Wall Woven Calendar

PROJECT DESCRIPTION

This MCD@Home project was inspired by Design by Time featured studio mischer’traxler. Their day-by-day rug was hand-knotted in Nepal over a long period of time. Each day contracted workers would fill in a part of the rug’s pattern, collectively creating a series of stripes uniquely reflective of each laborer’s work and pace. Create a textile of a period of time – be it a week, month, or year – by adding a different piece of material to a weaving loom or frame each day. The story of the time spent weaving will tell itself as various materials symbolizing emotions, events, or experiences over time are steadily incorporated into the design. This project suggests different routes your calendar can take, however the potential interpretations are endless! What form will your “calendar” take?

INSTRUCTIONS

• Decide what timeframe the woven calendar should span.
  • For example: a week, a month, a year …
• Decide what you are documenting.
  • For example: your moods, the weather, special events, reminders, days of the week …
• Collect materials! Think about color, texture, and size.
  • What will each one represent?
  • Looking for inspiration? Check out the MCD projects below!
• Add a new piece of representative material to the loom each day.
• At the end of the timeframe, you will have performed and created a visual representation of a period that is wholly unique to you!

MCD Project Examples

• Hydration Tracker
  Inspired both by Design by Time and Imagining Data, these woven pipe cleaners help the artist track how much water they are consuming. At the end of the data collection period, this woven calendar can be converted into a clip or broach as a reminder to stay hydrated!

• Colorful Moods
  A month roughly translates to 4 weeks of 7 days each. The 28 unique fabrics in this Wall Woven Calendar each represent a day – solid colors symbolizing weekdays and patterned textiles marking weekends as shifts in routine. Weeks in their entirety are categorized by color representing the weaver’s mood, intention, or goal for that week.

• 6-Month Birthday Calendar
  Keep track of your loved ones’ birthdays! Here, neutral yarn is used to signify the weekdays while colorful yarn represents the weekends. Each of the 6 colors used represents a different month. The black and white strings break the pattern – reminding you to wish your immediate family members a happy birthday! An upcycled metal circle is used as the “loom,” though any size of embroidery hoop could also be utilized.

Creative prompts for more:

• Build a DIY loom!
• What other materials can you weave? Collect and incorporate natural materials like blades of grass and leaves.
• Add a written account to your work. Each time you weave a new material, document why you chose it and what it symbolizes.
• Upcycle old clothes to make a braided t-shirt rug! In the process, think about the time and place in which you got each shirt.

RELATED RESOURCES

• Learn more about mischer’traxler’s work by exploring their Instagram.
• San Francisco native Afatasi the Artist creates beautiful hand-made tapestries. These creations incorporate various textiles and images, telling stories of place and time and pulling attention to the social, racial, cultural, and environmental injustices of today.