Fine Art
DEB BRANDON: Textile Artist
Interview Included
Wall Hanging
© Deb Brandon |
Vest Front
© Deb Brandon |
Deb talks about her love of textiles, her involvement with WARP (Weave a Real Peace), a 501(c)3 organization, and how a brain injury changed her awareness and perception of the world around her.
What got you interested in weaving?
My love of textiles began when my mother taught me to knit and continued into adulthood as I learned a variety of textile techniques, including sewing, embroidery, felting, dyeing, and spinning.
My interest in weaving was sparked when a colleague mentioned that his wife was a weaver. Several conversations with her later, I knew that I wanted to learn to weave, and when the opportunity arose, I arranged for lessons.
I have enjoyed all the techniques I learned along the way, but weaving is special. The first time I sat at the loom, I felt as if I’d found my true identity – as if I’d always been a weaver...perhaps one in a previous life.
What do you find the most difficult about the process? The easiest part of the process?
For many weavers, the warp calculations are the least favorite part of weaving, and for some, the hardest. For me, the calculations were merely an inconvenience, delaying the actual weaving (my favorite part).
The most difficult part for me is threading the yarn through the heddles - that’s where my chances of making a mistake are the highest, where mistakes have to be fixed, and where fixing the mistakes is the most tedious.
The easiest part is the actual weaving, throwing the shuttle to and fro. I usually stick to patterns that are simple enough that memorizing the sequence of pressing on the treadles is not much of an issue. And, as I progress, the process becomes rhythmic, relaxing, and meditative.
What got you interested in weaving?
My love of textiles began when my mother taught me to knit and continued into adulthood as I learned a variety of textile techniques, including sewing, embroidery, felting, dyeing, and spinning.
My interest in weaving was sparked when a colleague mentioned that his wife was a weaver. Several conversations with her later, I knew that I wanted to learn to weave, and when the opportunity arose, I arranged for lessons.
I have enjoyed all the techniques I learned along the way, but weaving is special. The first time I sat at the loom, I felt as if I’d found my true identity – as if I’d always been a weaver...perhaps one in a previous life.
What do you find the most difficult about the process? The easiest part of the process?
For many weavers, the warp calculations are the least favorite part of weaving, and for some, the hardest. For me, the calculations were merely an inconvenience, delaying the actual weaving (my favorite part).
The most difficult part for me is threading the yarn through the heddles - that’s where my chances of making a mistake are the highest, where mistakes have to be fixed, and where fixing the mistakes is the most tedious.
The easiest part is the actual weaving, throwing the shuttle to and fro. I usually stick to patterns that are simple enough that memorizing the sequence of pressing on the treadles is not much of an issue. And, as I progress, the process becomes rhythmic, relaxing, and meditative.
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Do you see a difference in your textile technique since your brain injury? Is there a difference as to what inspires you?
I have cavernous angiomas, clusters of thin-walled blood vessels, in my brain. Two bled, causing neurological symptoms that shattered my world and identity. The only known treatment to prevent future bleeds is to remove the bleeders surgically. Reclaiming my life involved three brain surgeries. The surgeries, while successful, left me with a number of additional neurological deficits. My brain injury damaged some of my filters. All outside data flows into my brain with equal value, causing traffic jams in my neural pathways. On the flip side, I'm much more aware of the world around me, tuned into details I was oblivious to prior to the injury. My newfound ability to note more details has definitely influenced my work as a textile artist. For example, I can now enjoy the dancing reflections of sunlight on the water and the gradual changes in the colors of sunset. Although I noticed these to some degree in my pre-injury life, I didn't have the kind of awareness and perception that I have now, and this allows me to appreciate what I'm experiencing and to take time to let it saturate my system. |
Click Book Cover for Excerpt in Sanctuary
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Reflections on the Water
© Deb Brandon |
After I returned home from the hospital, I wove a piece of yardage I entitled “The Reflection of Sunset on the Water.” I painted warp in varying shades of blue and orange. I also painted the weft to produce the effect of waves rolling down the yardage. The yarn I used was a shimmering silk to give the effect of reflections of light on the ripples. I chose to weave in a variety of twills to give the fabric drape. I also supplemented the warp with sewing thread to add a wavy texture. It's a wonderful piece, and I could not have produced such a piece prior to the injury. Primarily a linear thinker before the bleeds, I used to focus more on the techniques. Now I look at the entire picture, choosing texture, color, and pattern to achieve particular effects. |
Cardigan
© Deb Brandon |
Hug 1
© Deb Brandon |
Click Book Cover For More Information
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What is your involvement with WARP?
After 9/11*, I felt compelled to make a difference. I knew that the key to peace was education, and I wanted to somehow contribute in that direction. I came across an ad for an organization called WARP (Weave A Real Peace). The words “Weave” and “Peace” jumped out at me. WARP is a networking organization whose members work to improve the quality of life among textile artisans in communities in need across the globe. As to be expected, financial stability increases accessibility to education. I knew I'd found my niche. Through WARP, I became exposed to a broad range of traditional textile techniques. Three years after I started writing newsletter articles for the organization, I was encouraged to publish a compilation of my essays to sell to WARP members as a fundraiser. I thought the project would merely entail some editing, but found myself rewriting and expanding the articles. As I reworked them, my focus shifted from specific techniques to the stories about the artisans and their communities, traditions and folklore. |
The project evolved into Threads Around the World: From Arabian Weaving to Batik in Zimbabwe (with photographs by renowned photographer Joe Coca). Since the book came out, I’ve been invited to speak to a variety of audiences, textile and fiber artists, book lovers, and charitable organizations. During these talks, I always speak of WARP and its mission, to increase visibility and interest, which hopefully will result in drawing new members to the organization.
*September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center in New York City, the Pentagon, and United Flight 93.
*September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center in New York City, the Pentagon, and United Flight 93.
Deb Brandon is a weaver, respected textile artist and writer. She is also a popular speaker on textiles and other topics. Deb is an active volunteer with Weave a Real Peace (WARP), serving multiple terms as a board member as well as writing the long-running “Textile Techniques from Around the World” column for the organization’s newsletter.
Since 1991, Deb has been a professor in the Mathematical Sciences Department at Carnegie Mellon University. Her books include But My Brain Had Other Ideas and Threads Around the World. Her essays have appeared in several publications, including Hand/Eye Magazine and Weaving Today.
In her spare time, Deb loves to travel, and she has competed nationally and internationally in dragon boating.
Since 1991, Deb has been a professor in the Mathematical Sciences Department at Carnegie Mellon University. Her books include But My Brain Had Other Ideas and Threads Around the World. Her essays have appeared in several publications, including Hand/Eye Magazine and Weaving Today.
In her spare time, Deb loves to travel, and she has competed nationally and internationally in dragon boating.
Deb Brandon in Her Work Space
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