world and puts it in relation to other forces. The bodily action, the resistance in the material is crucial to an understanding beyond thought.
THIS PAGE AND OPPOSITE (DETAIL)
Living Nature a portrait 75 x 60 cm Icelandic wool, hand spun yarn pick up weaving and tapestry photos by Petter Hellsing
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September/October 2019
Petter was an Icelandic Textile Center scholarship recipient in 2019. His residency was funded by Nordic Culture Point: the Nordic-Baltic Mobility Programme.
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Josefin Tingvall Sweden
My beloved beanbag, let’s strive another day. With your weight in my hands I could own/owe the world. // Through the Textile Residency Scholarships the artist Josefin Tingvall was able to spend two months working on a project about weight, texture, guilt and comfort.
Video installation on the school building photo by Josefin Tingvall
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September/October 2019
Bean bag 2 (detail) mixed materials/techniques photo by JoseďŹ n Tingvall
Josefin was an Icelandic Textile Center scholarship recipient in 2019. Her residency was funded by Nordic Culture Point: the Nordic-Baltic Mobility Programme.
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Marion Gouez France
For the last six years, I worked in the fashion industry, both in luxury and retail. I spent the last four years designing prints and knitwear for menswear for a french brand. What a pleasure it is to come across a man wearing one of my creations on the street! But ultimately I was not satisfied with this work; too many suppliers, too much mechanization, too much. I wanted to go back to the basics of fabric, away from the computer. I wanted to feel materials and make with my hands, to understand the value of fabric and pattern, the challenge of dyeing a color. We have been removed from all of these processes. I decided to leave my home and comfort zone to explore fiber and textiles; in strong nature, away from man-made landscapes. The Icelandic Textile Center was just the perfect place to do it! During my month there, I was guided by me desires, feeling, and encounters. I spun yarn from raw wool, foraged and made natural dye baths. Then with the precious help of two others artists I learned how to warp and use a loom and I wove this homemade wool. When I finished this piece of textile I hanged it on a wood branch I found on my first day on a little island not far from the textile center. I think the time I spent in the textile center had been really important to my textile practice and I want to go further on what I learned there.
Lupina wool spinning photo by Marion Gouez
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October 2019
Nรกm 65 x 40 cm wool weaving photo by Marion Gouez
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Rachel Simkover United States
I fell in love with the vertical warp tapestry loom at the Textile Center- what a huge upgrade from the DIY frame loom I learned on! The residency bestowed the luxury of abundant time to devote to weaving, which as a beginner, I had never before experienced. This allowed me to feel comfortable with following my intuition and not planning projects. My first two tapestry works were informed by color and pattern. As I would linger around the kitchen multiple times a day waiting for the hot water to boil, I would look at the informative piece of paper pinned casually to the bulletin board: “13 ways to understand the Icelandic word Jæja”. I found it delightful how many varied expressions could be communicated with this four-letter word. An abridged version of this document became my final work at the residency - my ode to Iceland.
Nina Flowers 74 x 58 cm wool tapestry photo by Rachel Simkover
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October 2019
13 ways to understand the Icelandic word JĂŚja 56 x 56 cm wool tapestry photo by Rachel Simkover
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Marion Hingston Lamb United Kingdom
I deliberately had no fixed agenda for my month at the Textile Centre: I wanted to be open to landscape, the atmosphere, the stories of Iceland. To the materials I found around me, to the colours, the climate and the people. I wanted to keep my head up instead of down, to live in the moment. It was more about in-put than out-put. Every day I made colour sketches in yarn: winding strands of plotulopi on card to record the changing light. I stitched small collages using scraps left by previous residents, I made cyanotypes using the sun streaming onto my bedroom windowsill, I knitted traditional Icelandic patterns with plotulopi. I combed and carded Icelandic fleece and used it to wet felt with cotton muslin and silk waste. On my daily walks I collected plants that might yield useful dyes and had success with lupin, yarrow and two plants I was unable to identify, using them to colour silk fabric and Icelandic wool. I made felt with the dyed wool and combined it with the natural colours of the fleece. The history evident all around in Kvennaskolinn makes it, to me, a romantic place, and nowhere was more romantic than the weaving studio. I’ve never woven on a floor loom, and here were a dozen looms in a light filled room overlooking the river. With the generous help of expert weaver fellow residents I began to weave, first using my favourite plotulopi in the weft and later discovering the joys and difficulties of weaving with Icelandic einband. I left the residency with a head full of ideas, a suitcase of wool and a strong desire to return.
