Two Weavers Collaborate To Celebrate History

Wendy Carpenter shows artwork commemorating 75th Anniversary of The Clearing.

Two weavers, generations apart in time, ‘collaborated’ on a work of art to commemorate the 75th anniversary of the founding of The Clearing in Ellison Bay. The piece, in honor of weaver Mertha Fulkerson, will be unveiled on September 11 at the Friends of The Clearing Annual Membership Gathering and hang in the Weaving Room of the Schoolhouse.

Wendy Carpenter, owner of Interfibers Design Gallery, was asked to create the weaving, incorporating curtains woven decades ago by Fulkerson, who kept the folk school running after Jens Jensen’s death in 1951.

“I was honored to be asked to create the piece,” said Carpenter. “Mertha wove with very fine thread, almost as thin as sewing thread. Her fabric is perfect, there’s not one little mistake. The materials she used were nice: linen, cotton, rayon, real simple materials but real elegant.”

Carpenter wove eighteen panels, one for each of the years that Fulkerson managed The Clearing. Every three panels represents one of the buildings on the property, featuring curtains from that specific building.

The weaving may be viewed Saturdays and Sundays from 1 – 4 pm during The Clearing’s regular open house hours through the end of October.

The Clearing is located at 12171 Garrett Bay Road in Ellison Bay. For more information call 920.854.4088 or visit http://www.theclearing.org.

Carpenter’s studio is located at 9204 Silk Road in Fish Creek. Fore more information visit http://www.interfibers.com.