Free, beginner-level weaving class to be held at Museum

Several dozen people of all ages making pinch pots

Idabel, OK (September 12, 2018)—The Museum of the Red River will hold a beginner-level weaving workshop on September 22. Attendees will use a loom to create small textile panels. These panels can be attached to each other to form blankets, clothing, and other large textiles. Aspiring weavers of all ages can drop by the Museum anytime between 10 am and 3 pm. (The class will take roughly two hours to complete.) The program is part of the Museum’s ongoing “Fun With” series. The classes are designed to connect people with each other through art.

Weaving is one of the world’s oldest art forms. The first American textiles were made in the Andean Highlands of South America around 2,500 BC. (Weaving plant material for personal use extends father back to at least 6,000 BC.) By 1,000 BC, the area had independently developed almost every non-mechanized weaving technique. Moreover, every weaving material, including inner tree bark fibers was also in use. These fabrics often included abstract, geometric designs similar to ones found in contemporary fine art. Like many cash-free cultures, textiles were symbols of wealth. As a result, a talented weaver could literally “make” money for her family. Several dozens of those textiles are on display at the Museum through November 14 as part of its fall exhibit, Andean Textiles.

[Pictured: Attendees at the Museum’s Fun with Clay Day. The Museum’s ongoing “Fun” series, attracts, on average, 40 to 50 participants each time.]

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