Joanna Rogers
Oh No No No — …. -. — -. — -. —, 2022
Mercerized cotton warp and tabby weft dyed with madder, Cutch, and Cochineal. Wool pattern weft dyed with Eastern Brazilwood 16" x 180"
The Morse Code message contained in this piece is "Oh No No No" from Stevie Smith's poem: "Not Waving But Drowning". The urgency of this silent scream for help is mirrored in the use of orange and red thread. Things are not always what they seem.
Joanna Rogers
That Last Onset – …. .- – .-.. .- … – — -. … . –, 2022
Mercerized cotton warp and tabby weft dyed with pomegranate, quebracho and iron. Silk boucle pattern weft dyed with weld and eastern brazilwood. 15" x 180"
That Last Onset has been translated into morse code and woven into this piece both horizontally and vertically. It comes from the poem I heard a Fly buzz - when I died - (591) BY Emily Dickenson and like the other pieces in this series, laments the extinction of species due to human impact on habitat and the climate. By translating morse code from sound to visual representation it allows us to see what we cannot hear.
Joanna Rogers
Ave Atque Vale .- …- . .- – –.- ..- . …- .- .-.. ., 2022
Mercerized white cotton warp and tabby weft. Commercially dyed black mercerized cotton pattern weft. 17" x 180"
Ave Atque Vale (Hail and Farewell) is the title and closing phrase of a poem by Catullus. He is mourning the loss of his brother in battle but this phrase could be what our endangered southern resident orcas are silently crying as they pass by ever less frequently. I translated the words into morse code and wove them directly into the piece using a summer and winter pattern. In this piece I chose black and white to symbolize ink on a page and to resemble writing.
Joanna Rogers
Fade Far Away ..-. .- -.. . ..-. .- .-. .- .– .- -.–, 2022
Mercerized cotton warp and silk pattern weft. Dyed with Myrobalan, Weld, Eastern Brazilwood, Pomegranate, Quebracho, Madder, Cochineal and iron. 18" x 180"
The Morse Code message contained in this piece is "Fade Far Away" from John Keats' poem Ode to a Nightingale. As the vibrant colours of this piece fade into shades of grey, so do our endangered species fade into obscurity as we fail to protect them.
Joanna Rogers
Each Slow Dusk . .- -.-. … … .-.. — .– -.. ..- … -.-, 2021
Mercerized cotton warp and tabby weft, silk pattern weft. Dyed with logwood, weld, myrobalan and marigold. 18" x 180"
The Morse Code message contained in this piece is "Each Slow Dusk". This is the first half of the last line of Wilfred Owen's poem "Anthem For Doomed Youth". I am interested in non-verbal methods of communication, like morse code and semaphore, which have fallen out of use. I am fascinated by the patterns they create as well as the messages they impart.
Joanna Rogers
Save Our Souls … .- …- . — ..- .-. … — ..- .-.. …, 2021
Mercerized cotton. Dyed with Madder, Eastern Brazilwood, Cochineal, Cutch, Pomegranate, Myrobalan, Marigold, Chestnut, Walnut, Quebracho, Logwood. 18" x 180"
The Morse Code message contained in this piece is "Save Our Souls", the international distress signal. It can be read across the piece once and is repeated 5 times over the 15' length.
Joanna Rogers
Only Remember Me — -. .-.. -.– .-. . — . — -… . .-. — ., 2024
Mercerized cotton warp and tabby weft, linen pattern weft. Dyed with Carrot Tops, Daisies, Willow, Marigolds, St. John's Wort, Zinnias, Dahlias, Cosmos, Onion Skins, Indigo. 19" x 180"
I harvested plants from my garden (or kitchen in the case of the onion skins and carrot tops) and dyed the warps and wefts with these. I then overdyed the mercerized cotton and half the linen with indigo to create a distressed verdigris effect. Only Remember Me is from the poem Remember Me by Christina Rossetti and could be the last words our endangered species silently scream before they disappear forever.
Joanna Rogers
I Am Not There .. .- — -. — – – …. . .-. ., 2024
Mercerized cotton warp and tabby weft, linen/cotton pattern weft. Dyed with logwood and cutch. 13" x 180"
I Am Not There comes from the poem Dream 3: Night Bear Which Frightened Cattle from The Journals of Susanna Moodie by Margaret Atwood. I translated this phrase into morse code and wove it both horizontally and vertically using a summer and winter pattern. This phrase could be the last words uttered by our endangered species as they become extinct.
Joanna Rogers
I Will Arise .. .– .. .-.. .-.. .- .-. .. … ., 2023
Mercerized cotton, silk 16" x 15'
This is one of ten weavings which comprise The Chorus. The warp and tabby weft are dyed with plants from my yard while the pattern weft is dyed in indigo. Each weaving in The Chorus contains a message in morse code which is woven into the structure of the piece using a traditional summer and winter pattern. This piece contains the message I Will Arise from the poem The Lake Isle Of Innisfree by Yeats. The phrases I have chosen to weave in this series are all exhortations our endangered species could be silently screaming as they go extinct.
Joanna Rogers
Our Last Cry — ..- .-. .-.. .- … – -.-. .-. -.–, 2023
Mercerized cotton, wool, 17" x 15'
This is one of ten weavings which comprise The Chorus. The warp and tabby weft are dyed in indigo while the pattern weft is dyed with madder, marigolds and sappanwood. Each weaving in The Chorus contains a message in morse code which is woven into the structure of the piece using a traditional summer and winter pattern. This piece contains the messgae Our Last Cry from the last morse code message sent by the Frech navy. The phrases I have chosen to weave in this series are all exhortations our endangered species could be silently screaming as they go extinct.
