Santa Cruz Handweavers Guild

The Guild publishes an almost weekly e-News in pdf format online as well as emailing the membership. Members who have been receiving the almost weekly emails know that this includes information about equipment for sale, upcoming textile exhibitions, reminders about meetings and other news of interest to our community. Click here to download and read the e-News for this week.

Our annual lecture at the MAH. Australian-born sculptor weaver Sue Hiley Harris will talk about the ideas and inspiration behind her recent project, Ancestor Bags, an installation of thirty suspended abstract works, each representing one of her direct British and Australian ancestors over four generations.

Sue lives in Britain and was inspired after seeing an Aboriginal string bag in Oxford's Pitt Rivers Museum with an old label indicating that it had been used 'for carrying the bones of dead relatives.' It was similar to one sent to her by her mother. The details of the weaving, dyeing and construction of each work - as well as the materials used - convey coded information about members of her family. Shown together, the hangings are a unique visual exploration of ancestry.

Please note that this special lecture will take place at a different location and time. The Museum of Art and History is located at 705 Front Street, Santa Cruz. The lecture will begin at 1 pm on Saturday, February 18.

Guild member Tracey Appleton will speak about her work with natural dyes. She may offer a short workshop afterwards. Details will be announced later.

Polly Barton was born in New York City. She studied Art History at Barnard College and has lived and traveled in Paris, Florence, and Rome. In 1981 she moved to Kameoka Japan to study with master weaver, Tomohiko Inoue, living in the religious heart of the Oomoto Foundation. She returned to New York in 1982, married, and continued to weave on her Japanese tsumugi silk kimono looms.

In 1989, she and her husband bought land in Ojo Caliente, New Mexico. Their family moved to this remote area in 1992, where they lived for 15 years. They are now based in Santa Fe.

Polly Barton will speak about her work as an ikat weaver. Visit her website or check her blog to learn more about her work.

For over two decades, international textile artist Mary Zicafoose has been creating tapestries and rugs that are as rich in color as they are in symbolic content. Her work is included in private and public collections that span the globe, including U.S. Embassies on three continents. The artist' practice and processes reflect superb craftsmanship as well as her ability to articulate a brilliant contemporary vernacular based on color. Her woven pieces blend cultural icons, images and symbols with an unabashed hand, creating powerful visual statements in fiber. Zicafoose maintains a one-woman fiber studio in Omaha, NE where she lives with her family.

To learn more about Mary's tapestry studio and work visit her website .

A field trip is planned to the Talisman workshop on the westside of Santa Cruz to see how they clean, care for and restore Oriental rugs, tapestries and other textiles. Talisman is well known for the quality of their conservation services and work on textiles for a number of museums including the deYoung in San Francisco. Details of this field trip will be announced closer to the date of this meeting.

We will not be having our usual June potluck. Instead after our visit to Talisman we will picnic on one of the beaches on the westside of Santa Cruz.

Take the State Park Drive exit off Highway 1 (the same one we have been taking for years to go to the Aptos Library). Instead of turning left at the intersection with Soquel Drive, turn right. Drive past the shopping area and over the bridge. Make a left turn in front of the Aptos Village Garage. Watch out for approaching traffic as the road curves slightly here. Turn left again IMMEDIATELY, after you cross the railroad tracks. Follow the road until you come to the parking area and club house.

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Felt Makers Study Group is a new study group planning to meet every few months to share various techniques, supplies, equipment, and critique the creative expressions made by artists in art-to-wear, forms, vessels, or objects for home decor. Demonstrations by selected participants will be given each meeting. Contact Marilou Moschetti or use the Contact Us page to email the guild for more information.

Rug Weavers Study Group meets periodically at members' homes. Contact Martha Stanley, Janette Gross for information or use the Contact Us page to email.

Braiders Study Group meets at irregular intervals. All weavers of narrow ware, at any level of experience, are welcome. Use the Contact Us page to email for current information. New members are welcome.

Spinners:, At present we do not have a spinning Study Group. We recommend Anne's Web which meets in Salinas monthly. Anne's Web meets the second Saturday of each month from 10am til 2pm at the Buena Vista Grange Hall, 518 River Road. Directions: From Hwy 1 and Hwy 101, take Hwy 68 to Reservation/River Rd., Salinas. Turn east on River Rd., proceed 5 miles to old gray church on right, 518 River Rd. Each meeting includes a pot luck lunch, a show-and-tell opportunity, any announcements anyone cares to make, and the rest of the time is spent doing whatever each member cares to do. There are no officers, and no rules, other than courtesy. Dues are $12 a year. Members receive a monthly newsletter and a roster. Visitors and newcomers are welcome. For more information contact Gerry Wade by e-mail.

Golden Fleece at 317 Potrero Street, Santa Cruz, 831-426-1425.

Mostly knitting yarns, but wonderful variety. The Swift Stitch , 402 Ingalls St. #12, Santa Cruz, 831-427-9276. 10% discount to Guild members.