Exhibition: Theo Wright

Permutations is a collection of handwoven textile artworks from Coventry-based weaver Theo Wright, that explores the relation between weaving and the mathematics of permutations and combinations.

The project was originally inspired by looking at a four-shaft loom and considering the different orders in which a small group of warp ends could be threaded onto the four shafts. Twenty-four ordered threadings of four ends and a corresponding set of lifts form the basis of all the designs in the collection.

A set of 72 small motifs were developed, each four ends wide and four picks high. By systematically selecting and reordering the threading and lifting sequences these motifs were combined to create a set of complex designs.

Each design has been scaled-up and handwoven in silk as a double-cloth in four blocks, using four dark and four light yarn colours. The resulting textiles reveal a range of geometric patterns when viewed at different levels of detail.

The project was supported by the National Lottery through Arts Council England.