TUSCALOOSA, Ala. — Works of art and craft by contemporary handspinners using wool from rare and endangered breeds of sheep will be exhibited at The University of Alabama Museum of Natural History in Smith Hall Jan. 16 – March 13, 2001.
The display, Save the Sheep, features a wide range of applications and emphasizes the need to conserve these resources for the future.
“It is important to educate the public on the historic techniques of producing useable products from raw materials and to preserve those raw materials,” said fiber artist Carol Timkovich, who will lead a series of workshops that will accompany the exhibit.
Sheep breeds can die out quickly, taking with them resources that may never be reclaimed, according to the web site of Interweave Press, publisher of magazines and books devoted to fiber art. The wild mouflon, for example, an ancestor of modern sheep, grew fibers twice as fine as Merino, the contemporary standard of fine, soft wool, according to the site, Interweave.com.
The items to be displayed at the UA museum are hand made — of a quality unmatched by machines — and with fibers that cannot be replicated chemically or through reverse biological engineering, according to the exhibit’s sponsors. Cloning offers many fascinating possibilities for the future, but it will not preserve the genetic resources of these distinctive breeds, sponsors say. Viable, healthy breeding populations, large enough to avoid the hazards of inbreeding, are needed.
Operating hours for The University of Alabama Museum of Natural History are 10 a.m. until 4:30 p.m. Tuesdays through Fridays and 1 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. on Saturdays and Sundays. Admission is $2 for adults and $1 for seniors and children.
A series of “Wooly Workshops” will accompany the exhibit on the following Saturdays from 10 a.m. until 2 p.m. Workshops are geared toward those ages 10 and older and cost $16. For more details, contact Judy Everett at 205/348-9473.
*Feb. 3 Introduction to Felting. Make felt from natural wool and complete a small project to take home.
*Feb. 10 Introduction to Spinning. Operate a hand spindle to spin yarns the old-fashioned way, and watch demonstrations of other techniques using a spinning wheel and an Indian Charkha.
*Feb. 24 Introduction to Twining. Learn how to make items from bags to bracelets using this simple weaving technique in use for more than 9,000 years. Take home your own handmade souvenir.
*March 3 Introduction to Weaving. Hand weave fabric on small hand looms to make your own work of art to take home. Materials provided.
*March 10 Sheep to Shawl event. 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Cost is $5. Discover the whole process of making fabric from a wool fleece. The fleece will be shorn from sheep on site. This demonstration features not only shearing a sheep but also preparing the fleece for spinning into yarn, and weaving a finished fabric.
Contact
Kristi Wheeler-Griffin, 205/348-2041