Through the window 41 x 38 cm Icelandic wool, cotton muslin, silk and silk cocoon strippings wet felt, stitch photos by Marion Hingston Lamb
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October 2019
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Elizabeth Schweizer United States
During my time at the Icelandic Textile Center, I explored translating drawings into woven form, playing with tapestry and pick-up techniques. While the landscape and climate of Iceland brought new wonders each day, I was fascinated by the small differences in my routine and social interactions in Blรถnduรณs. The pool as a spot of gathering, the happy or not rating system at the grocery store, the phone calls I would make to family and friends, observing American politics from abroad, all became inspiration for my work.
Ring Ring 40 x 20 in wool woven, double weave pick up photo by Elizabeth Schweizer
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October/November 2019
Icelandic Saga Tapestry 18 x 20 in wool tapestry photo by Elizabeth Schweizer
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My Kirsten Dammand Sweden
I applied to the Textile Center in Blönduós because I wanted to see how the TC2 weave’s possibilities affected my expression and how I can make use of this in my artistic work. As a textile artist, I work with stories from what is close to me or that touch me. Weaving and weaving technique are my tools for storytelling. I chose to work with what was closest. That is to say: The sea, The river Blanda’s fresh water that flows straight into the salty sea, the mountains around Blönduós where you can feel the lava flowing, the shapes from the sheep-roundup fences in Hvammstangi and the colors which are so special in Iceland. A fascinating beautiful landscape where you feel that you are in a young landscape with violent forces. I worked on making surfaces and patterns that tell about the surroundings. I worked with repeating patterns as a surface texture in some pieces but also did a few more figurative pieces where I use a more resolved expression together with different weave bindings. The woven surface and the not woven treads together have some possibilities that I want to develop in the future. An expression that becomes more like a fragment of a textile.
TOP
Floating Mountains 140 x 110 cm flax, cotton and lurex woven BOTTOM
Sheep Roundup 140 x 110 cm flax, cotton and lurex woven photos by My Kirsten Dammand
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October/November 2019
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Cindy Weil United States
CINDY WEIL, Artist, Creative Activist and the Founder of the Immigrant Yarn Project. Weil is an American contemporary visual artist specializing in sculpture. Her work is characterized by an interest in current affairs, empowerment, and irony. “It seems practically impossible for me to make, think or even say anything that isn’t political at the moment. My concern is to build sculptural pieces that reflect on the state of the world around me. Humor is paramount. I like to push the pieces until I find the inside joke. Along with the sweet irresistibility of yarn, humor allows me to deal with more fraught subject matter in ways that can soften the blow.” In addition to the spectacular Blonduos landscapes of Northern Iceland, the treat of the winter Aurora Borealis, the limited daylight hours and the warm, lovely, and immensely talented artists and staff at the Icelandic Textile Center - I found the silence and the slo-mo pace of everyday life to be particularly conducive to work and clear thinking. In that respect, it’s ironic that I spent my time in Iceland working on a piece about noise. SHHHHHH is a comment on the 24/7 news cycle, social media, the bifurcation and subsequent explosion of American political dialogue, and the generalized racket of modern life. As Henry David Thoreau observed, “There are many fine things which we cannot say if we have to shout.” Perhaps the greatest treasure of the Textile Center is the luxury of working in silence and recognizing its profound creative advantages.
SHHHHHHH 30 x 18 x 15 in wool knitting/crocheting, felting, sewing photos by Cindy Weil
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November 2019
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Deborah Gray Scotland
I am a spinner, dyer, knitter and felt-maker. I teach these skills at international fibre festivals and at my studio base on the West Coast of Scotland. I create both wearable and installation pieces. During my November 2019 Residency I added to a series of works started in Blonduos in June and July 2018 entitled ‘Of the Land: Icelandic Wool’. This work explores the concept of ‘terroir’ - the influence of the landscape in which sheep are raised and in which plants grow on the wool and natural dyes they produce. My 2019 pieces complete the circle by representing elements of the landscape, in wool and colours from that same landscape. Using fleece from Icelandic sheep, some of which I had dyed in 2018 using plants growing in Blonduos, I spun yarn and knitted a large installation piece, ‘Basalt’, inspired by the shape and colours of columnar basalt rocks. Numerous ravens were seen and heard around the Textile Centre during November, and inspired the creation of ‘Hrafnegg’, a clutch of felt eggs made from the un-spinnable parts of the dyed and undyed fleece I was using for ‘Basalt’. Every day of the month-long Residency I recorded numerous observations of the sky above Blonduos, to be documented in knitting as a record of daylength and weather conditions. Ten appearances of the Northern Lights are also represented in this piece, which uses 24 colours of Icelandic Einband yarn, some naturally-dyed by me in Blonduos. It is a work-in-progress at the time of writing.
