14 Aug 2009

Woollography

[Karen Barbé · Textile designer · Latch Hook-detail]

[Karen Barbé · Textile designer · Latch Hook]

[Karen Barbé · Textile designer · Latch Hook-pattern]

[Karen Barbé · Textile designer · Latch Hook-piles of yarn]

A few days ago I was talking to an aunt of mine and she mentioned she had once taken a course on Lanigrafía (which I can only translate as Woollography) – the art of depicting landscapes or objects using different embroidery stitches and colours, much more the same thing as Crewel embroidery. Though at first the term lanigrafía sounded absolutely weird/funny to me, I've been thinking about it and I believe it's quite meaningful after all. This word could well be used to comprise all the artistic expressions made with wool/yarn with a graphic value.

Now, the latch hooking. I finished the piece I was working on and noticed how distorted it ended compared to the original pattern. It happens the same thing with knitting – each knot/stitch is not a perfect square. I'll try to figure out a way to correct or adapt patterns to latch hooking.
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6 comments:

  1. I agree, Karen. The merging of ideas and techniques that artists/artisans use with wool is so varied these days and there is a real multi-disciplinary feel to a lot of works. Lanigrafia is a cool word! :)
    Your latch hook piece may not be a perfect square but it is totally divine! That's what I love, though - you've created something that's yours and not of the pattern anymore! The first photo has that 'pointilism' visual overload buzz, don't you think? Just fabulous :)
    Thanks for this - great post. Kylie x
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  2. Woolography is such a funny idea! Yesterday we did a felting workshop at the residency I'm at---its its been a long time since I made such a crusty, ugly lump of a thing! But wool is still the best.
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  3. Hi Kylie and Chelsea,

    Thanks for following my process in this project. Your comments are much appreciated :) I'm also glad you see my point with this thing of the woolography/lanigrafía! You are sweet.

    Enjoy your weekend.
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  4. Commenting on the size-problem as a finnish textile-designer: the squares on your original sketch should not be squares, but a bit flatter, this applies to both knitting and ryijy-rug-making. To get the perfect size is to calculate the amount of knots/stitches per cm in width and height and do a grid based on those measurements. Anyways, your rug looks nice ;)
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  5. Dear Anon, thanks for your advice :)
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  6. Tapestries with a difference. I've always been intrigued by persian carpets and weaving in general. This looks like something I will really enjoy pursueing.
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