Conversations with CAROLE BEADLE
http://www.fiberdimensions.com/beadle/index.html
Notes/Questions:
How was textiles taught differently in the beginning?
Carole:… Trude taught, technically, to put the warps on from the back to the front, not the front to the back. We did mainly functional things. I wove placemats and blankets and things like that…and then I got really tired of that and I said I think I’d like to do something more than tapestry. ….So that was the beginning of my sculptural period. I began shaping my all weavings…but I didn’t see anyone else doing these things. So I was the only one (at art school) that was starting to move out of doing the functional textiles.
That was exciting for me…to move beyond the usual. It was happening of course in the 60’s. There were a lot of people if you research Textile history now that were starting to do that and I think I was looking at them and they were influencing me.
How were you finding them? How were you seeing their work? People like Sheila Hicks and Lenore Tawney?
Carole:American Craft Magazine or it was called Craft Horizons then… and some books. I come from New York so I often went back to New York and I would always go to shows downtown.
At that point things were really starting to change over. Trude was doing a lot of work that was part tapestry and pick-up weaves and really wonderfully conceptual for her time. She would weave images of herself and her husband from the side and they would look like mountains and you would realize that they were portraits. Strongly conceptual.
At that time and for the next 20-30 years we were sort of running neck n’neck with UC Berkeley. With Ed Rossbach. Ed Rossbach taught in a completely different way.
….The Bahaus very much influenced her (Trude’s) way of thinking and those she taught also.
When I graduated with my Masters degree. Graduation was in May…In April Ed Rossbach asked me to come to UC Berkeley to teach for him for his sabbatical. So that was for me, wow, and incredible breakthrough. Here I hadn’t graduated yet and I’m teaching a course at UC Berkeley and taught it for the whole year.
Who were the other key players, key faculty in our program in the early days?
Carole: Before Lia came it was Trude, myself. I think Janet Levin got hired around the same time I did. We brought print textile printing in about the same year. And then printing became large right away so we hired Kathleen cause she had just graduated in the early 70’s. I think we hired Kathleen in 72. So it was Kathleen, Janet, Trude and myself. When Trude passed away we hired Lia. Ruth Boyer was our first Textile History teacher….hired from UC Berkeley. Taught a wonderful Textile History class. Then we hired Jan Janero. Jan did a little textile history, fiber sculpture….and other courses. Then the newcomers. I probably asked Richard to teach for me. I knew Richard for many years.
Where do you hope to see the textiles dept go in the future? What do you hope for or what do you see?
Carole: I hope that we will become a stronger department visually within the school...and be recognized for the department that we are:
we are strong powerful, wonderful, exciting, and we do very creative things
How does the textile department differ from other programs at CCA?
Carole: The faculty all get along really well, everyone works really well together. We all have a certain respect for one another.
You were an art student in the 1960's, did your parents support you? Or your peers? What was everyone's reaction?
Carole: My mom worked for Sakes 5th Avenue in New York where I first learned about materials from her. My mom went to art school but left because they had nude models. So my mom wasn't very interested in my art, it was my father that encouraged me. I was independent all along and feel extremely fortunate to do what ever I have wanted to do in life which consists of: creating art, teaching art, exhibitions, and traveling.
Notes/Questions:
How was textiles taught differently in the beginning?
Carole:… Trude taught, technically, to put the warps on from the back to the front, not the front to the back. We did mainly functional things. I wove placemats and blankets and things like that…and then I got really tired of that and I said I think I’d like to do something more than tapestry. ….So that was the beginning of my sculptural period. I began shaping my all weavings…but I didn’t see anyone else doing these things. So I was the only one (at art school) that was starting to move out of doing the functional textiles.
That was exciting for me…to move beyond the usual. It was happening of course in the 60’s. There were a lot of people if you research Textile history now that were starting to do that and I think I was looking at them and they were influencing me.
How were you finding them? How were you seeing their work? People like Sheila Hicks and Lenore Tawney?
