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Exhibition: Madeleine Jude | One Warp, Infinite Designs


One Warp, Infinite Designs: An exploration of block design and multishaft weaving

One warp, Infinite Designs showcases a three year project by London / Surrey based textile designer and weaver, Madeleine Jude, to take one warp threading and see how many designs and structures can be produced by experimenting with different tie-up and treadling possibilities.

The threading uses a block design initially developed to weave a twill damask version of her table linen design called Dukagang – woven using a Dukagang weave structure. The strongly geometric design is inspired by antique Scandinavian linen towels woven in this structure.

The versatility of this initial threading became a source of play and exploration of its potential for creating other designs. The result is a collection of boldly distinct designs.

The exhibition follows the progression of this project from its early iteration as dukagang table linen and kitchen textiles, to the lambswool throw that Madeleine Jude is best known for and includes a preview of her latest work created using new weave structures on the same block threading.

The Handweavers Studio is a fitting place to mount this exhibition as Madeleine Jude was one of the first intake of students to the 2011-13 Handweavers Studio Diploma.  Since then she has been building her studio and collection and teaching her weaving techniques in Denmark. Continue reading →

Texprint 2017: Weave Designers

Texprint interviews, mentors and promotes the UK’s most talented textile design graduates with the support of industry professionals worldwide.

Those selected are introduced to buyers, press and sponsors at the Texprint London event, and at Europe and Asia’s leading yarn and textile exhibitions.

Texprint is entirely funded by the generous sponsorship of industry and by British charitable foundations, who believe wholeheartedly in supporting textile design talent and in encouraging design innovation and excellence.

The following Weave Designers were selected for 2017, and their work can be seen at Première Vision Designs, Paris, Europe’s leading textile design specialty show, where the designers will exhibit their unique textile design collections, meet international buyers and make contacts.

The Texprint Awards Presentation, promoting the talent of British-trained textile designers to an international audience, takes place in the Texprint ‘village’ in Hall 5 and is attended by industry guests and press.  The 2017 Prize Presenter in Paris will be star Japanese designer Yuma Koshino.:

Julia Lidell ( Top image)
The Hen Folk Dress Collection. Hen is a new Swedish word referring to he or she. This is used when the gender is unknown or has no significance for the comunicated message.

Hen Collection is a lifestyle collection, made applicable to gender neutral fashion and accessories, as well as interiors.

The collection explores both heavy and light designs that celebrate the potential of wool and natural materials. Research into the wider heritage of Scandinavia: garments and ships from the viking age, folk dress and craft techniques that are still used today, has inspired a multi-functional collection. This collection is inspired by objects that hold a history and traditional Scandinavian craft techniques as a tool for contemporary design.

I have a wide passion for crafts and materials. Textiles have always been an interest of mine, previous to my woven textiles degree in London, I studied tailoring and design for three years at college in Sweden. Textiles has become my specialism but I have a wide interest for many different crafts, ceramics, silversmithing, embroidery. The key for me is the authenticity of materials and the value of old craft technique.The last year I have been focussing on creating delicate but heavily textured contemporary woven designs, with a high wool content in earthy grounded colours, inspired by objects that hold a history, and by traditional techniques.

E:julia.lidell@gmail.com

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Jobs: The Bristol Weaving Mill

The Bristol Weaving Mill is looking for two full-time weave design/textile graduates to join their growing team. A Sales and Design and a Production and Technical role.

Both positions are for immediate start.
Location: Bristol
Salary: £18,000 PA starting wage.
Submission deadline: 2pm Friday 14th July 2017.

Sales & Design Role
The Bristol Weaving Mill are looking for a confident and driven sales person with a solid technical understanding of weaving and excellent design skills to help us establish, nurture, and maintain client relationships for The Bristol Weaving Mill through pro-active and responsive communication and design development.

This job will involve working closely and strategically on sales, building upon the existing client database for the Bristol Weaving Mill. Each of their client relationships is based on offering a service catered to their individual needs, with most of the customers seeking not only the small-batch and locally managed production capabilities of the mill, but also looking to them to provide input and direction creatively, offering technical advice where necessary.

The creative and technical elements of this role are essential to the main sales element.

Responsibilities:
– Maintaining communications with existing clients remotely, via phone and email;
– Managing client lists and contacts;
– Meeting with existing and new clients in-house and on sales visits;
– Identifying and targeting new potential clients in the UK and worldwide;
– Co-ordinating the aesthetic development of client projects through trend research and hand- weaving trials;
– Product development for our own branded fabric and products through CAD and hand- weaving;
– Working with the production team at The Bristol Weaving Mill to be able to inform clients about the viability, scope, and limitations of their proposed projects and the different options open to them for any given project;
– Communicating pricing and lead time information to clients;
– Contributing to the development of our in-house fabric collection including personal design
input of trends and hand-loom swatches. Requirements:
– A BA degree in Textiles (specialised in woven constructed fabrics);
– Confident hand-weaver (practical and technical);
– Professional and diverse creative portfolio;
– Excellent interpersonal skills;
– Sales experience preferred but not essential;
– Adobe Suite and Microsoft Office;
– Full UK drivers licence.
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New Designers: The Swedish School of Textiles Borås | Weavers

 

Agata Ciechomska holds a Master of Fine Arts in Textile Design from The Swedish School of Textiles. Her work explores colour perception in relation to material, colour and light through
weaving and hand-tufting.

Color in Loops
Exploring colour perception in relation to light in weaving and handtufting technique

The motivation for this work is based on the challenge to the preconception of handtufting through material, colour and light. When imagining a rug, a very specific image appears in our mind. Some details of that image could vary from person to person, but what is almost certain, dense and heavy, probably made out of wool, woven textile will pop up in front of our eyes.

