Pulled Scarf Weaving

Title: Thread pull scarf weaving

Artist: Ann Edington Adams; wife and mother, homemaker, sheriff’s dept. dispatch employee, Aunt to the person scarf was intended for (myself), and a weaver.

This scarf boasts delicate silk threads woven together through the use of a large shuttle loom. The threads were hand spun, and afterwards were hand dyed in colors favored by the recipient. Great care was taken while weaving the textile, as not to break the thin silk thread. The middle portion of the scarf was woven first, and a technique known as pulling, the weaver pulls individual threads through the fabric by the ends, gave the fabric the bleeding effect. This technique is quite popular among the weaving community. The edging and the dyed circular patterns were added after the pulling. Both ends of the scarf are fringed by twisted threads with tiny black glass beads interspersed within the twist. The finished product is 3feet in length and 18 inches in width. These dimensions are quite perfect for its intended use as a scarf. The finished scarf was received by the current owner the winter of 2001, along with several other woven scarves and articles of clothing. As such, while the piece was intended to be worn as an article of clothing, the owner has opted to showcase the piece on a simple hanging frame.

The finished scarf was received by the current owner (myself) on December 25, 2001 as a gift from the recipient’s aunt who created the piece.

This scarf is a piece of incredible skill that has captured my fascination, so much so that I requested that the artist train me in her trade. The scarf, in my opinion, could easily hang on a gallery wall next to large, looming minimalist paintings, and still hold a place of prestige within itself. However, that is not what the scarf was intended for. The scarf was a gift, and was created and made with the intention of being worn as clothing by a person. The color scheme was not chosen by the artist, but was the favored colors of the favored niece the scarf was lovingly made for. If the weaver intended to create a work of art to be exhibited, surely she would have chosen to dye the silk in a different color scheme, as the finished color scheme is not favored by the artist herself. According to Glassie the fact that the piece was intended for everyday use is a defining criteria for folk art, “ In performance, an idea of context, of a thing’s fit in the world, its uses and meanings and functions, precedes and sparks the enactment of compositional competence” (Material Culture, pg. 23). The weaver/artist used time honored weaving techniques, which had been passed down from weaver generation to weaver generation throughout time. These were techniques implemented for everyday artifacts, but infused with a sense of aesthetic found within the weaving community. According to Toelken this would constitute the scarf as folk art because “The folk arts are not excerpted from everyday life for elevation of taste or intellectual curiosity. To the contrary, what makes folk art important is precisely that it is based on the aesthetic perception, expression, and appreciation of community values in everyday life. Folk art is dynamic because it is totally integrated with the dynamics of life in a close group” (Folk Aesthetics, pg. 5).