I remember being enthralled by the looms, tartans, spinning wheels and fibers at the highland game festivals I attended as a child. Though I’ve worked my way through a range of textile arts, including needlepoint, cross-stitch, knitting, quilting and sashiko, weaving is my obsession and the medium at which I excel naturally. The mathematics of weaving and mechanics of a loom enthrall me.

Only after I became a weaver did I discover that my own family has a long history in the craft - the Bardsleys had been weavers for generations in Wales and northern England - whole Bardsley households had “weaver” or “weaver foreman” listed as their occupation on the British census papers. The craft had been forgotten for at least two generations, and nobody living knew the history - I only found it through genealogical research. This somewhat mystical discovery gives me a sense of connection to my family heritage and to the history of the craft.

A polymath of sorts, my university degrees cover subjects of history, religion, philosophy, psychology, and commerce. As such, I’m interested in a contextual study of textiles in parallel to the works I physically create. Textiles themselves are an historical record from which we can learn not only what life was once like, but also what beauty can be found in the life today if we slow down long enough to look.

I live and work in my home studio in Portland, Oregon, where I weave on one of several looms. Visits are welcome by appointment.

Jessica Bardsley