I lived in Tokyo for almost 3 years from 1991 and studied Ikebana part-time at the Sogetsu school. This school is renowned as the most avant-garde in Japan- the approach is experimental and rigorous. I was particularly interested in studying scale, and asymmetry. I began these works during my time there, investigating the principles I was learning whilst using a small loom that I would balance on my lap in my tiny apartment. 

These cotton thread drawings are small experiments using repetition and a hidden code to create unexpected forms whilst unlocking spatial possibilities. The thread is contradictory- both line and knot articulating divisions and connections that are simultaneously fragile and strong. 

Playing with the rigor of the warp and my fascination with restraint, the works develop a language that is idiosyncratic, humble and abstract. The scale and the small movements of my hands remind me of my life in Japan, there is a complex economy within the potential experienced in these works.

I continue to work intermittently on this project. There are always different and unexpected outcomes and new solutions that lead to other works.

loom drawings

cotton

various dimensions

1991 ongoing