Carole:American Craft Magazine or it was called Craft Horizons then… and some books. I come from New York so I often went back to New York and I would always go to shows downtown.
At that point things were really starting to change over. Trude was doing a lot of work that was part tapestry and pick-up weaves and really wonderfully conceptual for her time. She would weave images of herself and her husband from the side and they would look like mountains and you would realize that they were portraits. Strongly conceptual.
At that time and for the next 20-30 years we were sort of running neck n’neck with UC Berkeley. With Ed Rossbach. Ed Rossbach taught in a completely different way.
….The Bahaus very much influenced her (Trude’s) way of thinking and those she taught also.
When I graduated with my Masters degree. Graduation was in May…In April Ed Rossbach asked me to come to UC Berkeley to teach for him for his sabbatical. So that was for me, wow, and incredible breakthrough. Here I hadn’t graduated yet and I’m teaching a course at UC Berkeley and taught it for the whole year.
Who were the other key players, key faculty in our program in the early days?
Carole: Before Lia came it was Trude, myself. I think Janet Levin got hired around the same time I did. We brought print textile printing in about the same year. And then printing became large right away so we hired Kathleen cause she had just graduated in the early 70’s. I think we hired Kathleen in 72. So it was Kathleen, Janet, Trude and myself. When Trude passed away we hired Lia. Ruth Boyer was our first Textile History teacher….hired from UC Berkeley. Taught a wonderful Textile History class. Then we hired Jan Janero. Jan did a little textile history, fiber sculpture….and other courses. Then the newcomers. I probably asked Richard to teach for me. I knew Richard for many years.
Where do you hope to see the textiles dept go in the future? What do you hope for or what do you see?
Carole: I hope that we will become a stronger department visually within the school...and be recognized for the department that we are:
we are strong powerful, wonderful, exciting, and we do very creative things
How does the textile department differ from other programs at CCA?
Carole: The faculty all get along really well, everyone works really well together. We all have a certain respect for one another.
You were an art student in the 1960's, did your parents support you? Or your peers? What was everyone's reaction?
Carole: My mom worked for Sakes 5th Avenue in New York where I first learned about materials from her. My mom went to art school but left because they had nude models. So my mom wasn't very interested in my art, it was my father that encouraged me. I was independent all along and feel extremely fortunate to do what ever I have wanted to do in life which consists of: creating art, teaching art, exhibitions, and traveling.
Conversations with LIA COOK
www.liacook.com
Notes from an interview with Lia:
There were 2 main schools in the East Bay
UCB textiles in design and also decorative arts, Ed Rossbach in the 1950's built the contemporary department. Ed Rossbach taught at University of Washington, had an anthropological approach to education. UCB had a strong anthropology program, the decorative art students saw anthropology as an inspiration.
Trude came to CCAC. She and Ed Rossbach weren't talking (much) to each other, they had different views, she was Austrian, Bahaus trained and from Black Mountain and Pond Farm. She crossed over with industry and taught very technical and structured classes but her own art was very experimental for the time.
Lia took over after she passed away, Trude had been very technical and strict but very creative.
Pacific Basin was started by a former CCAC student, it was a textile school on San Pablo that had classes and guest lectures, and is now artist studios.
Fiberworks was started by UCB alumni and held classes and participated in community outreach, it was a hot time for textiles, there were two textiles based schools. Lia was more involved with Fiberworks being a UCB alumni herself, but says Pacific Basin taught important skills and had great guest shows and teachers and that the work overall was very experimental.
At UC Berkeley there was painting, sculpture, printmaking and more craft; the performance program was killed, leaving just the art and design programs, which eventually merged together.
Many of the craft program faculty moved to CCAC from UCB which helped develop the contemporary departments.
