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"Tapestry on the Edge" By Ellen Ramsey Continued..........
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In contrast to the “peaceful” room, the next gallery was themed as the “active” room. ...Alex Friedman’s two pieces "Checked Out" and "Flow" were having an interesting conversation amongst themselves about technique and design. I wanted people to see the contrast of techniques in work by the same artist. I think it is important. I think it is great,” Ms. Forssblad confided.
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below: Alex Friedman, Checked Out, 36" x 22", 2005
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below: Alex Friedman, Flow, 32" x 27" x 3.5", 2005
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There is one stand-out piece in this show that truly does speak most clearly in isolation: Margo MacDonald’s "Shimenawa for Puget Sound." Up close, it is thick and richly textured. The urge to caress the piece is strong. The tassels of the cord have three dimensional, raised embroidery that cast shadows, adding to the trompe l’oeil appearance of the rope. To step back is to watch the materiality of the weaving dissolve into the transparent watery landscape. ... there is a metaphorical connection between textile and landscape. In "Shimenawa" the veil both reveals, and is one with the Sound itself.
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below: Margo MacDonald, Shimenawa for Puget Sound, 27” x 39”, 2005,
tapestry, surface embroidery
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As part of this exhibition, members of Tapestry Artists of Puget Sound created a group project called The Webster Project. The purpose of the project was to “offer our members a way to interact as artists and an opportunity to tackle creative problems that might not arise in our own individual artistic practice.” The subject matter was inspired by the etymology of the word “tapestry.” The artists gave themselves the following limitations: uniformity of size (9" x 9"), uniformity of background color (grey), and the stipulation that the design must include letters found in the words “tapster, tapister, webster, or tapis.”
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below: TAPS Group Project, top row,
right to left:
Gail Temple, Inge Norgaard, Mary Lane, Cecilia Cecilia Blomberg,
bottom row, right to left:
Fran Williams, Margo McDonald, Carolyn Price Dyer, and Joyce Hayes.
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