Winter 2013 newsletter

Check out our Winter 2013 newsletter hier. If you don't receive the newsletter, send me an e-mail and I will put you on our list! Thanks!

Artist: Nel v/d Meijden, Textile Art & Art Quilts 2012

Exhibition success

Despite the buckets of rain last Sunday - 13 October 2013, we still had a great showing of 200 people to the first student exhibition of the 2-year Textile Arts Program. Among the guests were Boukje Mulder, editor of Handwerken Zonder Grenzen and Henk Lijding, author of Art Quilts in the Netherlands. Boukje immediately wrote a great Tweet and blog post about the exhibition. I think she captured the story perfectly. Henk Lijding shared about our success in his readings during the EU Quilt Championship this past week in Veldhoven. Overall positive commentary! 

Here are only a few pictures of the show in case you were one of those who couldn't manage to trample through the rain with your umbrella to come see us. 

The students and I are very pleased with the outcome of the exhibition. I really look forward to the second exhibition of two Textile Art groups. Don't miss out. Watch for our mailing early in the Spring as the exhibition will be during Pinkster weekend (7-9 June 2014). 

If you aren't signed up for our mailing list, you can do so here. 

 @ ABC Treehouse, Amsterdam

Annemieke Vollebregt

 Dymphie Kies

 Petra van Seventer

Marjan van Holte

Inge Neumann

 Liesbeth Olthof

 Jessey Fokkinga

 Mirjam Luiten

 Carola Goodwin

Graduation Group

Ginni Fleck, Director & Joanna Wroblewska, Teacher

Diversity in Fiber Art student exhibition

The new season at DIY Textile has begon. The 2012 Textile Art group returned for the 2nd year of their program. The new 2013 Textile Art groups start this week! 

But best of all, the 2011 Textile Art group will be exhibiting their final projects on Saturday - Sunday, 12 & 13 October between 12 - 18:00 at the ABC Treehouse, Voetboogstraat 11 in Amsterdam. And YOU are cordially invited! 14 students will exhibit a variety of textile artistry! Come join us for our first student exhibition!

Lace and Linen

I visited the Lace museum yesterday for the exhibit Schitterend geplooied. It was very interesting - definitely worth a visit. Although there was much to see, especially in regards to the amazing handwork of the Chinese Miao and Dong people, I found myself most fascinated by the basic things right here in Holland long before machinery. I say this, because the museum has a rondleiding to explain all the equipment that produces lace products. But I was most curious watching the Dutch video explaining how flax was grown, harvested and turned into linen. What an amazing long, labour intensive process, and it happened here. I don't need to eroticise another culture. I can be quite impressed with this one!

As someone who has grown up in the U.S., and lived my whole life in the Northern hemisphere, I have no clue how things are made from scratch. I grew up eating spinach from a box out of the freezer. I never had a garden. I had no idea how things grew...but slowly as I grow older I am learning to appreciate slowing down, and learning how things were made... before technology. But of course, I have the privilege of romanticizing this with Western eyes. Looking back at a simpler life but knowing it wasn't simpler, only harder. And for some people, in some countries, it remains hard...but then again, if you are living the culture, perhaps it doesn't feel hard, it just is. Yet, I know for some it is hard and I have the luxury of just paying for the things I want.

Anyway, a year ago, I bought some antique linen. Handmade linen. It fascinated me, so I was so happy to watch this video about the process of making the linen that I now own.  As I grow older, I learn to slow down, enjoy the simpler things in life, and I learn to make, dye and create my own things starting from their source. I'll be out picking up windfall for dying fabrics soon. Anyone want to join me?

Stitch Art 2013 - COMPLETE - KLAAR!

We had a great journey with Cherilyn Martin over the last six months. Using mixed media and stitch, students completed many beautiful works of art. Here are just a few to capture the memories. 

Mariette van Bruggen

Miek Verburg

Marion ten Broeke

Nel v/d Meiden

Riet Broeren

Rina Hermerler

Thank you again Cherilyn! And job well done, group!
For those of you who missed out in 2013, sign up here for 2014!

Cherilyn Martin

Open Atelierdagen: A success

Thanks to all the DIY Textile students who shared their artwork during the Open Atelierdagen!  It was a good mix of various techniques, materials, and formats, as you can see for yourself.

The weather on Monday in Amsterdam seemed to cooperate by forcing people to run for shelter under the gallery and into DIY! We had a good number of visitors over three days, with present students, potential students and students registered for the Fall all visiting to see the textile art! 

Watch for news about our next exhibition in late September or early October!

Natural dyeing

I spent the day with a friend testing some new natural dye pigments. While I mordanted my cotton fabric, A. was preparing an Indigo vat for her woolen and silk yarns. 

  
I added the colors: Weld and Madder



Then helped A. hang her indigo dyed yarns between dippings.



Of course I wanted to dip one of my textiles in her vat for an indigo cloth as well. 


Are you wondering how my cloth turned out? Check A's site for more photo(13 april)!
Thanks A. for a fun day!

Want to do some natural dyeing too? Stay tuned - we'll be teaching a few classes this summer!

Amazing Stitches

In last weeks Stitch Art class, Cherilyn Martin supported students in transforming their practice stitches, into mini artworks. I'm so curious to see what amazing works of art will be created by our 6th and last lesson! Here are just a few examples of student progress from our last class...

Finding my center

In running a business, I find myself with constant chatter in my brain of things to do, people to talk to, visions to consider, e-mails to write, etc. Sometimes, I just need to go for walks and find my center. That is my way of meditating. On my last walk, my brain was insistently chattering so I repeated to myself,  here and now...here and now...here and now. I took deep breaths, I smelled the clean air, I stopped and took in the small buds on the bare trees, and I listened to the birds sing. I found my center.

This leaf  dropped off one of my indoor plants and I decided I wanted to embroider on it. I pulled out my sketchbook to create a plan. I drew the leaf and the word NU (now) appeared on the leaf, then the word HIER (here). It was as if I was led to create this. So I did. Creating is one of the best ways to lose oneself into our center. I had forgotten that core message. Time to get back to my own creations. Ginni

Stedelijk visit, paper-fabric collage, and more!

Johanna Wroblewska gave a hands-on tour at the Stedelijk Museum in Amsterdam. Our Textile Arts students explored various aspects of modern art to improve their knowledge of composition and design.

The Mixed Media group learned about paper-fabric collage and creating your own lace and/or fabric with watersoluble stabilizers.

Our 2-year Textile Art 2011 group also met with Monika Auch to review their development over the last 2 years. No pictures yet, as we want to surprise the greater public with an amazing exhibition. It was really re-affirming to compare a first year experiment and compare it with a recent project. Wow!

Stitch Art & Mixed Media classes

It was a busy week last week. Cherilyn Martin taught her second class in the Stitch Art Series and it was amazing! The students were incredibly busy creating different backgrounds for their future embroidery projects. Check out these two wonderful examples: 

And look at these two inspired pieces from their homework! 

Now, that wasn't all...we had our second Mixed Media class. Everyone  proudly showed their dyed fabric (here are only 2). 

Then we printed some of them with stamps and thermofax screens. Awesome results! If you think this looks like fun, sign up for the next Mixed Media class starting: 5 April. There are only a few places left!