J288 The Journal for WSD

‘A Weaver’s Journey’ — Frome Guild Exhibition In November 2022, Frome Weavers Spinners and Dyers were invited to curate an exhibition in The Round Tower at the Black Swan Gallery, Frome, Somerset. This provided a challenging opportunity to gather work, articulate ideas and plan for a presentation, a chance to celebrate our achievements publicly. The title, ‘A Weaver's Journey' was conceived. Members selected work and wrote varied, detailed and insightful statements in interpretation of the theme. A handout was provided at the entrance of the exhibition, detailing members’ specific interests in weaving, spinning or dyeing, as well as reasons for joining the group and why they enjoyed being members. What a pleasure to meet our local public of all ages, including weavers visiting from neighbouring guilds. We exchanged ideas and heard woolly, weaving and textile stories from afar! We were humbled by the purchases, kind comments, and written feedback. The local poetry group, ‘Words at the Black Swan’ met in the exhibition space to create sensitive poetic responses to our work. A sales table was sited at the entrance on the ground floor, with weaving displayed as a visual lead to the main presentation on the second floor. The varied exhibits reflected the diverse range of experience and interest of the membership. A variety of inspiration sources, scale, dimension, weave structure and fibre provided accented focus, alongside ‘tools of the trade’, a basket of hand spun hanks and a squishy selection of plant and acid dyed protein and cellulose fibre. The Round Tower provided an exciting circular space within which to work. The vaulted roof, central skylight and triple aspect windows flooded the upper storey with natural light that shifted in mood and colour with the passing of each hour of the day. The contrasting cold metallic fittings and warm stone walls suggested a sympathetic theatre for our softly woven cloth, placed as modulated colour moving around the circumference. It is not an exaggeration to say that it felt right, as if our handwoven cloth had found a good, albeit temporary, home. The original function of the tower was to dry wool. The raw fleece was washed or scoured in the outside

‘A Weavers Journey’ : shifting colour and light. Variety in weave structure including tablet weaving. Inspiration and material sources: wool, cotton, mohair, silk, stash busters, thrums and recycled cashmere jumpers.

yard, to remove dirt and lanolin. A furnace in the ground level warmed the air within the building and the scoured wool was spread onto the slatted floor of the upper storey to be dried before combing, carding, spinning, dyeing and weaving. During the exhibition, it was rewarding to demonstrate some of these processes for visitors, and great fun to work alongside those who had a go

themselves at weaving and spinning, especially those fearless youngsters. Frome Weavers, Spinners and Dyers is a charity for the preservation of and education in the crafts of weaving, spinning and dyeing. We have a well-equipped workshop space in Baywell House, Tuckers Close, Frome. We are affiliated to the Association of Guilds of Weavers Spinners and Dyers. If you would like to learn more or are interested in joining our group please contact us via our website. www.fromeweavers.org Instagram : @fromewsd Jan Oliver, Frome Weavers Spinners and Dyers Guild

Silk sampler

Photos: Angela Coley

Hand spun yarns: local fleece and commercially prepared merino

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Journal for Weavers, Spinners and Dyers 288, Winter 2023