Miriam Pickens/For the Mining Gazette “Vaporetto, Grounded” by Laura Foster Nicholson is on display at the Finlandia Art Gallery.

Woven fabric fascinates me. The art of creating intricate patterns and pictures into a piece of fabric on a loom is still baffling, even though I’ve taken several weaving classes through the Finnish American Folk school, and have woven some of these patterns myself. So a few times I visited the Buellwood Weavers & Fiber Guild to extend my learning experience. Recently I spoke with John Gale, who chairs the organization.

Dorothy Buell started the Guild during the 1950’s at her home in Chassell, where she had 17 looms for a 17 member guild. Since then, the Guild has expanded both in numbers and vision, to include fiber artists who also weave baskets, some who are primarily knitters, lacemakers or crocheters, and others whose primary interest is the natural processing of raw wool into colored yarn. With one of the strong focuses being Fiber Arts at the Finnish American Folk School, most of the members are skilled weavers now, and have their own looms that they work on in their homes. The Guild has a close relationship to the Folk School. One of the members is doing archival work for the Folk School, and others are teaching classes and working in administration. Guild members have also been involved in helping to maintain the large collection of looms owned by the Folk School, including a phenomenal 8 ft. wide loom, which, with the help of the Guild members, it will soon be moved to a location where it can be used to create fabric or rugs.

Recently, the Guild held their annual two day retreat at the Marsin Nature Retreat. This year the project was Card Weaving, which is a really interesting technique used to make straps and belts that have intricate patterns. The cards each have holes in the corners and center, and turning the cards either brings the warp string (the long one on a belt) up or down, depending on the turn and how the string is threaded through the card. The retreat draws members from all around the Western UP, and people coming from far away can sleep at the Center and the cabins. It’s neat to have a large group of people working on projects in the same space, and there’s also time for socializing, meals and the Annual Meeting.

Miriam Pickens/For the Mining Gazette
A sample of Nate Corson’s weaving is part of a show at the Art Center in Hancock.

The Guild meets monthly in the Fiber Studio at the Skyline Commons, previously the Jutila Center. The studio is a great resource for fiber artists, and often the members will use the looms to do demonstrations of techniques during the meetings. There are about 40 members. Every second month, they will do a show and tell. The remaining monthly meetings will focus on demonstrations of new techniques. Each year they pick a topic, and ask members to create something based on that idea. Then six months later, the members will share what they’ve created at a Guild meeting. Meetings are really helpful as well for fiber artists looking to have questions answered about their projects and where to find materials.

The Guild has a Facebook Page and a website, where people can contact them to learn more. The annual fee of $25 covers a donation to the Folk School for use of their facilities, and to the Keweenaw Land Trust for use of the Marsin Retreat Center.

Next summer the Guild hopes to do a site specific weaving installation at the Emberlight Arts Festival in Ironwood. This is a large festival that includes an International Film Festival, Performance art and Visual art, running from late June until late August.

This month, the Copper Country Community Arts Center (CCCAC) will feature the “Buellwood Weavers & Fiber Guild Invitational”. The show will run from October 10 through November 2, with a reception on October 10 from 6-7:30. The CCCAC is at 126 Quincy St. in Downtown Hancock.

At the Finlandia Art Gallery in the Finnish American Heritage Center, you can see an awesome weaving exhibit by Laura Foster Nicholson, who uses a technique called “Discontinuous Brocade Weaving” to create handwoven tapestries. Her artwork has been exhibited internationally, and is in collections at many galleries including the Art Institute of Chicago and the Denver Art Museum. Her show, “Foretelling the Future, Reflecting the Past”, at the Finlandia Art Gallery is really impressive. “I am thrilled to present Laura Foster Nicholson’s award-winning woven tapestries to our community,” said Carrie Vander Veen, curator and director of the Finlandia Art Gallery at the Finnish American Heritage Center. “In addition to her mastery of technique, Foster Nicholson’s work thoughtfully engages with the pressing issue of climate change. This blend of meaningful subject matter and beautifully crafted woven surfaces creates art that is both unique and profound. Her exhibition runs through November 13th, and we invite everyone to visit the Finlandia Art Gallery to experience this powerful exhibition.”