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Cally Booker MSDC

Woven Textiles

About Cally
Cally Booker is a handweaver based in Dundee and draws much of her inspiration from the city: from the grandeur of its waterfront setting to the details of quirky buildings and everyday living. In both exhibition pieces and micro-collections of functional textiles under the Bonny Claith label, Cally makes extensive use of multi-layered weaves. The interplay of different layers of colour gives her work its distinctive appeal. Cally is passionate about making things by hand and shares her love of weaving through The Weaving Space, a programme of workshops based in her colour-filled studio.
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Biography Back to top

Cally is a textile designer, a maker, a writer and a teacher, but above all, she is a handweaver. Everything she does in her creative practice, from drawing to dyeing, ultimately leads back to the interlacement of warp and weft. Weaving is a craft which can be meticulously planned or improvised at the loom, and a combination of these approaches appeals to the different parts of her nature.

She makes extensive use of multi-layered warps and complex weave structures. The interplay of different layers of colour gives her work a distinctive appeal. In her most recent work she has begun to explore the natural colour palette, using up-to-date ecological methods of working with natural dyestuffs, and is focused on developing the sustainability of her practice.

Much of Cally’s inspiration comes from the cityscape of Dundee, from the grandeur of its waterfront setting to the small details of quirky buildings and everyday living, and even the statistical data which describes the region. Her enjoyment of the cultural life of the city is seen in her latest collection, which celebrates the pleasures of listening to live jazz.

As well as functional textiles, Cally creates exhibition pieces which explore social and environmental issues through data. She is currently working on a series which examines the melting of the Arctic Sea Ice.

Resumé Back to top

Recent Exhibitions and Events

Meet Your Maker, National Museum of Scotland & Craft Scotland, Edinburgh (2016)

Dundee International Design Festival, Dundee (2016)

Crafted, Dundee Contemporary Arts, Dundee (2015)

Meet Your Maker, Craft Scotland, Fife (2015)

Bridge of Allan Contemporary Arts Festival, Bridge of Allan (2014)

Ebb and Flow, Handweavers’ Guild of America, Providence, RI (2014)

Complexity, Complex Weavers, Lincoln, NE and other venues (2014)

Craft Scotland Summer Show, Edinburgh (2013)

Education

HNC Handwoven Textile Design, Bradford School of Arts & Media (2007)

Affiliations

Past President, Complex Weavers

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