Hrafnegg 40 cm diameter, 12 cm high eggs: polystyrene, Icelandic wool / nest: horsehair, twigs wet felting photo by Deborah Gray
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November 2019
Basalt (in progress) 1.5 x 1.4 m finished size handspun undyed and plant-dyed Icelandic wool natural dyeing, handspinning, handknitting photo by Sigrid Mullenhoff
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Marled Mader Germany
I’m a former teacher and have been a passionate self-taught weaver for 40 years. I focus on archeological and historical textiles in research and reproduction and have a broader knowledge of ancient textiles handcrafts like dyeing with plants, band weaving, sprang, needlebinding and more. I love to work with natural fibres like wool and silk, especially with Icelandic fleeces. During my several stays at the textile center in Blönduós I always have some new projects in mind to revive old techniques and fabrics and to improve my abilities for instance in tablet weaving. With all the modern possibilities we should not forget the crafts and arts of long forgotten times.
Veil with tablet woven border woven, plant dyed photo by Marled Mader
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November 2019
Kruseler, medieval headdress with frills / Viking age shawl / Veil with tablet woven border/Tablet woven band photo by Marled Mader
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Sofie Karlsson Sweden
During my residency at the Icelandic Textile Center I wanted to embrace the softness of wool into my work as a contrast to the barren Icelandic landscape. I wanted to dig deeper into a combination of on and off weaving inspired by horizontal lines and layers of the surroundings. Mornings in the swimming pool before the late sunrise, slow walks to see Icelandic horses during crispy daytime and glimpse of dancing northern light at night are experiences I transformed into colorful patterns in and off the loom. The narrative I found during my productive month in Iceland are for me a new way of looking at light, movement and flow in my textile work that is still growing inside me.
Matte Kudasai 130 x 95 cm wool weaving and makramé photo by Sofie Karlsson
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November 2019
Moving out 220 x 90 cm old sheets, wool and linen weaving and twining photo by SoďŹ e Karlsson
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Angie Y. To Canada
The time in Iceland sharpened my senses. I took daily walks around the village to get acquainted with the landscape. It was a delight to gaze at the sea every day, notice the vibrancy of moss, and to listen to the urgency of wind. It was a gift to play and to create while feeling completely unobserved and free to go where ever the day took me.
moss study 28 x 40 in wool and cotton weaving photo by Angie Y. To
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December 2019
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Heather MacKenzie United States
I began working on a body of work called “Queered Warps” about a year after the US’s last presidential election. That spring, I was making a piece for a group show in Beirut called the “New Normal”. Etymology often acts as a jumping off point for me, and when I looked up the word “normal” I found that it was rooted in the carpenter’s square. This right angle is an unnatural shape. It is a shape to which we plane, straighten, and otherwise conform our world. The rectilinearity of woven cloth is almost always a given. While my work is rooted in deep skill and technical knowledge around weaving, textile histories, and fiber materials, I find joy in pushing the technical aspects and assumptions of what weaving can mean. With each Queered Warp, I resist the rectilinear grid of warp and weft, using multi-layered structures that unfold into odd geometries of the loom. The warp sprouts fringe on all sides. The weft spirals out from the center. They all have awkward and wonderful flaps. These structures are complex to create, and involve much trial and error. With dedicated time at the Icelandic Textile Center, I was able to develop a smoother process for working within multi-cloth, using highly weft-faced structures and multiple weft colors and materials. I embedded more intricate asymmetrical images, working with meta-imagery of shadow and virtual simulations of cloth.
Free Fall (from Hito Steyerl) 75 x 105 cm cotton, holographic curling ribbon hand-woven multicloth using the TC-2 photo by Heather MacKenzie
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December 2019
Queered Warp #18 (detail) 140 x 105 cm cotton, mohair, holographic curling ribbon hand-woven multicloth using the TC-2 photo by Heather MacKenzie
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ISSN 2547-7358 Published in 2020 by Icelandic Textile Center Árbraut 31 540 Blönduós Editor, Design & Layout: Cornelia Theimer Gardella Managing Editor: Katharina Schneider Front & Back Cover Image: Morris Fox, “SOS funerary cloth” © Icelandic Textile Center 2020