Local fiber artists will bring the ancient skills of spinning and weaving to life this Sunday, as part of the “Art of Fiber” exhibit currently at the Art Center in Downtown Brownwood. Linda Morris, Cary Perrin and Greg Hancock, all participating artists in the premiere “Art of Fiber” show, will demonstrate how yarn is traditionally created on a spinning wheel, and then used for weaving. Cary Perrin, treasurer of the Brownwood Art Association and a founding member of the fledgling chapter of Fiber and Textile Arts, thinks the skills and traditions of spinning and weaving are often overlooked in today’s world of mass-production. “The creation of cloth – textiles – dates back to 5000 BC,” Perrin said. “The Egyptians used fibers from flax to spin into yarn, which they then weaved into the cloth which we know as linen. The equipment has changed through the centuries, and the fibers, but the technique is the same.”
The Spinning and Weaving demonstration is part of the Downtown Brownwood 2nd Sunday event and will be presented from 1 to 4 p.m. at the Art Center at 215 Fisk Ave. “The Art of Fiber” exhibit runs through the month of June. Admission is free and open to the public. Fiber art, and/or textile art, is “fine art whose material consists of natural or synthetic fiber and other components, such as fabric or yarn. It focuses on the materials and on the manual labor on the part of the artist as part of the works’ significance, and prioritizes aesthetic value over utility,” according to Wikipedia.
The Art Center, at 215 Fisk Ave. in downtown Brownwood, is open 2 to 6 pm, Monday through Friday, with free admission. For further information on the Brownwood Art Association or the Fiber and Textile Arts group, call 325-641-2916, or visit www.brownwoodart.net.
