Interview Series: Ben Jones

For the final installment of our Interview Series for this semester, we have an interview with Ben Jones, a weaver in the graduate program of Textile Design. Ben is a force of energy in the studio and his absence will be noticeable after he graduates this month but we are so excited to see where he goes from here.  Be sure to check out Ben and all of our graduates' thesis show at the Paley Design Center on Dec 13 from 4-7pm. Enjoy!

How did you choose Textile Design as a major?

I was interested in silk-screen printing as an art form. I wanted to gain more technical skills in printing on fabrics using newer technologies. When I took a class in weaving, I knew that I wanted to weave all the time, so I made that my major. Weaving also allows me to dabble in making images (like prints), but also textures, and forms with really cool machinery and technology.

When did you learn to knit/weave/print, and who taught you?

I learned how to silk-screen print at the Fabric Workshop and Museum in 2016. The apprenticeship mentors taught me how to do silk-screen printing on like 50 yards of fabric. I learned how to weave in Weave Design 1 with the amazing teacher here, Bridget Foster.

Do you have a background in design or textiles?

I have a background in a “fine” art studio practice, which included painting, drawing, printmaking, and sculpture.

Who are your design heroes?

Probably Rei Kawakubo from Comme Des Garcons, or Wolfgang Tillmans (an amazing German photographer), or Anni Albers for uncovering the visual language of weaving, there are too many…

Tell us about the colors, landscapes, artists, or architecture that inspire your design work.

Rosy colors have been a theme in my work for about a year now. Science Fiction plant life, queer culture, house music, physics, early morning light, paradigm shifts, and urban life are just a few of the things that inspire me. Like the previous question, there are too many to list them all, so many!

Which design from your portfolio are you most proud of, or is most special to you?

I don’t have a single design that I am most proud of. There’s one weaving that has sort of been cemented as “the best,” but that’s likely because it was the first in the series I am working on. The weaving I am talking about opened a lot of doors for new weavings, so it’s special to me.

Are there any techniques in textile design you’d like to explore further?

Multi-layer cloth, open reed, weaving with one warp on multiple looms simultaneously, knitting, felting, devoree, tatting, weaving trims, moire with calendaring, macrame, braiding, ikat, resist dyeing, dye-sub printing, velvet weaving, so many things to try...

What do you have on your knitting machine/loom/sketchbook today?

I have a tubular double cloth on my loom today with different weave structures throughout that make the tube function as a “sock” or “shoe” concept. The idea is to show potential employers how weaving structures/weaving technology can be utilized in mass manufacturing to easily make shoes in one step, without cutting, sewing, etc...

What is your favorite thing to do to distract yourself from school stress?

I make sure to go hangout/chillout with my boyfriend and play video games with him every night for about an hour. 

What is your favorite class, and why?

Studio, because it’s an amazing environment and structure to discover yourself as a designer. It took a while to understand that it was up to me, though.

What advice would you give an incoming student into the Textile Design department?

Be yourself and work harder than you think you should.

What surprised you the most about Textile Design at Philau/Jefferson?

How eager the faculty is to help you make your dreams come true. They really just want to make you your best self.

What is your favorite thing about Textile Design?

I don’t have one favorite thing about Textile Design. I love that yarn is a line and is organized into a dimensional pattern. I just love that. I also LOVE the people in textiles, both in industry and school. I also love that textile design is a very powerful industry/trade, and no one understands it.

To see more of Ben's work, you can visit his website, Studio Ben Jones, or follow him on Instagram.

Interview Series: Emily Reppert

Next up in our Student Interview Series is Emily Reppert. Emily is a weaver with a background in print design. Hear her tell her design story in her own words. She'll be graduating this December with her Master's of Science in Textile Design. 

