REGENHARDT GALLERY AT SHRODE ART CENTER

The world reflected on the surface of water is the source for these weavings, and solitude is its core. Walking at water’s edge and viewing the world through that altered lens can help me step outside the demands of daily life, which is mercilessly focused on all that must be accomplished. All too rarely do I find a place to ask questions about the elements, both personal and global, that wreak endless havoc — from the treatment of our earthly environment to the devastating impact of society against empathy.

Weaving is complex, demanding, and slow. The process is built on rhythm, repetition, and concentration, all of which benefit solitude. These images are built on from photographs of water at sunset and the golden hour before, where the reflection on water outside my studio window brings color, complexity, and solidity to the world. I notice, record, and translate these engagements most clearly when they are seen in an attitude of solitude.

To weave, every part of the body must be brought into focus. The body must activate the feet to manage the treadles, selecting the next open place to put weft yarn, the arms must throw, and the hands must catch the shuttle evenly in both the dominant and subdominant hand, the body must supply balance to those activities and to maintaining an even, active rhythm. Intellectually, the whole image must remain clear in my mind’s eye, although only eight inches of the weaving is visible. The image progresses slowly, building one weft line after another, one line at a time, like drawing on a typewriter. This entire system must work in a smooth rhythm like a well-oiled machine. The mind must arbitrate and judge each movement, the placement of each color, the structure that forms a whole cloth. The ability to allow myself to weave well requires focus, and most importantly, it requires me to put aside the hourly deadlines and concentrate on the solitude of weaving. When I can put the world into stasis, I can enter a place where my body is fully activated, and I can focus physically and mentally on making.

I offer this explanation because my goal is to share that solitude, that focus outside the demands of time, through these woven images and the regularity of careful choices