“The Shifted Ikat Scarf”
(three day in-person workshop)
Photo Credit: Jeffrey Hahn of Paradigm Creative Media
TO REGISTER: 2 sessions
Session #1: April 26-28, 2024 - Session is FULL
Session #2: April 29 - May 1, 2024 - Session is FULL (12:02)
Please email the Workshops Chair to be put on a wait list.
Dates/Location:
Session 1: Friday-Sunday, April 26-28, 2024 @ Sunset Hill Community Center, Seattle, WA
Session 2: Monday-Wednesday, April 29-May 1, 2024 @ Ronald United Methodist Church in Shoreline, WA
Both sessions: 9:00 am -4:30 pm each day
Location:
Sunset Hill Community Center, Seattle, WA
Class Description:
Ikat is the centuries-old art and technique of resist-dying pattern into individual threads before weaving. It is a complex and revered fiber process resulting in graphically elaborate and compellingly beautiful woven cloth. Ikat wrapped yarns, when dipped in vats of dye, instantly become timeless, immersed in an ancient partnership between intention, design, and color.
Participants in this three-day workshop will design, wrap, dye, and weave a blue/white ikat scarf while learning the basic techniques of the warp ikat process. Each student will stretch a warp for an ikat scarf using warp yarns and a warping board they have brought to class. Several ikat warp wrapping methods will be demonstrated. The first day’s session will culminate in students dyeing their ikat wrapped warps using Procion Mx fiber reactive synthetic dye and then unwrapping the ikat resist warp bundles. Yarns will be hung to dry overnight.
On Day 2 each student will dress & warp their loom with their dyed ikat threads. Yarn handling and four different ikat warp shifting techniques will be discussed & demonstrated. As looms are dressed weaving will begin.
Students will continue weaving on Day 3, learning further ikat weaving techniques and adjustments for creating many classic ikat designs and patterns.
This workshop provides a unique opportunity to work in person with the instructor, an accomplished ikat weaver.
Skill Level:
This is NOT a learn to weave workshop. Students should be able to warp a loom and weave without assistance. No previous dyeing or ikat experience is necessary.
Materials required:
Portable warping board brought to class
2 3” c-clamps for attaching warping board to table
Warp yarns-warp yarns attachment/directions will be provided at workshop registration
Workshop loom with reed compatibly sized for a dense warp sett -10, 12, or 15 dent
2 wooden dowel rods cut 2” narrower than the width of your reed: ½’, ¾”, or 1” in diameter
1 shuttle with bobbins + your usual weaving supplies & header materials
Wide eye steel tapestry needle
Pair of small sharp scissors
Small spool of sturdy cotton cord, seine twine, or Texsolv heddles
Registration:
SWG Members: noon on January 13th, 2023.
Non-members: noon on February 3rd, 2024.
Class size:
Max 15
Cost:
$100 Deposit at time of registration. Estimated total cost: $360, based on 12 students enrolled, $290 based on maximum enrollment. In addition, there is a material fee of $15. The final cost will depend on the number of students enrolled. Final payment is due during the workshop.
Photo Credit: Jeffrey Hahn, Paradigm Creative Media
About Mary:
https://www.maryzicafoose.com/
Best known for her work in ikat tapestry, Mary Zicafoose strives to be an inspirational presence in the textile world. She received her BFA from St. Mary’s College, Notre Dame, IN and went on to graduate studies in art at the School of the Art Institute of Chicago and University of Nebraska. Her work is exhibited and collected internationally, including the International Triennial of Tapestry, Lodz, Poland; Museo de Textil, Oaxaca, Mexico; China National Silk Museum, Hangzhou, and the collections of two dozen United States Embassy’s on four continents. Extensive exhibition, teaching, and lecture venues include the de Young Museum, San Francisco, Penland School of Craft, Penland, NC, Arrowmont School of Arts and Crafts, Gatlinburg, TN and universities, conferences, and textile programs worldwide. She is Co-Director emerita of the American Tapestry Alliance, and have served on the board of GoodWeave, an international NGO dedicated to eliminating child labor in Southeast Asian carpet factories. As a founding member and past board president she helped form the Union for Contemporary Art in Omaha, NE. She is a former Bemis Center for Contemporary Art resident artist and three-time USA Artist finalist. Her studio practice has for the last decade has focused on creating large-scaled contemporary tapestry installations for public buildings and homes throughout the United States. Her most recent contribution to the textile field is the Penguin/Random House book, Ikat: The Essential Guide to Weaving Resist-Dyed Cloth, released in 2020.