the art of Morris Muskett

Here is some of the lessons and events I will cover during my weaving class. 

CLASS TOPICS

1. Warping and warp selection for projects. Dressing the Navajo loom will follow.

2. Selecting weft yarns for the sampler project.

3. Cover different types of joints and designs.

4. Demonstrate the finishing technique for the class sampler.

This is a tentative topics list.  I will tailor the class for the skill level of the students who wish to enroll.

I would like to begin the weaving class with a tour of Albuquerque, Santa Fe and area north of Santa Fe.  We’ll tour various yarn stores, weaving workshops and co-ops, and visit artist like the renowned author, weaver and painter, Noel Bennett and my ceramics mentor, Clarence Cruz.  Depending on the time the tour is scheduled, we might be in time to visit one the New Mexico Pueblos for their traditional feast day celebration.  We might also witness a traditional Pueblo firing for Clarence Cruz’s class.

After 2 days in Santa Fe and Albuquerque, we will travel west to Navajoland. We will begin our projects by first warping and then begin the weaving process.  I will demonstrate handspinning using a Navajo Churro fleece and students may try handspinning also.  We may also get to do some hand-dyeing depending on the interest of the students.  We will travel to some weavers’ homes and watch their weaving in progress.  My emphasis will be learning to weave and weaving while at the same time we will pay visits to local artists and some trading posts. 

Please contact me if you are interested or have suggestions.  This is a work in progress for me so I will continue to fine tune this itinerary.  I am looking forward to hearing from you.

I just returned from giving my Hozhoo: Art by Morris Muskett presentation at the University of Colorado in Boulder.  I want to see if there are people out there who would be interested in a Navajo weaving class and tour taught and led by me, Morris.  I learned from giving my presentation, I have much to offer potential students in Navajo weaving and how it relates the weavers.  I also want to offer a tour to give insight into the Native world that non-Natives are not aware of. Please contact me if you have any questions.  I could tailor a weaving class for the interested students.

I wanted to remind my visitors that Valentine’s Day is 7 days away.  Please view my heart jewelry that I posted on this blog.  You’ll have to scroll down on my blog to find my precious heart jewelry.  If you have any questions, please contact me. 

Thank you.

Here’s one last piece I will feature at the University of Colorado’s Museum of Anthropology Museum Shop for the upcoming opening on Feb 5, 2010 and my Hozho: Art by Morris Muskett presentation.

This piece is reminescent of the vintage, natural orange coral barrel beads.  I strung these coral beads with sterling handmade beads and a handmade dragonfly cross finished with a handmade hook-and-eye clasp.  Please contact me if you would like to order a necklace similar to this necklace in case you cannot make to Boulder, CO.

	Vintage style orange coral dragonfly cross necklace. Handmade silver beads and handstamped dragonfly cross. About 22″ long.   Price $500 Please contact me to order.
	Detail of the handstamped dragonfly cross necklace. Natural orange coral and Sterling Silver.

I am always interested in learning indigenious weaving techniques. In 2002, I set out on a journey to learn Raven’s Tail and Chilkat weaving.  It has been almost 8 years since I first started to read about Raven’s Tail and its origin in the Pacific Northwest.  I have woven a few Raven’s Tail medicine bags and currently working on a pair of leggings. 

I am posting one of my early Raven’s Tail medicine bags available for sale, and the cover of Cheryl Samuel’s book, The Raven’s Tail, which is currently out of print. I have 2 (maybe 3) more additional Medicine Bags if you are interested.  I am not currently making Medicine Bags.  Please contact me if you have any questions.

	Raven’s Tail Medicine Bag No. 1 is woven on a vertical loom with thigh spun warp without use of a spindle.  Merino Wool. Embellished with plucked beaver fur. Deerhide handle. Fringe finished with tin cones.   Price $300
	Detail of front of the Medicine Bag.  This design is called the Box of Daylight design.
	Back side of the Raven’s Tail Medicine Bag.  Plain weave with a black braided border. Merino wool.  Warp is thigh spun without the use of a spindle.
	Detail of the back side of  the Raven’s Tail Medicine Bag embellished with a Peruvian Coin.  I had just returned from Peru when I began to weave in the Raven’s Tail technique.
	The Raven’s Tail by Cheryl SamuelCopyright 1987 The University of British Columbia Press, Vancouver

One of my goals as artist is to help explain and show my audience the different types and techniques I employ in my art.  I like to keep exploring and learning different techniques from around the world.  I am not usually making one kind of art for a long time.  For example, I am not weaving sashes or belts at this time nor have the last 5 to 6 years.  I use to love belt weaving, but I’ve found other techniques and artforms to learn and explore.  I will always have a love for belts and one day I will weave belts again.

My upcoming presentation at the University of Colorado on Feb. 5, 2010 (check my calendar at the upper left of my homepage) has me thinking about what I want to accomplish as an artist.  I want to educate, educate, and educate.  And hopefully sell art while doing this!  Ha, ha, ha…..  With this said.

“What is mokume-gane?”

One reputable place I like to look for an answer is wikipedia.  I don’t solely rely on wikipedia’s information, but it’s starting point to learn about someone or something.  So here’s an excerpt from wikipedia about mokume-gane.  I do encourage you to do more research if mokume-gane really interests you.

“Mokume-gane ( 木目金 ) is a mixed-metal laminate with distinctive layered patterns. Translating as “wood-grain metal”, the name was borrowed from one type of pattern created in the forging of swords and other edged weapons.”

