🏭Traditional and digital weaving
Weave innovation by rediscovering traditional patterns. A workshop format by Blönduós FCH Team
What is this tool about and why is it relevant ?
Traditional and digital weaving workshop is a set of activities and a method used to teach students, researchers, artists and makers, practical skills around weaving. It also serve to communicate the importance of cultural heritage for craft innovation.
The activity may includes :
lectures on the history of weaving and textiles in a given context (local, national or international)
theoretical lesson on how to weave on hand-operated looms (e.g. a Jacquard) using traditional weaving techniques and tie-up patterns and
practical lessons on (1) how to weave on hand-operated looms (e.g. a Jacquard) using traditional weaving techniques and tie-up patterns and (2) how to operate a digital loom (TC2), revisiting traditional patterns and re-imagining adapted to the TC2 .
This could be a shorter or longer workshop, taught over the course of several days. In Blonduos, the local team started developing this workshop format within the framework of a 3-year research and innovation project called “Bridging Textiles to the Digital Future”, where they analysed and catalogued old weaving patterns and built an online database: https://gagnagrunnur.textilmidstod.is/en/weaving
This format has proven to be an effective and inspiring tool for the makers and students visiting the Textile Center, whether the context of an art residency or field school / study program.
One of the overarching goals of the Blönduós team and of the Textile Center, as an institution, is to contribute to the (re)creation of a new type of textile industry in Iceland with an emphasis on local production using sustainable local resources, like the Icelandic wool as well as spreading awareness and an heritage sensitive culture around textile and weaving.
The Textile Lab, opened as an innovative FCH, aim to offer space, equipments and expertises for makers to experiment and acquire a set of (weaving) skills helpful in this context and to lead the creation of a Textile Cluster in Iceland.
The local team implemented this activity with in mind the following objectives :
to communicate the importance of cultural heritage for craft innovation in a circular economy.
to increase the possibilities for small-scale production to change the perception around textile work and weaving as one of the oldest but meaningful crafts in the world.
to encourage policy makers, investors, entrepreneurs, makers and educators to rediscover weaving and invest in the local production of textiles
to encourage other innovation hubs and educational institutions to teach this combination of tradition and innovation
to boost textile innovation, knowledge building and local production in Iceland
The organisation of these kind of workshop allowed the local team in Blönduós to obtain the following achievements:
→ encouraging the rediscover of weaving as a cultural and economical heritage and invest in textile local production
→ raising awareness around textile small-scale productions
→ collaborating with visiting scholars and have agreements/contracts regarding study visits and field school programs with the Iceland University of the Arts, Reykjavík School of Visual Arts and Concordia University in Montreal
→ providing makers with a better understanding of textiles, circular economy and a broad set of skills
→ receiving more media attention and an increasing amount of applications from makers, artists and students with very diverse backgrounds in textiles . The combination of tradition and innovation is intriguing and attract a broad public to come to Blönduós TFCH.
Organisational Practices
The use of this tool contributed to the following changes in local organisational practices each of them may relate to some of the three foundational aspects of a FCH: Vision , Community and Infrastructure.
OP8. Incremental design of space to create room for real and situated needs to emerge from the community
OP9. Create awareness around convivial forms of innovation, manufacturing capabilities, creative citizenship and social connections
Key Steps
Find here a list of fundamental steps shared by the Blönduós team you should follow if you want to organise a similar workshop format in your FCH.
1. Find and collaborate with a weaving expert
2. Work on project proposals and funding
3. Buy equipment
4. Find a suitable space
5. Build the weaving pattern database
6. Develop and start teaching weaving workshops and lectures
Summary Table
Do you want to learn more ?
The Blönduós FCH team suggest to have a look to these resources if you are interested in their work and in particular in weaving:
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