Hallaig Page 5
Hallaig Continued/5
Normally I weave my designs starting with the foreground and finishing with the sky. It seems the most logical way to weave a landscape. This piece however had to be woven with the design on its side because it was important that the forms of the trees were smooth and sinuous. Working sideways requires me to decide in more detail how to treat all the design elements right at the beginning. It was necessary in this instance because no matter how beautifully they are woven, sinuous vertical forms always come out stepped which I knew I didn't want at any cost. In fact I found weaving this design on its side rather liberating, I was less distracted by the landscape element and more able to concentrate on interpreting the story behind the landscape. It felt more like an abstract design so I was less inclined to tweak elements towards more realism which might have happened had I woven the piece from the bottom.
'Hallaig' is at present on exhibition in the USA as part of the American Tapestry Alliance's biannual juried exhibition.
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