Sonja John

γλύκηα μᾶτερ, οὔτοι δύναμαι κρέκην τὸν ἴστον

πόθῳ δάμεισα παῖδος βραδίναν δι’ Ἀφροδίταν.

Sweet mother I cannot work the loom

I am broken with longing for a boy by slender Aphrodite

—Sappho 102, translated by Anne Carson

Sonja John curatorial projects and The Yard, Williamsburg are pleased to present a seven

person show featuring artists and designers exploring emotional landscapes at the

intersection of painting and textiles. Together, this group engages in a larger conversation

on color, pattern, and texture across method and media, linking the fundamental elements

of fine arts, craft, and design.

We derive the word texture from the production of textiles, from the materiality of fabric.

The Oxford English Dictionary defines the word as ‘the process of weaving,’ but also as,

‘a “woven” or composed narrative or story.” Our dye and weaving traditions stretch back

to the Neolithic period, and the use of natural materials predate our contemporary yarn,

synthetic fiber, and chemical dye with more elemental substances – reeds, minerals,

twigs, leaves. Texture goes beyond superficial material application or surface

manipulation. The warp and weft of woven fabric form the literal substance upon which

paintings are made, inextricably linking the two practices on canvas and linen.

Loom, Longing arose from a series of ongoing conversations with artist Lauryn Welch on

the use of color and pattern in painting, and is titled after Sappho fragment 102 – a poem

contemplating weaving, and written upon woven papyrus. Cloth fabrication is written

into the elemental aspects of visual and literary storytelling. Each of the seven artists

featured exemplify this in their meditations on common elements that connect painting

and fiber arts: pattern, color, process, rhythm, and repetition. Through their material

explorations, they consider how a pattern might be used to conceal or reveal information;

how making a quilt might arouse chaos or nostalgia; how painting curtains, or rugs, or

lace might transform a narrative object into a decorative one, and how natural dyes

reminiscent of a sunset sky might evoke a certain intimacy from slow looking.

Loom, Longing will run from December 14th, 2020 to April 14th, 2021.

show extended through April 14th

email sonjaljohn@gmail.com for viewings and sales information.