If you were lucky enough to be at our April guild meeting, you know that it was an introduction to Barbara Shapiro’s fifty years of learning and speaking the language of textiles.  She shared her fiber explorations in tapestry, clothing design, and basketry.  As a follow-up, in July, there were three of us that were fortunate enough to make the trip from Santa Barbara to Barbara’s San Francisco studio to experience her two-day basketry workshop immersed in her “inner sanctum” of fiber art.

The workshop was a chance to learn and explore the hexagonal weaving technique from someone who has studied basketry in Japan and learned from master weavers.  We were there to watch, learn and experiment with our own weaving using her prepared, dyed cane materials.  We started with a beginner project to get the hang of this style of weaving  from six different directions (unlike the two weavers that we are all most used to.)  Next was an adaptation of that first basket that could be molded into a more complicated shape and allowed for creative use of additional cane that could be added into the form using a technique called random weave.   We enjoyed the creativity of limitless possibilities.  It could become a human figure, an elongated boat, or even one that takes on the shape of an animal.  To cement the learning of hexagonal weaving, our last piece was a small, more traditional style basket.  Still, each of our completed baskets allowed us to show our own creativity.

In addition to learning new basketry techniques, and seeing Barbara’s indigo dye lab setup, some of my most lasting memories from the workshop will be of Barbara’s art filled studio and home tour.  She generously shared the stories of her own museum quality fiber art, as well as the art pieces that she has collected over the course of her lifetime.  .…To say nothing of the glorious view of the San Francisco Bay harbor that we enjoyed from the window while at work on our baskets!

Thank you, Laurie Gross and the Fiber Arts Guild for connecting us to the Barbara Shapiro workshop.  And, thank you to Barbara Shapiro for sharing her wisdom and expertise, her art, and the wonderful stories that come from a life of working in fiber arts.

With Gratitude,  Sherri West