Lia studied in Scandinavia and did a lot of self study, including trips to Mexico and traveling through Europe. She majored in political science and painting as an undergrad, and went on to teach at UC Davis, initially not liking the idea of an art school. She eventually changed her mind and came to CCAC where she says there used to be 5 required weaving classes for the textiles major so students were more developed weavers. There were also fiber sculpture classes, print classes, and more weaving then anything else. She replaced Trude in 1976 and at the time, textiles was 50% of CCAC. There used to be weaving projects that involved creating velvet and recreating animal prints and furs, but projects now are more time based. The graduate program was very similar to what it is today, very cross disciplinary.
Lia got her start at the Biennial Textiles, which showcases a variety of artists with varying experience and success.
1. How have the students and the school changed?
Lia: Student are much more in depth, more conceptual (school wide). Students in the 1970's were breaking free from their parents' generation, they had a different attitude. Today students are more prepared, serious, and direct, but don't get the same education in process and technique. Hand technique used to be more important, now there is a stronger emphasis on academics and a variety in studies.
CCAC was known in Europe but now has global recognition, mainly because textiles takes up space so many departments (at other schools) have died out.
2. What's the story behind the Jacquard TC1 loom?
Lia: was interested in a TC1 for herself, it was designed by a friend but were rare and very expensive, so she acquired a $400,000 grant and worked on a payment deal with CCA to buy the loom. There are only 10 TC1's in the country, they are usually used in schools and in industry.
Notes from an interview with Lia:
There were 2 main schools in the East Bay
UCB textiles in design and also decorative arts, Ed Rossbach in the 1950's built the contemporary department. Ed Rossbach taught at University of Washington, had an anthropological approach to education. UCB had a strong anthropology program, the decorative art students saw anthropology as an inspiration.
Trude came to CCAC. She and Ed Rossbach weren't talking (much) to each other, they had different views, she was Austrian, Bahaus trained and from Black Mountain and Pond Farm. She crossed over with industry and taught very technical and structured classes but her own art was very experimental for the time.
Lia took over after she passed away, Trude had been very technical and strict but very creative.
Pacific Basin was started by a former CCAC student, it was a textile school on San Pablo that had classes and guest lectures, and is now artist studios.
Fiberworks was started by UCB alumni and held classes and participated in community outreach, it was a hot time for textiles, there were two textiles based schools. Lia was more involved with Fiberworks being a UCB alumni herself, but says Pacific Basin taught important skills and had great guest shows and teachers and that the work overall was very experimental.
At UC Berkeley there was painting, sculpture, printmaking and more craft; the performance program was killed, leaving just the art and design programs, which eventually merged together.
Many of the craft program faculty moved to CCAC from UCB which helped develop the contemporary departments.
Lia studied in Scandinavia and did a lot of self study, including trips to Mexico and traveling through Europe. She majored in political science and painting as an undergrad, and went on to teach at UC Davis, initially not liking the idea of an art school. She eventually changed her mind and came to CCAC where she says there used to be 5 required weaving classes for the textiles major so students were more developed weavers. There were also fiber sculpture classes, print classes, and more weaving then anything else. She replaced Trude in 1976 and at the time, textiles was 50% of CCAC. There used to be weaving projects that involved creating velvet and recreating animal prints and furs, but projects now are more time based. The graduate program was very similar to what it is today, very cross disciplinary.
Lia got her start at the Biennial Textiles, which showcases a variety of artists with varying experience and success.
1. How have the students and the school changed?
Lia: Student are much more in depth, more conceptual (school wide). Students in the 1970's were breaking free from their parents' generation, they had a different attitude. Today students are more prepared, serious, and direct, but don't get the same education in process and technique. Hand technique used to be more important, now there is a stronger emphasis on academics and a variety in studies.
CCAC was known in Europe but now has global recognition, mainly because textiles takes up space so many departments (at other schools) have died out.
2. What's the story behind the Jacquard TC1 loom?
Lia: was interested in a TC1 for herself, it was designed by a friend but were rare and very expensive, so she acquired a $400,000 grant and worked on a payment deal with CCA to buy the loom. There are only 10 TC1's in the country, they are usually used in schools and in industry.