Rapids Swirl

摘要

When I first heard about Convergence, the biennial conference of the Handweavers' Guild of America, it sounded as though it was handweavers' heaven and I was immediately consumed with the desire to attend. Two years later, in 2004, I was able to fulfil that ambition in Denver. I'm not sure about handweavers' heaven, but it certainly was an amazing experience -upwards of 4,000 handweavers gathered in one place, with a vendors' hall equivalent to the whole of the Knitting and Stitching Show dedicated just to weavers. But the aspect of Convergence that made the deepest impression on me was the exhibitions and, in particular (as someone who primarily weaves fabric for clothing), the yardage exhibit. I spent literally hours looking at the items on display, revisiting the exhibit many times, analysing just how Bonnie Inouye had achieved this effect or Sarah Fortin that effect, learning and being inspired. When I returned home, it became a personal goal to design and weave something sufficiently interesting, excellent or innovative to be accepted for a Convergence yardage exhibit.