Artworks

10 1/2 x 26 1/4 in
26.7 x 66.7 cm

Taqueté and samitum are compound weave structures first used by Coptic weavers (2nd-7th centuries C.E.) and Tang Dynasty Chinese weavers (7th-10th centuries C.E.). The techniques, which allow weavers to incorporate intricate, multicolored imagery into the weft of textiles, subsequently spread to Islamic Spain (8th-15th centuries C.E.), Italy, India, the Ottoman Empire, and beyond. They prefigure lampas, a compound structure that reveals imagery in both the warp and weft of a textile. Ziek uses the lampas structure in the suspended installation Wheel of Life. She is currently executing a lampas weaving on a floor loom at the far end of this exhibition.

Ziek says, “You have to be a weaver to fully understand this work, but I think a lot of people are drawn to diagrams and coding and systems, so there’s a lot of visual intrigue to them even if you don’t know what they’re saying. I made all of this work on my jacquard loom where I can do imagery more quickly. I could literally handpick this imagery, but I don’t have that much time left. So I have to think about the appropriate equipment for the imagery I want to do.”