Weaving Modernist Art: The Life and Work of Mariette Rousseau-Vermette by Anne Newlands Mariette Rousseau-Vermette was a Quebec-based weaver-artist, a woman of top flank, complex artistic talents and an internationally recognized figure in the art of the last century. She has finally been given her due by Anne Newlands, long after her better known contemporaries …
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Unraveling Women’s Art: Creators, Rebels & Innovators in Textile Arts by P.L. Henderson The big gem of this book is that P. L. Henderson has uncovered so many women that work in textiles, that one could be busy for a very long time researching their work and finding images. Within the broadly titled chapters of …
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Patterns in Art: A closer look at the Old Masters by Francesca Leoneschi, Giovanna Ferraris, and Silvia Lazzaris As you wander through an art exhibition, what attracts you to an artwork and makes you linger? Is it color? Subject matter? Technique? While visiting museums together, three friends–Francesca Leoneschi, Giovanna Ferraris and Silvia Lazzaris–discovered they each had …
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Each/Other: Marie Watt and Cannupa Hanska Luger edited by John P. Lukavic Each/Other is an exhibition catalog from the show of the same title. It was on display May 23 to August 22, 2021, with contributing essays by Jami C. Powell and Namita Wiggers. An exhibition catalog is, by design, a memento of someone’s viewing …
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This year, we were so lucky to have a wide range of books reviewed for SDA’s Book Club by contributing authors, Faith Hagenhofer, Vivien Zepf, and Katie Taylor. Here’s a combined list of all the reviews, as well as where to purchase each book. Fashionopolis: The Price of Fast Fashion and the Future of Clothes reviewed …
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Fabric: The Hidden History of the Material World by Victoria Finlay I’m so engrossed in Victoria Finlay’s new book, Fabric: The Hidden History of the Material World, that I’m wondering, will she get firsthand knowledge about barkcloth without the benefit of fifteen bodyguards and a helicopter? I don’t notice my bumpy flight until water slops …
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The Pocket: A Hidden History of Women’s Lives by Barbara Burman & Ariane Fennetaux I finished this book while having to pack a carry-on bag for a weekend away, and wished I had the sartorial accessories of pockets, as discussed in this book. They would have been very handy for holding my book, headphones, knitting …
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Worn: A People’s History of Clothing by Sofi Thanhauser Organized by fiber type, Worn is absolutely a history of clothing, but to be more precise, a history of its manufacture, and the labor therein. These intersections allow Thanhauser to explore firsthand this attribute of being human—our need for clothing and what it means for those …
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The Nature of Things: Essays of a Tapestry Weaver by Tommye McClure Scanlin In his artist statement in the 1988 World Tapestry Today exhibition catalog, Archie Brennan wrote that tapestry is a frequently boring 20th century activity (1). Author and tapestry artist Tommye McClure Scanlin concedes the point. She notes it can be boring when …
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Resilient Stitch: Wellbeing and Connection in Textile Arts by Claire Wellesley-Smith What great fortune to encounter a book aimed at resilience in my field (hand crafting) at this very moment! I resisted reading this book quickly. I also chose not to read it over multiple days, preferring to find one good stretch of time and …
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