project statement

to weave
to wind
to knot
to knit
to twist
to push
to pack
to press

2010, 68 objects in glass, 40 x 72 x 18 inches
Collection Museum of Arts and Design, New York

Re-made in glass as ghosts, these hand tools are used for weaving cloth, making bobbin lace, knitting, knotting, and a glass-making process called pâte de verre. In 1967-68 Richard Serra compiled a list of action verbs that combined an interest in material properties and physical processes of making sculpture, called Verb List Compilation: Actions to Relate to Oneself. The title of my work is derived from the form of his list, incorporating some of the same terms and adding new ones. In 1967, many of these tools were generally attributed to women’s domestic work. Weaving, knitting, and lacemaking are now recognized as viable fabrication processes within a broad and more inclusive world of contemporary art.

~ Anne Wilson

Thanks to glass fabrication by David Willis, Jessica Julius, and the Pilchuck Glass School, Stanwood, Washington.