Replica of a Chip: The Weaving Technology of Marilou Schultz
by Gretchen Lytle
Introduction
LLI’s new members may not be familiar with the Bard campus and all the school has to offer to the public. One of its resources is the Hessel Museum, which has exhibitions open to view Wednesdays through Sundays. As its focus is on curatorial studies, invariably the exhibitions are intriguing not only in their content but also in how the works are organized and presented. Currently, the east wing is hosting two exhibitions representing work of two artists who have entered the contemporary art world via unconventional paths. Head to the northeastern corner of the wing to view Marilou Schultz’s woven works, reflecting exceptional craft and fine art.
A Weaver Explores
I first saw Marilou Schultz’s weavings in person two years ago on a trip to Washington DC at Woven Histories: Textiles and Modern Abstraction at the National Gallery. Her work is deeply rooted in Navajo/Diné weaving traditions. Her career as a math teacher in Mesa provides her financial stability and also allows her to pursue her weaving as an art form. The Hessel exhibition presents her work over time, demonstrating her interest in experimenting with color and dyes, weaving techniques that stretch her beyond her traditional background, and an openness to challenging commissions. Even her earlier pieces reflect her exploratory nature. She incorporated traditional designs from different Navajo/Diné communities, using a spectacular range of natural dyes.
Traditional Environment
There are also works from older and younger weavers in her extended family as well as the broader Navajo/Diné community. From an early age Navajo/Diné children are surrounded by and immersed in the process of tending sheep, shearing sheep, carding, spinning and dyeing wool. They see grandmothers and mothers at upright looms inside and sometimes at outdoor looms. Each functional piece reflects cultural symbols and beliefs, whether a rug, blanket, or wearing blanket. Last spring Schultz gave a talk for CCS Bard and answered questions about her life and work. Click on this link to get to know her as a person and an artist.
A New Dimension
Throughout the exhibition, the signage and accompanying displays allow the visitor to learn more about process and context. Numerous commissioned pieces reflect her ability to go in new directions. She looks for challenges, continually questioning and experimenting. During COVID, she explored dimensionality more thoroughly. Instead of working on a rectangular loom, she commissioned a local blacksmith to make warp beams that curved. She explored wedge weaving, which created wavy, rippling pieces—and she made good use of small amounts of yarn she had around during that era. She chose colors that reminded her of earth’s layers and wove pieces with strong, original designs. She seemed to juggle her aesthetic, technical, and cultural values successfully all at the same time.
Chips, Circuits, and a QR Code
Another aspect to this exhibition is the Navajo/Diné connections to current technology. Weaving itself is a technology, but it seems worlds away from the technology so central to the modern world. From 1965-1975, Fairchild Semiconductor had a computer chip factory in Shiprock on Navajo Nation. Many of the employees were women weavers whose focused dexterity probably accounted for the astoundingly low error rate of 1%. When in 1994 Intel commissioned Schultz to do a weaving of a Pentium chip, she rose to the challenge. She looked into the historical connections between weavers and computer chips, developed a mathematical plan for her weavings, and continued to explore the relationships between weaving and technology. She has found ways to insert indigenous references into her pieces. Look closely—and read the signs— to find references, including the Navajo/Diné deity Spider Woman. Get at the right distance and try the QR code weaving!
Wondering
As you depart Replica of a Chip: The Weaving Technology of Marilou Schultz, what struck you? You may wish to return and look again. You might wonder what her sources of inspiration are when she chooses color—the landscapes in which she lives, the meaning of particular colors to the Navajo/Diné, the colors she discovers using natural dyes and/or the metallic colors of circuit boards. Steeped in Navajo ways of growing and working with wool as a weaver, what might make her move beyond tradition and go in new directions? Natural curiosity and specific commissions both seem to play roles. How does the mathematician in her connect to and respond to the computer world? She manages to maintain her balance with one foot firmly planted in cultural tradition and beliefs and another foot in modern society. She is an evolving artist and a centered human being. Pretty amazing.