Science has always been at the root of what has inspired my art as well as design. In the past, I was attracted to the “rule breaking” theories of quantum mechanics and groundbreaking processes like CRISPR gene editing. I have also been inspired by the oddities of nature born from the lack of light and resources in the depths of the ocean. More recently I began to reflect on why I keep returning to science as a subject. As defined, science is a process which allows for better understanding of the environment that surrounds us through the use of a clear structure. We rely on science as a given, a truth. However, science as we understand it today, did not always exist. Alchemy was the precursor to science and was known as an art form. These topics are scientific in theme, but have an underlying intrigue that is more akin to the mystical and philosophical. Taking this into consideration I have shifted my current focus to look at the scientific process as a whole and specifically the precursor to science, alchemy.I interpret these concepts through the use of jacquards and dobby wovens incorporating techniques such as pile, cut floats, and deflected picks. I also experiment with materiality by utilizing elastomeric and unusual materials including metal, pipe cleaners, and latex.

 How did you choose Textile Design as a major?

I was interested in learning how to take print artwork and transform it into a woven textile. Jefferson was one of the only schools I found that had hands-on learning with not only Jacquard programs such as EAT and Pointcarre, but also the opportunity to weave on multiple industry looms on-site. Overall I felt the M.S in Textile Design program provided the technical and creative skills I would need to succeed in the industry.

 Do you have a background in design or textiles?

I have a BFA in Crafts with a focus in Fibers and an Art History Minor from Tyler School of Art of Temple University. I had also worked as a CAD/Print designer for Iron Mountains LLC for 7 years prior to attending Jefferson’s M.S. Textile Design program.

Tell us about the colours, landscapes, artists, or architecture that inspire your design work.

In the past, I have found color inspiration from unusual sources such as bacterial cultures, creatures that arise from the depths of the ocean, and tiny sea slugs called nudibranchs. I have also been drawn to the subtle and deep brilliance of colors that occur in low light situations after seeing the fantastic exhibition, Dark, at MASS MoCA. More recently, I have been looking at works by the artist Alexandar Calder and his use of motion and play in The Circus (1927).

What is your favourite book of all time?

 A Wrinkle in Time by Madeleine L'Engle. I read it in the fourth grade, and it was the first time a book really got my imagination going. The book also involved the concept of time travel through the 5^th dimension beyond that of time, the 4^th dimension. Science continues to be a source of inspiration for my designs to this day.

Which design from your portfolio are you most proud of, or is most special to you?

I had the opportunity to collaborate with a fashion design student, Tommy Heidebrecht, and create a custom textile for his senior collection. What we developed together was beyond what either of us could have come up with on our own. The textiles themselves were two mirrored 60” engineered jacquards for the pants and a wool crepe double cloth fabric created for the top. His collection was chosen to walk at NYFW, and I had the opportunity to go and witness it first-hand. It was amazing!

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What would you like to be doing in 5 years?

I would love to be working as a fabric or rug designer for home textiles. More specifically, my dream is to be able to create the technical files for textiles that are made right here in the United States. The number of textile manufacturing mills remaining in the U.S are small, but they exist! 

What is your favorite thing to do to distract yourself from school stress?

I like to escape to the Wissahickon Valley Park trails! Just a few feet from school is a whole network of dirt and gravel trails in the woods surrounding Wissahickon Creek. A walk is nice, but to be able to hike deep in the woods is stress relief on a whole other level.

Interview Series: Jiyoung Park

At Jefferson University, we have a wealth of student-led creativity and innovation. Add to that a strong sense of design, fundamental knowledge of textile structures, and an astute understanding of color, and you've got a typical Textile Design student. We will be periodically using this space to highlight students work, progress, and achievement. The first in our Interview Series is Jiyoung Park, a grad student focusing on weaving. She'll be graduating this December, so make sure to see her graduate show on Dec 13th, 2019 at the Paley Design Center.

How did you choose Textile Design as a major?

