Behind the paint, Beyond the canvas

Helena Loermans continues her ground breaking research and reconstruction of Old Master patterned canvas’, working with key art institutions across the world, tomorrow with Textile Conservators at the MET. Join via Eventbrite (3pm UK time, 4pm Europe).

Helena joined us in Scotland for the inaugural exhibition and events series of Our Linen Stories, May 2018; her hand woven reconstruction of an El Greco canvas forms a key element of our current Flax Futures exhibition tour.

https://ourlinenstories.com/tours/leith-linen-stories/artist-talk-by-helena-loermans-weaving-a-textured-history/

Caribbean Crossings
With thanks to our Flax friend Arnaud van Robaeys, news of another mad bad Frenchman and linen addict!
This catamaran is more than 50% flax fibres and will make its debut transatlantic voyage shortly.
Back in the day, sails rigging packing and sacking were all made of flax fibre: processed into tow rope and coarse linen, waterproofed by a dip in weak tar (from which is derived the word tarpaulin). Sadly, the same crossing brought rough Highland harn from Scotland to the Plantations to clothe the enslaved.
Today, flax fibre bio composites are gaining real traction as a more ecologically sound replacement to fibreglass.
Follow this link to read more about Scotlands own Jamie Kunka who incorporates this material into his @lonelymountainskis

https://ourlinenstories.com/exhibition/featured-designers/jamie-kunka-for-lonely-mountain-skis/

TALK: Flax Communities - then & now
Delighted to be exploring the regenerative potential of contemporary textile communities at the Perth Museum and Gallery this Friday 4 November.

Thanks Culture Perth and Kintoss for this invitation in the context of a wonderful exhibition based on a rare set of Photographs from 1893. Curator Paul Adair has brought to life the lost linen weaving village of Muirton, with engaging interviews and artefacts.

I’ll be linking this local textile heritage to Scotland’s current moves towards new regenerative textile economies, also based on locality, now with planetary and community health at heart.

Pic: Recent flax harvest, the effort of a newly evolving community at Silverburn Park in Fife

https://www.eventbrite.com/e/440302445467

BBC Alba telling Linen Stories
As the guttural lilt of the Gaelic meets the reassuring clack of the loom - subtitles seem almost a distraction.
Delighted to be talking Flax Fibre and Linen with Maureen Shaw, visiting The Flax Mill at Silverburn Park , Sheila Rodderick on Scalpay and Susie Redman at Platform Studios Burntisland.
This is in this latest episode of ‘Fillte’, Tales of Textiles, an inspirational series from BBC Alba - ‘tapadh leat gu mòr’ Liz and Jim at MANTRA.
https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/episode/m001d0w2
#ourlinenstories Journeys in Design #flaxScotland #flaxtolinen #textiledesign #textilescotland