If you've been following along on Instagram or been within shouting distance of me in the past year, you've probably learned of my obsession with one of the earliest figured coverlet designs, known simply as Agriculture & Manufactures. Finally, after months of careful study of several original coverlets, adaptation to fit my loom's requirements, point paper drafting, and card punching, this design has emerged on the loom for the first time in 180 years. At least 125 coverlets woven between 1822 and 1840 are known to exist with the motto, "Agriculture & Manufactures Are The Foundation Of Our Independence." While the statement was one with a nationalistic sentiment in the 19th century, it represents the best lessons of the past to me today. AGRICULTURE, to bring forth food (and fiber) from the natural world. MANUFACTURES, to make with one's hands. Participating in these two things give us independence from the corporate forces that place profit over people and view the earth as a commodity to bleed dry for a quick buck.
In the time and place that this motto first appeared, that vision of independence was only open to a select group of Americans and that legacy haunts us every single day. To push the doors open to all, every purchase of an Agriculture & Manufactures coverlet includes a donation to Radical Imagination Projects, a project led by a trio of international black and brown women artists. Radical Imagination currently offers an artist residency, land trust, and series of events that invite BIPOC to share their creativity and build connection with the land. Their artist residency and land trust are centered here, on the original land of the Abenaki People that we've come to call Vermont. Together we can imagine and create a more just future, and put traditional craft to work for good.
Below you'll find a gallery highlighting some of the process that brought this coverlet back to life. More images can be found in the online shop by clicking the button at the bottom of this email, or learn more about the history of my Jacquard equipment.
Stay well friends,
Justin
