I grew up watching my mother knit, sew and embroider lovely things for me, all the while being told the one thing she longed to do was to weave. So I came to think of weaving as the ultimate craft. She started weaving when she was 60. I had a few false starts, but hunkered down and got serious in 2004, when I left my last job and realized nobody was expecting me to turn up at the office the next morning.
People I know, the things they make, the stories they tell, and the places I lived (Yokohama, Japan, Minneapolis, and Auckland, New Zealand) inform my work. I, in return, make cloth that bring back those memories and experiences. In doing so, I like to use New Zealand merino when I can as texture/hand is of utmost importance in my work, particularly items that wrap your face and neck. But I also enjoy being a citizen of Plant Earth and am open to any fiber of great texture. I weave with cashmere from Inner Mongolia and cotton from Italy and Korea as well.
Currently I weave mainly scarves and shawls, but I hope to also weave yardage, as well as to make objets d’art.
-Meg Nakagawa
Location: Nelson, New Zealand
Blogs:
Languages spoken: English, Japanese
Handwoven scarf by Meg Nakagawa
Tags: New Zealand, Japan, Minnesota, weaving, shawls, scarves, exhibition, commission, yardage
