Praxis Fiber Workshop

February 2024

I recently completed a two-week artist residency at Praxis Fiber Workshop in Cleveland, Ohio, where I had the opportunity to work with the digital weaving lab (DWL). The DWL offers weavers access to two TC2 looms for short-term use throughout the year. As access to the TC2 loom has become increasingly difficult in Canada, due to the closure of the rent-to-use loom at Artscape Daniels Launchpad (ADL) and Creative Studios, the opportunity to work at Praxis was a welcome one.

Welcome to Praxis Fiber Workshop! A warm, welcoming, community textile classroom.

Upon arrival, I was given an apartment located above the weaving lab, which made settling in easy. Praxis director Jessica Pinsky made me feel welcome and Studio Tech. Chad Troyer helped get me set up on the loom in a short time. I wound a 1320-thread warp onsite and used the "Trapeze" method to prepare for weaving by tying the ends of each thread to the threads already on the loom.

The Weaving Room in the Digital Weaving Lab at Praxis. Sampling with black and white warp. 

The rest of my days were spent weaving, eating, sleeping, and weaving some more! I took advantage of the spacious Digital Weaving Lab (DWL) studio and spread out with my plant-dyed wools, books for inspiration, watercolours, and coloured collage paper, using them to compose my ideas. I then created pixelated images of my compositions through a process of designing image files in Photoshop. I created and used "Weave presets" as pattern overlays to communicate which threads I wanted lifting and lowering via the computer attached to the loom.

Experimenting on the TC2 digital Jacquard Loom at the DWL. Inspired by Josef Albers. 

I experimented with different weave structures, types of wool, and ideas before settling on a "brocade" effect. I wove four pieces that juxtapose abstract shapes of plant-dyed colours from my garden over blown-up images of the plants. Although I spent most of my time in the weaving lab, I also explored the Praxis Indigo Collective Sukomo Indigo vat, Praxis Fiber Workshop dye studio, the gallery, and the yarn collection in the main building.

Dyeing with Sukomo Indigo in the basement of the DWL. Colour planning my next weave. Brocade method on the TC2 Loom at Praxis.

Overall, my time at Praxis was an inspiring experience that allowed me to pick up where I left off with digital weaving and discover a community of passionate creatives on the other side of the Great Lakes. Many thanks to Praxis for the opportunity.

Handweaving on the TC2 Loom at Praxis DWL. Four black and white weavings and numerous samples in a 2-week timeframe.  

Check out the Praxis Digital weaving Lab Blog here for more about my residency and that of other artists!!