From left: “Homage to the Square”, 1968 by Josef Albers via the Museum of Modern Art; Color Palette Bundle #3 from The School of Making, Abstract Gold Organic Cotton Swatch from The School of Making, “Lapis Lazuli (left) and Blue Verditer (right)” from An Atlas of Rare & Familiar Colour: The Harvard Art Museums’ Forbes Pigment Collection by Kingston Trinder (pages 116–117); Button Craft… Read on

“In visual perception a color is almost never seen as it really is – as it physically is. This fact makes color the most relative medium in art.” –Josef Albers Color, as we see it, results from our eyes and brains working together to make sense of the light around us. Since as early as… Read on

Anni Albers challenged artists to reject “recipes” and repetition and the safety of what they know will work. She encouraged artists to step away from formulaic making strategies, replacing them “with the adventure of new exploring.” Her life and work are a mirror for finding rich complexity and diversity within simplicity. The photograph of Anni… Read on

“A longing for excitement can be satisfied without external means within oneself: For creating is the most intense excitement one can come to know.” – Anni Albers Anni Albers was a multi-disciplinary artist best remembered for her work in textile design. She trained at the Bauhaus school in Germany, where she met her future husband and… Read on

Left: “Plate 110. Wall hanging, Jacquard weaving”, 1925; right: “Plate 111. Wall hanging, three-ply weave”, 1926 by Anni Albers from Anni Albers: On Weaving (New Expanded Edition) by Anni Albers with afterword by Nicholas Fox Weber and essays by Manuel Cirauqui and T’ai Smith. “Most of our lives we live closed up in ourselves, with… Read on

Left: 150: “Werbefotogramm (advertising photogram) for the Goerz photochemical company”, 1925 by László Moholy-Nagy; 151: “Werbefotogramm (advertising photogram) for the Goerz photochemical company”, 1925 by László Moholy-Nagy; Right: 152: “K VII”, 1922 by László Moholy-Nagy; 153: “A XI”, 1923 by László Moholy-Nagy from Bauhaus 1919 – 1933: Workshops for Modernity by Barry Bergdoll, Leah Dickerman, Benjamin Buchloh, Brigid Doherty, Hal… Read on

Clockwise from top left: “Magpie” from the In Flight series, 2020 by Mark Harvey; Swatch of the Month 2021 Subscription from The School of Making; Graffiti Painted Tee from the Alabama Chanin Archives; Black Bugle Beads from The School of Making; The Keyhole Dress Kit in Baby Blue from The School of Making; “Structural Constellation” by Josef Albers via “Josef Albers’ Intimate Visual Relationship… Read on

From top left: Luna Rae Top in White Gold Palm; The Willie Top in Blue Slate; Waffle Caftan in Natural; Lightweight Organic Cotton Face Mask in Black; Left and bottom right: Lee Dress, 2017; Top right: Chandler Jacket and Austin Skirt, 2018 by Natalie Chanin for Alabama Chanin from The Women who Revolutionized Fashion: 250… Read on

From top left: “Shots from “Case Study House #8; Eames House”, 1949 by Charles and Ray Eames from Eames: Beautiful Details, 2012 by Eames Demetrios and Charles Eames, edited by Gloria Flower and Steve Crist (pages 374–375); The Willie Top and Celia Florence Skirt from Alabama Chanin; “Embroidery Design”, 1885 by May Morris via the Victoria… Read on

“Everything that slows us down and forces patience, everything that sets us back into the slow circles of nature, is a help. Gardening is an instrument of grace.” ― May Sarton  August 8th was National Sneak Some Zucchini onto Your Neighbor’s Porch Day. And if you are like us, you still have few zucchinis left from your… Read on

Left: “Ruth Asawa amid her works”, 1954. Photographed by Nat Farbman/Time & Life Pictures via New York Times; right: “Untitled (S.270)”, 1954–1958 by Ruth Asawa via Whitney Museum of American Art  NOTE: At the same time we were working on this post, a New York Times article titled “The Japanese-American Sculptor Who, Despite Persecution, Made Her Mark” published on July 20,2020. It’s wonderful and timely… Read on

Left to right:  Untitled (Music Series), Untitled (Blue), and Jonquils, all by Alma Thomas, showcase her unique style—a deep understanding of color theory, finding inspiration in the natural world, and a developing abstract style.    Alma Thomas, born in 1891 in Columbus, Georgia, was an art teacher, and alumni of Howard and Columbia Universities. In the 1960s, and after… Read on

As we spend more time indoors, social distancing, and getting through this time spent #TogetherApart, we can’t think of a better way to fill the time, keep our hands busy, and allow our minds a bit of rest, than making.   2020 is The Year of Color at The School of Making, and we have been exploring new… Read on

Right now, as best we can, we are looking for ways to ease anxiety. Scientific research shows the positive and calming effects that sewing, cooking, and hands-on making has on the brain. The meditative action of sewing reduces stress. It increases dopamine, the happiness hormone; it requires creativity—which improves the brain’s ability to grow new… Read on

“I found I could say things with colors and shapes that I couldn’t say any other way – things I had no words for.” — Georgia O’Keeffe Our lives are full of and, in many ways, dictated by color. We express ourselves with the color of our hair and clothing. The vibe of our home… Read on

Most of us don’t really think about color, or what color is or how it’s made, and yet our entire day is filled with too many shades to count or record. In Victoria Finlay’s 2002 book, Color: A Natural History of the Palette, she writes, “the first challenge in writing about colors is that they… Read on

As the first week at Penland progressed to week two, the piles of books on our studio meeting table (and the individual studio tables) have grown substantially. We have spoken of so many things and explored SO many ideas.  Here are a few of the volumes that have made their way into our conversations:

I have had a love for the Amish people and art since I was a little girl growing up in Alabama. In fact, there is a small Amish community just north of my town that has fascinated me my whole life.

“Untitled”, 1947 by Ruth Asawa at Black Mountain College; Keyhole Dress Kit from The School of Making; Left: “Group IX/UW, The Dove, No. 12”; Right: “Group IX/UW, The Dove, No. 13” from The SUW/UW Series, 1915 by Hilma af Klint. Photograph from Hilma af Klint: Paintings for the Future, 2018 by Tracey Baskhoff for The… Read on

Image: Black Mountain College via OurState.com  “But most important to one’s own growth is to see oneself leave the safe ground of accepted conventions and to find oneself alone and self-dependent. It is an adventure which can permeate one’s whole being. Self-confidence can grow. And a longing for excitement can be satisfied without external means,… Read on

Though the actual German Bauhaus school technically existed for a mere 14 years, its legacy undoubtedly continues to expand and flourish. The school, active during the years of the Weimar Republic, sought to unite artists of all disciplines in a utopian goal of designing a new world. Until broken up by the Nazis in 1933,… Read on

In October of 2014, and as an extension of our Makeshift initiative, we began a new series of events and conversations called On Design. This series explores art, design, makers, relationships, and how those who create can elevate craft in general. Natalie hosted our inaugural event, which was an exploration of the school of Bauhaus… Read on

We’ve written before about the importance of color – from a cultural standpoint and a design perspective. At Alabama Chanin, we tend to embrace more muted tones for our design color palette. Muted colors have a reduced intensity, so any saturated color stands out in comparison.  We are drawn toward natural tones and some of… Read on