Rhiannon Griego

Name: Rhiannon Griego

Studio location: Ojai, California

Website / social links: rhiannongriego.com, @rhiannonmgriego

Loom type or tool preference: Saori SX60, Saori WX90, an assortment of vintage brand less large frame looms

Years weaving: 7

Fiber inclination: Natural. Hemp, linen, alpaca, silk

Current favorite weaving book: Weaving Woman, Musings & Meditations on the Feminine Mythos

 

 

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

My mother told me at a young age I was Papago-Tohono O'odham so this was my first resource to the blanket term of weaving. Tohono O'odham people are known for their exquisite basketry. 

I was living in Berkeley California when I inquired about weaving teachers, a friend suggested I take a class with the woman she had just finished a class with. I took once class and knew I was on the right road. My great resource was having a teacher I could take classes with 3 times a week with, and curiosity. I am committed to encouraging all interested weavers to release the brake of the mind on what you want to know and surrender to what you will come to know by playing; experimentation is key. 

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?

I am an artist 100%. I've honed my craft but this is art, it's a blending of abstract concept, wearable artwork and interpretation. It took me sometime to fully inhabit the terminology of an artist but everything I do in life is the way of the artist. My life is art, there is no distinction between what I "do" and how I live. 

3. Describe your first experience with weaving.

I sat down, put my feet on the pedals and the rest is history. I was amazed by watching the floor pedals create their own rhythmic tune.

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?

Typically, if I am drawing an idea from the landscape, I will photograph the landscape and sit with the land for a while. It's an interactive engagement between the colors, the foliage, the wind and all the senses being stirred to create. From there, I pick the yarns in the studio and go. 

I have not drawn most of my pieces as I enjoy the blind process of allowing the loom to guide me, however, as the pieces begin to form into deeper concepts, I am drawing everything out. I name words, feelings, colors and inspirations with each sketch. 

Natural fibers are important to me as an artist and as a consumer in this modern era. Working with natural fibers engages my awareness of living species who are then transformed into fiber. I source any synthetics second hand and I always try to purchase items that are discarded from large factories to work with first. 

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

The bulk of my trajectory the last 7 years has been based off of intuition. I have a strong sense of intuitive and permit that to guide the direction. Often, I am not looking at what I'm creating, it's very wabi and I allow the loom to guide me. After 7 years, I've found myself relishing and dissecting more of my understanding of the cosmos, my place within and this is informing more of a conceptual body of work. I'm a much more of a feeling individual so I weave from that center rather than the mental circulation of winding round how this should be or how that should. However, conceptualizing narratives now is bridging a beautiful road between my mind and body. 

 

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

Let's start with least favorite: WARPING. My favorite, weaving. It's meditative and always me a peace to watch it all come together. It's quite metaphorical. 

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?

Yes, I have been living off of my artwork for 7 years now. Honestly, there are times I am challenged by it. The demand and commitment to uniqueness can drain my energy and when high seasons come about, I am often exhausted. For several years, it took alot of energy trying to educate people about the labor of love that is imbued within each piece and why I would price my artwork a certain way. It felt like an uphill battle and I was losing. Up until the last few years, the market for handmade was not booming the way it is now. At some point, it all clicked because I continued to persevere and knew deep down I would keep weaving regardless of what people were buying. 

I am always in studio. It's where I live 90% of my life when I am not in company outside my home. 

8. Where do you find inspiration?

Everywhere. Much of my inspiration is sourced from the landscapes I dwell upon and spend time within. The southwest is my largest source of inspiration followed by the arid landscapes of deserts. The myths of this tradition across culture heavily  move me.  Traveling. My spiritual understanding as a weaver also brings me into contact with higher realities and that informs my work as well. The folk movement of the 1960's and 1970's has had its role in inspiring me to develop a skill into an art form and one that also functions for utilitarian needs. The abstract art movement is presently moving my mind and I am perpetually inspired by textiles handmade from indigenous people of the world. 

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

The Navajo Weavers really inspire me with their myths, and start to finish process of textiles. Joseph Grau-Garriga, Sheila Hicks, Lenore Tawney, Barbara-Chase Riboud all made a significant impact on my career through their dedication to their artwork when fiber art wasn't as valued as it is now in the artworld. Carol Sutton Shaw is a local fiber artist where I live and I've found her thoughtful nature inspirational. Thread Caravan is also an inspiring travel company that creates experiences for people to learn first hand with Zapotec and Guatemalan weavers. 

I admire people who through themselves headfirst into the mysterious journey as an artist, share the wisdom they've learned along the way through mistakes and success and keep moving forward. In short, I love courageous people with tenacity to achieve their beautiful dreams. 

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

I plan on weaving till I'm 85. I have actually been teaching myself how to weave blindfolded so I can come to understand a further knowledge of my loom in case I lose my sight at some point. My trajectory has always been jewelry, weaving and ceramics so I plan to learn to work with clay at 50.