My family, all majored in textiles, had a huge influence on me to choose a textile design major. As I grew up, I was always surrounded by textile art at home and played with yarns. So, unconsciously, textiles have been my favorite material. This got me into a textile design program in my undergraduate. Thanks to my professor who graduated from Philau/Jefferson University about 20 years ago, he strongly supported me studying abroad this university. This is how I got to know our textile program in Philau/Jefferson, and I am really enjoying studying here.

Who are your design heroes?

My design hero is Iris Van Herpen, a Dutch fashion designer. I am really interested in materiality, and she is well known for her use of materiality, using high-technology. When I see her fashion, it’s like just art pieces. I always keep watching her new collection.

Tell us about the colors, landscapes, artists, or architecture that inspire your design work.

The fashion designer, Iris Van Herpen, has influenced my work. She is well known as one of the most talented and forward-thinking creators. I like her trying to push the boundaries of fashion design. The way she uses materials, both traditional and the most radical materials with high technology gives me a lot of inspiration. I always think the innovation stems from combining creativity and new technology with new material.

What is your favorite class, and why?

My favorite class was weave tech 2. The class is really technical, all about science and math base. In that class, we analyze woven samples and figure out structures. Also, we are taught how to calculate a precise number of the warp and filling yarn with different yarn size and its properties and finishing. I think every technology classes, Weave, Knit, Print Technology 1 & 2 are outstanding courses in Jefferson because not many schools teach this really technical work this deeply. I think it’s because of the long textile history in our school. Even the name of our degree is a Master of Science in Textile Design.

What advice would you give an incoming student into the Textile Design department?

I would say our textile program is really based on industrial textile, not textile art. Our program is good for students who want to get into the industry. For example, for a master’s program, many students have a background of fine art. They already have an artistic perspective which is very important for creativity, and they come to our program to learn technical aspect to translate and visualize their creativity onto textiles. Thus, what I want to say for an incoming student is that you should think about what you want to be first, and understand our university’s characteristic to see that’s fit into your final goal.

What surprised you the most about Textile Design at Philau/Jefferson?

I was surprised by the textile equipment Philau/Jefferson have. To be specific in weaving, we have several floor-looms and an AVL loom, many computer-aided 24harness dobby looms and 3 different industrial jacquard looms, which is the main reason to come into this program. Before coming into this university, I looked into lots of university’s program to see their equipment, but not many universities have this many jacquard machines. This really matters to me. Because I think having knowledge of different equipment will give me better chance to get a job.

Jiyoung's Design Statement:

Reflection and Refraction of Light Light is a magician which creates beauty in the world and has the power to evoke emotions.

Light always exists, but we cannot see light itself. The existence of light can be observed only when the phenomenon of reflection and refraction occurs on an object. This occurrence not only helps people see the world, but also it creates randomly intriguing visual beauty around us such as rainbows on the sky, water caustics, distorted shadow in a glass cup, and shimmering light at the darkness. but it usually overlooked if you are not aware of it.
         In addition, for a very long time, humans have felt an emotional response to the phenomenon of light. Since the Middle Ages, it was the time when the notion of light has extended from a supplementary role in which light only illuminates objects to perceive a phenomenon to religious ideas in which people understood light as the presence of God or the Word of God. For example, darkness is considered ominous, while lightness is auspicious.
This collection is inspired by both visual and emotional aspects of the phenomenon of reflection and refraction of light through a personal perspective. The visual inspiration started from a stay at home. Irregularly drawn shinny pattern was found on the wall created by the refraction of light, infusing through windowpanes. as well as, curious, mystical, and reminiscence emotion was evoked. Thus, both visual and emotion from the phenomenon was translated into woven textile collections.
The purpose of this thesis collection is to study emotional textiles with the concept of the phenomenon of light, by reminding viewers of the beauty that always exist around them, but easily overlooked due to busyness of everyday life, as well as by causing emotional engagement through the textiles.

You can see more of Jiyoung's work on her Instagram account. Follow her at @designmiso.