Learning to weave on the TC2 loom

At the Ós residency in 2021 I became aware of the TC2 loom and realized it could benefit my research and practice. 

The view of the Kvennaskólinn building (Icelandic Textile Center) from the Textile Lab in Blönduós, Iceland. 

In 2022 I searched for a loom to learn on in Canada and found one at Artscape Daniels Launchpad in Toronto. Thanks to the Ontario Arts Council Northern Arts Projects grant Ive been supported during this learning time in Toronto, developing the skills to plan weaving files and use the TC2 loom for prototyping. 

A loom with a view: the TC2 loom at Artscape Daniels Launchpad Creative Studios, August, 2022. 

In August I started sambling whether or not I could weave a readable QR code with my material of choice: single ply wool. 

Sampling QR code imagery on the TC2 loom at Artscape Daniels Launchpad, Creative Studios, Toronto, ON. August, 2022. 

My first few samples wove up beautifully but weren’t quite registering on my phone, allowing the redirection to a website. 

Adding imagery from my summer foraging adventures to the weaving file, Artscape Daniels Launchpad Creative Studios, August 2022. 

By day 4 I was beginning to worry that I wouldn’t achieve a readable QR code, but, with perseverance, and numerous file size adjustments, they started to register and direct my phone to my webpage! Success!

Weaving sampler created using black and white warp and weft on TC2 loom, Artscape Daniels Launchpad, August, 2022. 

The remaining days on the loom were spent creating sampler files and testing out more plant imagery before cutting my first digital weaving off the TC2 loom. 

Big, beautiful, handwoven QR codes in white wool weft on black cotton warp, August 2022. 

The great thing about this learning process is that some of the work can be done from home. Between visits to Artscape Daniels Launchpad Creative Studios I’ve accessed virtual learning opportunities from Praxis Fiber Workshop in Cleveland, Ohio, with instructor Cathryn Amidei, continuing to develop my knowledge and use of Photoshop for file creation.  

Testing plant-dyed wools in relationship with the black warp threads on the TC2 loom at Artscape Daniels Launchpad, Toronto, ON. October 2022. 

As I write this I am preparing for a month-long intensive on the TC2 loom back in Blönduós, Iceland, where this journey began. I have so much to learn and am excited to see where my creativity in using this technology can take me. 

Organizing my plant-dyed wools to bring to the Ós Residency, January, 2023. 

Many thanks to the team at Artscape Daniels Launchpad and the Rural Creative Springboard for welcoming me into the studio and giving me the tools to get started in this project. Thanks to the Ontario Arts Council for supporting this exciting new direction in my work! And thanks to the digital weaving labs at Ós Residency and Praxis Fiber Workshop for providing intensive research and learning opportunities to carry me into 2023.