June 1, 2024
Dear Cluster Members,
I hope you are enjoying the wonderful summer weather. Here in the cluster, we are getting ready to put the cluster on “sleep” mode for the summer. The cluster will be closed to members from June 3rd to August 25th, as we are excited to host the Milieux Summer Writing Residency, where graduate student members of Milieux will be using the space for reading, writing and reflection as they prepare for thesis, comps or other work related to their research. Please note that the cluster commons are blocked off for this purpose until we return at the end of August.
Genevieve Moisan is pleased to announce that we are switching up the warp colour on the Jacquard Loom. The new warp will be a brand-new natural color, while also being mercerized cotton, at 40 pics per inch warp (same as the last one). We hope you are excited as we are to try something new.
Please note that Co-Director Kathleen Vaughan is now away in Iceland for the Icelandic Field School hosted at the Icelandic Textile Centre in Blonduos, several of our members are there as well. Genevieve Moisan, our support technician, will be off until the end of August also, so there will not be access to the Tajima or the Jacquard machinery. Co-director Miranda Smitheram will be conducting research over at MaSH lab for the summer. Please note that equipment and space bookings will return at the start of the Fall semester, if you need small equipment like access to a sewing machine, I suggest contacting the Sandbox at the Library, they have a range of tools that might suit your purpose and are open all summer.
I will be around throughout the summer, but with limited hours, please don’t hesitate to email me at textiles.materiality@concordia.ca if you have any requests or information you would like to share with the cluster throughout the summer, just be mindful that my response time will likely be delayed.
In August I will send out a membership renewal request form. Please fill it in as soon as possible so we can continue to accommodate your projects, inquiries, research-creation and community activations.
If you have any upcoming events or projects, you would like shared via the cluster instagram: @textilesandmateriality, on the newsletter or via our wordpress, please email me. Kindly feel free to author collaborative posts or tag us in social media.
Wishing you all a beautiful Summer,
Morris Fox, T&M Cluster Research Coordinator
textiles + materiality research cluster 