This is a basic definition taken directly from wikipedia.  Here’s the link to this definition if you are interested in further reading.  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mokume-gane

As an artist living in the Southwest, I find it difficult to find workshops in the topics I want to take.  Tedd McDonah’s Mokume-Gane Workshop is one such workshop.  He teaches Mokume-Gane as an advance metals class at Arizona State University in Tempe, AZ.  One day I will return to ASU to finish my Bachelor’s in Fine Art and enroll in his class. 

Thanks for reading my posts and staying interseted in my work!  Stay tuned…..

I have been working on the piece of the mokume gane I made in Tedd McDonah’s Mokume Gane Workshop.  I have made a few pieces and working on more pieces.  Here’s what I’ve made so far. These are available for sale so contact me if you are serious about purchasing.  All of the listed pieces are one-of-a kind and entirely hand-hammered, handmade from beginning to end!  

	Here’s the mokume sheet I rolled out after hours of annealing and hammering.  There are areas where I drilled too deeply that produced “low areas”. I had to cut into the edges to prevent further cracking into the rest of the sheet.  Below is a hand-twisted strand of the mokume billet. This mokume is fine silver (99.9% silver) and copper.
	Mokume gane jewelry. Please contact me about pricing and availability.
	Square wire bracelet rolled out from a strand of the mokume billet.  The photo does not show the very thin layers of fine silver and copper.   Just under 0.25″ wide and size 6″. Please contact me about pricing and availability.
	Mokume gane bracelet cuff. 0.5″ wide and size 5.5″.  Please contact me about pricing and availability.
	Men’s mokume gane rings.  The size of the rings are size 11 and 12 approx. I will verify if you are seriously interested in these rings.  Fine silver and copper. Please contact me about pricing and availability.

On May 9, 2002 the first of three series Changing Hands: Art Without Reservation opened at the then American Craft Museum in New York City.  The American Craft Museum is now known as the Museum of Art and Design.  I had three of my most contemporary weavings in this first series exhibition!  I was quite honored by this exhibition.  My work was so new that I had not sold any of the pieces in this exhibition.  After the pieces were returned to me, all three weavings sold like hotcakes!! 

Here is an excerpt from the catalogue:

“Changing Hands: Art Without Reservation is a landmark new series of three titles that assembles, documents, interprets, and explores the rich diversity of craft, art, and design being produced today by contemporary Native American artists.”

I posted an image of the catalogue that features this exhibition.  I do not know if the Museum of Art and Design still sells this book in their Museum Shop.  Please contact them at www.madmuseum.org.

I will be traveling to Boulder, CO at the end of next week to give my “Hozhoo: Art by Morris Muskett” presentation at CU.  I will have some of my weavings available for sale.  I do not post my special, high-end weavings online.  I only show them in person and sell directly to the collector.  I also do not wholesale, to Gallup Traders nor to reservation trading posts.  Yes, you guessed right my weavings are expensive for “weavings”.  I consider my weavings to be art because they are developed conceptually and I pay attention to the type of materials and weaving techniques.  I also use yarn that is esoteric and often use hand-dyed Navajo Churro wool. I also pay attention to the quality of materials and end product.  I also do not weave many rugs in one year.  I weave about 4 to 6 rugs a year if I am busy with projects.  My record for weaving rugs for the last 3 years is zero rugs! 

I have been working on a saddle blanket completely with hand-dyed Navajo Churro wool using both acid dyes and natural dyes.  I started this saddle blanket in summer 2007 and I will have it available for sale in summer 2010. This is a special offering I will sell for $3,000, which is a bargain for one of my weavings.  This saddle blanket is about 34″ wide and 30″ long.

I use to be known as a “Sash or belt weaver”.  Some people still call me that, but obviously they have not kept with my progress in my art.  I have progressed and learned other  mediums like metal, concrete, and ceramics.  In case there are people interested in my very early work, I am posting a Pueblo-style rain sash I still have available for sale.  I have not sold it and stored it away for years.  I came it across it while searching for some wool. I am not weaving Navajo and Pueblo-style sashes or belts at this time.  I have not wove a belt in about 5 or 6 years.  Here is an image of the rain sash for sale and I believe it is about 124″ long and about 3.25″ wide.  I could verify it for you if you are serious about purchasing it. I wove it on my traditional Navajo 8′ vertical loom. Please contact me if you have any questions.  Thank you! Enjoy!

	Pueblo-style Rain Sash.Handwoven on a traditional vertical Navajo loom. The cotton yarn is respun on a traditional Navajo spindle by hand.  The cornhush rings are made one at a time by hand.  Fringes are hand-rolled one at time. (This is NOT a Hopi nor Pueblo woven belt.) Materials: cotton yarn, cornhusks, and purple spiney oyster corn bead accent. Price:  $955.00
	Detail of “floating” designs.  I used the traditional design found on the vintage Navajo sashes.

Here’s an offering of new earrings.  I just polished these as they have been in progress for some time now.  Please contact me if you have any questions about availability or pricing.  Thanks.

	“Rolling Balls”. Contemporary handmade Navajo earrings. Interpretation of the traditional shadow-box style earrings.  Sterling Silver. Price $145
	This is my interpretation of vintage colonial Spanish-Mexican earrings. Handstamped and appliqued silver wire.  Sterling silver. Price $225
	“Rolling Ball”. Contemporary handmade Navajo earrings. Interpretation of the traditional shadow-box style earrings.  Sterling Silver. Price $125
	Classical and elegant hand-fabricated Navajo squash blossom earrings.  These would be great with one of my squash blossom pendants I have available.  Again, these earrings part of the early Navajo squash blossom necklace legacy. Handmade earring hooks soldered on earrings for a permanent connection. Hand-brushed finish.  Price $225