Imagine That! Artisans' Designs, the artist-run co-op in downtown Duncan, will have a Playing with Wool display in the window of their Craig Street boutique featuring the wool works of local spinner and weaver Dave Woodall until Sept. 27.
"We make our windows available for rental for a month at a time to local artists, sometimes they are new to us and sometimes we have their work in the shop already," said fellow co-op artist and promoter Kate Daniel. "For Dave we hope that the exposure in our window will lead to great sales of his work and a greater appreciation of the work involved in creating hand-made things."
Woodall who grew up in a small town outside of Montreal, Quebec and lived many years out east including a few years in New Brunswick and Ontario before making Vancouver Island his home nine years ago. Woodall's journey with wool began around 1975 when he was in his mid-20s and someone had loaned his partner a floor loom for few months.
"She was not interested in it but I was," said Woodall. "I got a book from the library and started to figure out what it could do. Eventually I designed and made my own loom. For the next 20 or so years I dabbled making wall hangings or pillows, but with working full-time and having two kids who were fun to be with I did not get to spend a lot of time with the loom. After they left to go to school, I bought a second hand loom and started to spend more time experimenting with wool and weaving. Eventually I realized that I could not afford to continue to buy spun wool, so I learned how to spin. Twenty-five years ago, I started selling my work a the Peterborough Farmers Market in Ontario, then upon moving out here I was fortunate enough that both the Duncan, and Cedar Farmer Markets accepted me as a vendor."
As a past regular participant of the Duncan Farmers' Market Woodall has become a well known familiar face in the community. Now retired from that venue he has joined the ranks of the several artists at Imagine That! For every project, Woodall sources the wool he needs, cleans and cards it, spins it, dyes it, then weaves it into many useful items such as rugs, shawls, purses, and more for this true labour of love.
“I like playing with wool. I like the way it feels, the way it smells," said Woodall. "I like the way it speaks to me, of how sometimes I seem to have so little control over what it becomes. I am constantly amazed at how a two-dimensional process can develop texture and depth. I love the excitement of getting a fleece and unrolling it, touching the fibres — planning out what I will do with it — as the wool tells me what it wants to be.”
Woodall plans to have some shawls, rugs, a few small bags and a bowl full of dyer balls on display in the intimate window space of Imagine That!
"My work is very simple and functional," said Woodall. "If there is any beauty in my work, it is partially due to the textures and the colours that I have used, but mainly the beauty is there because of the wool. I've been told my passion for wool is obvious and adds to my work. It would be wonderful if I sold a few items, but would also be happy if someone liked what they saw, came in and asked if they could touch one of my rugs or shawls. If the the softness or texture gave them pleasure, that would feel good. If the colours, designs, or shapes interested them and made them want to make something of their own — that would be a good day for me."
