On a rainy May day in Leitrim I discovered a mind blowing exhibition entitled Weaving the Sky, by an artist called Barbara Falkowska. This artist is a weaver like no other, taking the craft to a new level. Falkowska is a mere 83 years old now and this body of work covers a lifetimes reflection. The work itself is produced on a loom, this means the Falkowska is building the work up from the bottom -whereas the viewer is reading it from the top down. The outstanding collection was produced in a high rise apartment building in Warsaw, Poland. One would expect that landscape to be reflected in her work so it was thrilling to see a far different story. From the minute I entered Gallery 1, I was transfixed.
The fact that we are reading a story – and in one case a sheet of music – produced on textile, really makes the work accessible. The design is so intricate and detailed, the colours bursting with life. She uses homespun and vegetable dyed wool, sisal and flax.
What I really loved was Falkowska’s little descriptions, scattered about, explaining her thoughts on the piece displayed. There was no pretentiousness, just a little note like the one about a potato where she says that she was “terrified to do a piece about the humble potato”, describing it as “a piece of nothingness”. It’s a beautiful statement that resonates, everybody has experienced that feeling of nothingness and it was so refreshing to see such a talented artist refer to it too.
My favourite piece is entitled “A Baroque Beetroot”. Her description here states “A funny noise beetroot makes when you cross the field”. It instantly transported me back to the farm, I could feel the slurp as I lifted my mud laden wellies – a weird sort of satisfaction. The colours are so vivid with great detail given to the ploughed furrows and beetroot itself. The piece de resistance is the Angel that hovers overhead tenderly caring for the plant. Falkowska even integrated a harpsichord so that music seems to float from the image. The scale of the Angel envelopes the field – a statement that God’s love embraces all, even the modest beetroot.
The work includes everyday objects that we take for granted such as the piece about pickled fruit. This banal object takes on a new meaning as the artist must have seen this as an item to be coveted during the Second World War. That she has such a strong sense of connection to the Earth and animals is very evident throughout. It’s no surprise that Barbara Falkowska has advanced the status of Polish textile art internationally. Her work is held in several international collections including the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in New York, Zacheta Contemporary Art Museum in Warsaw with other solo exhibitions in London, Copenhagan, Stockholm and Halifax.
The exhibition continues in The Dock, Carrickonshannon until the 7th of June. For any crafter, artist or anyone interested in textiles, this exhibition is a must see. Further details can be obtained from The Dock.
