A Study of the Textile Art in Its Relation to the Development of Form and Ornament: Sixth Annual Report of the Bureau of Ethnology to the Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution, 1884-'85, Government Printing Office, Washington, 1888, (pages 189-252)Holmes, William Henry
History
A Study of the Textile Art in Its Relation to the Development of Form and Ornament: Sixth Annual Report of the Bureau of Ethnology to the Secretary of the Smithsonian Institution, 1884-'85, Government Printing Office, Washington, 1888, (pages 189-252)
Holmes, William Henry
Decoration and ornament; Indian textile fabrics -- North America; Textile fabrics; Textile industry
Fig. 301 illustrates the simplest form of what Dr. O.T. Mason has
called the twined combination, a favorite one with many of our native
tribes. The strands of the woof series are arranged in twos and in
weaving are twisted half around at each intersection, inclosing the
opposing fillets. The resulting open work has much the appearance of
ordinary netting, and when of pliable materials and distended or
strained over an earthen or gourd vessel the pattern exhibited is
strikingly suggestive of decoration. The result of this combination
upon a lattice foundation of rigid materials is well shown in the
large basket presented in Fig. 302. Other variants of this type are
given in the three succeeding figures.
[Illustration: FIG. 303. Surface effect in impacted work of twined
combination.]
The result seen in Fig. 303 is obtained by impacting the horizontal or
twined series of threads. The surface is nearly identical with that of
the closely impacted example of the preceding type (Fig. 292). The
peculiarities are more marked when colors are used. When the doubled
and twisted series of strands are placed far apart and the opposing
series are laid side by side a pleasing result is given, as shown in
Fig. 304 and in the body of the conical basket illustrated in Fig.
307.
[Illustration: FIG. 304. Surface effect obtained by placing the warp
strands close together and the woof cables far apart.]
[Illustration: FIG. 305. Surface effect obtained by crossing the warp
series in open twined work.]
In Fig. 305 we have a peculiar diagonally crossed arrangement of the
untwisted series of filaments, giving a lattice work effect.
[Illustration: FIG. 306. Decorative effects produced by variations in
the radiate or warp series in an open work tray. Klamath work--1/4.]
Fig. 306 serves to show how readily this style of weaving lends
itself to the production of decorative modification, especially in the
direction of the concentric zonal arrangement so universal in
vessel-making arts.
The examples given serve to indicate the unlimited decorative
resources possessed by the art without employing any but legitimate
constructive elements, and it will be seen that still wider results
can be obtained by combining two or more varieties or styles of
binding in the construction and the embellishment of a single object
or in the same piece of fabric. A good, though very simple,
illustration of this is shown in the tray or mat presented in Fig.
286. In this case a border, varying from the center portion in
appearance, is obtained by changing one series of the filaments from a
multiple to a single arrangement.
[Illustration: FIG. 307. Conical basket of the Klamath Indians of
Oregon, showing peculiar twined effect and an open work border--1/8.]
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