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Job: Gainsborough Fine Weavers & Dye House

The Company
Founded in 1903, Gainsborough Fine Weavers & Dye House embodies over a century of British craftsmanship. The entire production process – from design, to hand-dyeing yarns, to weaving the finished fabrics – takes place on the site they have occupied since 1924. They received the Royal Warrant from HM The Queen in 1981.

Alongside their own collections, Gainsborough has long been a textile house for any interior designer seeking  bespoke fabrics, from contemporary, geometric styles to the richest of damasks and pearl-embroidered silks, and our their willingness to support creative craftspeople in their endeavours remains a cornerstone of their offering.

The role
Gainsborough is looking to hire experienced weavers, including hand weavers to join its production team in Sudbury. They have both Jacqaurd Dornier electronic looms as well as 1930s punch-card operated Hattersley Looms.

Successful applicants will be trained both in Dornier and Hattersley operation and also have the opportunity to widen their skill set in other areas of the production process.

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Exhibition: The Darker Thread // Edefyn Tywyllach

A Darker Thread // Edefyn Tywyllach

Oriel Myrddin Gallery

15 July – 21 October 2017

Wales has a much celebrated tradition of creating both utilitarian and decorative textiles of distinctive design.  From power-loomed blankets to hand-stitched quilts, textiles are a key part of Welsh visual culture and history.

Whilst ‘A Darker Thread’ takes this heritage as its starting point, twelve contemporary artists, designers and makers have been invited to exhibit work which subverts these expectations.

Exhibitors have been selected for their challenging, confrontational or unpredictable approach to making thoroughly contemporary work which confidently cross boundaries of art, design and craft.  A variety of making processes are exemplified, but all make use of thread in some form.

The curious, provocative, intense, fragile works explore broad-ranging themes of empowerment, loss, language, internal landscapes, memory and gender to name but a few.  Some work might still feel comfortably familiar through its materiality or typically ‘Welsh’ colour palette of black, ecru and red; much hopefully, does not.

Exhibitors: Alana Tyson, Eleri Mills, Indre Dunn, Jayne Pierson in collaboration with Neale Howells, Laura Thomas, Llio James, Philippa Lawrence, Rhiannon Williams, Rozanne Hawksley, Ruth Harries, Sally-Ann Parker and Spike Dennis. Continue reading →

Crossover Borås 2017: European Textile Network Conference

Crossover Borås 2017, the XVIII conference of the European Textile Network, ETN, will be held September 12-19, 2017, The main conference sessions will take place on Saturday and Sunday, September 16-17, 2017. at the Swedish Museum of Textiles, located in the city of Borås, 30 minutes from Gothenburg airport.

The Borås Textile Fashion Centre not only houses the Museum but also the Swedish School of Textiles, an internationally renowned centre for textile innovation in fashion and design plus the Smart Textiles Lab.

The conference co-organizers are the European Textile Network, ETN, together with the Swedish Museum of Textiles and Nordic Textile Art association. The conference aims to present a global perspective of the different textile practices and their interactions with a special focus on sustainable creativity and innovation in textile art and design.

Speakers include Lij Edelkoort, one of the world’s most famous trend forecasters, Faigh Ahmed, Azerbaijani artist well known for his conceptual approach to traditional textiles, Jun Tomita, Japanese kasuri weaving master, Grethe Sørensen, Danish Jacquard weaver who recently received the Nordic Award in Textiles, and Catharine Ellis, who together with textile chemist Joy Boutrup, will talk about collaborative projects between art and science, among others.

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Studio/Office to Rent: London

Two studio/workroom/offices are offered for sublet on 2nd floor of an office building on Camden High Street, London NW1. They can be rented either separately or together. The larger room is around 25 sq meters and the smaller room is around 15 sq meters. Rent for the larger room is £1,000 pcm and for the smaller room £700 pcm. Rent includes electricity and business rates. Sublet is on a flexible one month rolling contract. One month’s deposit and one month’s rent up front is required. Please call Daniel on 07423 392 050 for further details.

Company Profile: Esther Van Schuylenbergh

Esther Van Schuylenbergh  is a designer with a master’s degree in Textile Design at the School of Arts in Ghent, Belgium. After  graduation in 2014 she worked as a textile designer for a Belgian wall covering company until setting up her own design studio in Ghent in 2016.

In her design studio she develops woven textiles suitable for interior design applications on her handloom. Striving to push the boundaries of the weaving technique, she explores the possibilities of yarn and construction to create innovative structures.

The core business of the studio is the design and development of woven textiles for the industry. By using a 32-shaft computerized handloom, Esther is creating dobby weaves with a keen eye for texture, pattern and colour.

Currently, she is working on a library of unique design swatches for upholstery, curtain and wall covering fabrics which are suitable for industrial production. Each sample is designed on the handloom and ready for mill development. All swatches are sold complete with copyright, technical files and yarn information.
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Exhibition: The Handweavers Studio

Handweavers diploma exhibition 2017 is showcasing the final project work of the 2015-2017 diploma students

Following a long tradition of nurturing weavers, in 2011 under the directorship of Wendy Morris, the Handweavers Studio & Gallery launched a two-year Diploma course in handweaving.

Since the Diploma’s inception, the handweavers studio has been delighted to provide an excellent grounding in the craft skill for a series of enthusiastic students wishing to take their handweaving to another level. The Diploma, running biennially with a limited intake, focuses on developing good weaving skills and the ability to produce well designed desirable handwoven items for a variety of outcomes. Continue reading →