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Sharing the passion and soul of needlecrafts. |
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FEATURED ARTICLES |
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Sharing the passion and soul of needlecrafts. |
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FEATURED ARTICLES |
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Discovery I imagine re-discovering an ancient needlecraft technique to be much like uncovering ancient fossils. You unearth what has been lost or unknown. You have to wonder though – is anything every really lost or simply lying dormant, waiting to be found, waiting to tell its story, waiting to share its gifts? In a way, it seems that the ancient needlecraft art form called tapestry crochet has been waiting underground, that is, until it introduced itself to Art Historian & Art History professor, Dr. Carol Ventura. As a member of the Peace Corps, Carol Ventura traveled to Guatemala where she worked with a weaving cooperative. Interested in the very complicated weaving techniques and brocade work, Dr. Ventura purchased several of the shoulder bags made by Guatemalan men.
Determined to figure out this unique crochet technique, Ventura began to unravel one of the tapestry crocheted bags and in doing so, began to unravel its history. What makes the tapestry crochet technique so unique is that the finished piece looks woven. It differs from traditional crochet in its texture. Different colored strands of yarn are carried and give the piece bulk and a woven look. Through the design detail in her books, Tapestry Crochet, More Tapestry Crochet, and her latest book Bead & Felted Tapestry Crochet and technique instructions and free patterns on her website, Dr. Ventura’s mission is clear – to introduce tapestry crochet to the masses, and maybe change the perception of crochet in general along the way. In her book, More Tapestry Crochet, Ventura writes: “Crocheting was probably taught to colonial Native Americans by the Spaniards.” From skullcaps and yarmulkes to pillows and shoulder bags, types of tapestry crochet have their roots in Europe and the Middle East, Africa and Guatemala. “It [tapestry crochet] seems to have caught on in places I think where people have done looping, like in West Africa, then in Guatemala where they loop bags, and in some parts of Europe. But it’s not a technique that everyone who crochets knows how to do.” Take the Ball and … Ventura is trying to widen tapestry crochet’s appeal by introducing this ancient technique through her books, workshops, and encouraging others to take the ball (of yarn) and run with it. “I always assume that everyone I teach will then teach other people. I want people to teach it because I think it’s a great art. I would love for people to learn it for therapy.” Teaching and learning tapestry crochet also has global potential for men and women, which goes back to how Dr. Ventura discovered the ancient technique. “In parts of the world where they need things to make and export, this [tapestry crochet] is the perfect art form. People could crochet all kinds of things, sell them, export them, and help support themselves. It’s a good source of income. That’s what we were doing in the Peace Corps, but I was doing it with weaving.” |
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“I bought a lot of the shoulder bags that the men made and
used,” says Ventura. “The tourists weren’t really buying them then and I
just loved them. I was attracted to the complicated weaving. When I got
back to the U.S., everybody would stop me and ask where I got the bags.”