Take Note
Woven cloth, cotton, 2022
This woven textile uses a framework of play, which offers both order and adaptability.
Combining the structure of weaving with improvisation stages a material conversation. In a ‘call and response’ process, two artists take turns weaving a line by inlaying red or blue thread in the weft. Starting with blue, a line is woven across a 6 inch section of cloth. In response, a red line follows. This sequence is repeated until the woven cloth measures 6” x 48”. Unraveling the work like a scroll reveals a playful encounter - red and blue wefts move freely along the warp.
The warp itself is made of faint white thread, translucent and lined like paper. The blue and red threads read as corrective marks made in pen, or marginalia. Full of co-created errors, the improvisational nature of this weaving attunes to Paul Klee’s instruction: ‘take a line for a walk’ (1925). At each transition between red and blue: a moment of conversation. A dialogue between artists, which is not fully conveyed until the end, is in play.
The playful conditions of this work seeks to welcome the exploratory and imperfect qualities of collaboration. Through an exchange of ideas and material engagement, both artists listen and respond in equal parts. The outcome is a materialized interlocking of collective thoughts and processes.