Moeki Yamada

Name: Moeki Yamada

Studio location: Barcelona, Spain

Website / social links: mooeki.com, @moeki_yamada

Loom type or tool preference: Louet Spring loom

Years weaving: Six years since I first started tapestry weaving, and a little less than three years that I started weaving with a floor loom.

Fiber inclination: Linen and cotton

Current favorite weaving book: It's not a book, but Jane Stafford’s online weaving school is probably the best thing that ever happened to me!

 

 

1. How did you discover weaving and was what your greatest resource as a beginner?

In 2014, when I left everything behind and decided to move to Spain from Japan, I had the opportunity for the first time in my life to take a step back and think about what I wanted to do with my life. I don't know why, but at that moment it occurred to me that I wanted to learn how to weave. So I looked for where I could start learning and took a tapestry weaving course at a local workshop. 

My biggest resource as a beginner was the fellow weavers there. The group consisted of people of different ages and origins, where one wove a portrait of her dog while the other wove a sequence of simple drawings to talk about the history of Catalonia. I loved the diversity, the atmosphere, and especially the tea time with delicious cookies to enjoy the company!

2. How do you define your practice – do you consider yourself an artist / craftsperson / weaver / designer / general creative or a combination of those? Is this definition important to you?

Above all, I consider myself a weaver. What attracts me the most about this craft is that it is a lifelong learning process full of amazing discoveries along the way. I am a very curious person and I am obsessed with learning about different structures, techniques, and textures.

I would also call myself a craftsperson because one of my goals as a weaver is to bring back more handwoven fabrics into our daily lives by creating items that are easy to incorporate. I find it so beautiful and satisfying to make things that will be a part of someone else's life!

These definitions are important to me because they reflect the reasons why I do what I do.

3. Describe your first experience with weaving.

I would describe my first experience with weaving as rather tense. I had never taken an art course before and I felt insecure. I constantly asked my teacher if I was doing well with my work. The course I took was free-style tapestry, so as long as I alternately passed the weft thread through the warp, I was completely free to do whatever I wanted.

Since I was a little girl I have enjoyed learning languages, especially the words and the rules (that is, the grammar) and then composing a sentence as if I was doing a puzzle. 

I guess I was constantly looking for those "rules" or the "mechanism" to learn to play with tapestry weaving. For that reason, when I first experienced weaving on a floor loom, I knew immediately that this was what I was looking for.

4. What is your creative process, from the initial idea to the finished piece? Are there specific weave structures, looms, or fibers that are important to your process?

I have nothing established in terms of my creative process, but I tend to start with structures that I want to try at each moment. First, I prepare a short warp to test the density and to look for patterns that I like. At this point I don’t worry about anything rather than playing and having fun at the loom. Then I wash the fabric to examine all of the patterns for the quality and aesthetics that appeal to me. 

Next, I consult my wish list of items that I have in my notebook to see what type of product I would like to see the fabric in. Once I know what I want, I sketch a simple layout of the design. I am eager to start weaving straight away so I always try not to stop and think too much. It’s also because I have a tendency to overcomplicate things in my head and "drown myself in a glass of water"(it is a saying in Spanish to refer to exaggerating a very small problem).

As for the fibers, I have a clear fondness for linen yarn because I really like the rustic look and at the same time elegant aspect that it gives to the final fabric.

 

5. Does your work have a conceptual purpose or greater meaning? If so, do you center your making around these concepts?

My creations are always for the home or utility fabrics for day-to-day use. My criteria when deciding colors or designs are whether or not I would be excited to surround myself with them to be part of my daily routines. I once read an interview with Samiro Yunoki, a Japanese stencil dyer, where he talked about the importance for him of being guided by his instincts and creating things that excite him and make him feel happy. I could not agree more, and that is why since then these words have become my motto whenever I create.

6. What is your favorite part of the weaving process and why? What’s your least favorite?

I love almost every part of the weaving process because I enjoy the feeling that each step brings. Every time you see more and more of how your idea is being materialized and that is very exciting to me.

However, if I had to say the part that I like the least, it would be the finishing step. It's great to see how your handwoven fabric transforms after washing, but I have a bad habit of leaving ironing and sewing for later… at this point, I usually have another idea in my head that I want to work on, so before I know it, I'm back to the warping board!

7. Do you sell your work or make a living from weaving? If so, what does that look like and how has that affected your studio practice?

My idea is to sell my creations and make a living from them. I'm learning to make it work, but it has been complicated. The main difficulty that I am facing at the moment is due to the fact that I get so afraid when it comes to selling my creations. When I have spent so much time working on them, I see myself reflected in each piece in its imperfections and that makes me feel vulnerable. I know that everything can be learned and I trust in my abilities to do so ... but I am progressing little by little. Regardless, I am very, very grateful to have the time and opportunity to try to earn money with what I am most passionate about.

8. Where do you find inspiration?

I find inspiration in my visits to Japan, where I am originally from. Since 2020, I have not been able to return, but every time I go I try to visit weavers or dyers. Their studies are often in the rural areas of the country, and being a city girl, it is always full of discoveries in terms of style and rhythm of life. It is so curious, and at the same time perhaps inevitable, how I find myself returning to my origin to deepen my interest and to reconnect with the traditional part of the country that I was not so familiar with.

9. What other creatives do you admire – weavers, artists, entrepreneurs – and why?

In 2015, after leaving the tapestry weaving course, I entered a local art school to study more about textile art. For the final project, I did research on an ancient Japanese technique for making paper threads and weaving them into a textile called shifu. I was lucky enough to meet Sadako Sakurai, who, along with her husband, revived a refined version of this technique that was and still is in danger of disappearing.

For me, it was the first time that I met a Japanese textile artisan, and I am very happy that it was her. Unlike what I expected from a craftswoman of her level, she turned out to be a very humble lady. Her love for people and technique was so honest that I immediately fell in love with her personality!

 I admire her not only for her beautiful works but also for being the way she is. She is very kind and generous, not at all pretentious. You could tell that she does what she does simply because of her passion. At the age of 92, she continues to spin paper threads and weave with the thinnest threads to create precious kimonos.

10. If you could no longer weave, what would you do instead?

I am fascinated by the figure of all craftspeople who are masters in their technique and whose work is based on producing pieces with their own hands. I would probably be a paper maker because I am drawn to the fact that they also work with fibers and the process is quite physical and slow. I love the feeling of losing track of time because you are simply there for your creation, and I have a feeling that paper making has that effect on you!

Do you have any upcoming exhibits, talks, or events the community should know about?

If you are in the Barcelona area and you are interested in learning how to weave on a floor loom, I am here for you! I will start giving private classes from September. Tell me what you want to learn and we will see how I can help you.

(Español)

Si vives por el área de Barcelona y estás interesado en aprender a tejer con telar de bajo lizo, ¡estoy aquí para ti! Empezaré a dar clases particulares a partir de septiembre. Dime qué quieres aprender y veremos cómo puedo ayudarte.