Sunday, November 28, 2010

Found: Cloth


This is a cloth that probably has a long and alarmingly sad human story attached to it.

We live near two homeless shelters, and in the spaces in between residents from both carve out little spaces to sit, visit, sometimes sleep, drink, whatever else someone wants some privacy to do. As a consequence there are spaces we walk everyday 'littered' with textiles: old clothes, blankets, hats, mittens, scarves, tarpaulins. The guy who lives here regularly brings things home to wash and then send to Goodwill (or wear if we can use them). In fact, there is a sweat shirt in the washer as we speak.

This morning I found this cloth draped across a pile of steel rails along the train tracks. I inspected it, passed it by. It is rusted, moldy and dirty and has been part of a very hard life. But then I hurried back. It is also a textile with dozens of shades of red, green, brown and black, a textile I can use.

All this stuff I'm learning in Jude Hill's class is really sinking in.

8 comments:

  1. i, too, now see with different eyes.

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  2. i see some writing on it, that's a treasure too.

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  3. HEY!!!! look where I just this moment
    found YOU!!!!! ....i looked and saw
    Wendy
    and thought...who's Wendy....and eeeee
    IT'S YOU! this is just the best gift!

    oh, it's going to be quite SomeThing....
    this life, isn't it. i am just assuming that
    you will be in the next class???? yes???, oh
    say yes????
    i can't believe how perfectly things fit
    sometimes.

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  4. and i didn't say

    your textile find is yes.

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  5. Found Cloth is on the line, after a set of earth-friendly treatments. And, the news is that the lovely black spatters are maybe made with...INK! This cloth has long stories to tell...

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  6. GRACE! I am in my real life 'Wendy'...but because I have a public life, that often intrudes on my personal life, I wanted a place to stretch and think and be creative. So our dog 'Gracie' is my cover here. So call me Wendy, if you'd like! (Gracie is more appropriately known to us as 'Our Truly Beloved, Partially Wild, Wise Dog Gracie').

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  7. another student of our special Jude. nice to meet you and what you learn from Jude will definitely change the way you look at fabric and the world for that matter. i love the cloth that you found - it will make any cloth you create have a most interesting history.
    P.S. I lived in Toronto from 1957-1959. was in the middle of the eighth grade when i moved there - beautiful country.

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  8. wanted to say a second thank you for your
    thoughts on windthread. your comments mean
    a lot to me...

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