What We’re Reading:Theo Moorman 1907-1990:
Her Life and Work as an Artist Weaver
Reviewed by Ever Woodward
Published by the University Gallery Leeds to accompany an exhibit celebrating Theo Moorman’s sixty-year weaving career, “Theo Moorman 1907-1990” illustrates her work, artistic practice and personality with many contributors, including Moorman herself.
A biographic introduction sets Moorman’s early life in English academia and highlights her training at the Central School of Arts and Crafts in London, which led into a prolific career spanning education, commissions and leadership in arts organizations. After the facts of her life are arranged, a selection of Moorman’s writings offer insight into the practice of an artist who was opinionated (“In Conversation with Edward Robinson”), keen (“A Meditation on Lot’s Wife”) and spiritual (“Encounters with Joy”). Appreciations and generous anecdotes written by students and colleagues amplify this characterization. Thumbing through this text in a moment of community slow down, I am buoyed by this profile of a persistent and sensitive craftsperson. In her words, “The exploration of a lifetime can never wholly solve the problems and the solution is always elusive”.
