Some projects just take time. They are never going to fulfill any need I might have for instant gratification. The Green Man tapestry has been one of those.
I started this project back in August 2012. My goal at the time was to have him completed for the February 2013 Ann Arbor Fiberarts Guild annual wall hangings exhibit at the University of Michigan’s Power Center for the Performing Arts.
Click on the links to read about the process:
designing – preparing the loom – the cartoon – weaving – the face – the eyes – taking longer than anticipated.
By mid January it was clear that I would not be able to have him ready. And so it was…. the Green Man looked on as other projects, deadlines, commissions, and life events took center stage. [see the blog archives] For 9 months he patiently watched and waited.
FINALLY… 1 year after I started him, I was able to once again turn my attention to the Green Man. One of the skills I worked on during the AWSD summer school tapestry course in Carmarthen, Wales [see September 2013 blog postings] was beating/packing down the weaving. Looking at it now, I could see that yup…. my packing was pretty loose so I began to compress.
before
The result = the tapestry was now 3″ shorter!
after
Also at this point I could see that my warp tension was pretty wonky and I would not be able to easily correct this = OOPS!!! I now had major decision to make:
Do I chuck all that I’ve done so far… cutting my losses (literally!) and start over?
Or do I continue on and see what happens?
Barbara Schutzgruber - Storyteller & Weaver 
My tapestries never turn out as planned- they evolve with the reality that inevitably comes when I put weft to warp. One thing I can never bring myself to do is chuck a work in process, especially one as stunning as this green man who has been patiently watching over you.
By: ashlityre on February 2, 2014
at 3:20 pm
I’d continue, the compression gives him a more sinister expression, but that’s not necessarily a bad thing, the green man is not meant to be entirely comforting
By: opusanglicanum on February 2, 2014
at 5:11 pm