Equinox – Woven at the Mill
19.01.2017 § Leave a comment
I recently visited the mill where Brentano’s pattern Equinox is woven. Accompanying me during the visit was Senior Designer Aaron Mensik and National Sales Manager Jeff Frank. Located in a rural city of New Jersey, it was drizzling and damp when we arrived at the entrance of the warehouse style building. At the opposite side of the doors – a forest stood tall – damp with sparse yellow and orange leaves still dangling on branches. The fall color of the foliage brightened the grey sky and the metal siding.
To much surprise, when we walked in a pleasant display of Brentano fabrics greeted us. We later found out that one employee in particular prepared the fabric display for our arrival. I very much appreciated the Mills effort to make us feel welcomed.
We first visited the Jacquard weaving room. Within the one room, approximately 60 looms were weaving at the same time. We could hardly hear our guide explaining the weaving procedures. We saw many beautiful fabrics being woven, including one of Brentano’s best sellers, Equinox. Equinox is woven on a very fine, dense, nylon warp. Fine for the purpose of color clarity , dense for the purpose of defined rendering, and nylon for performance level abrasion.
It was such a joy to see our fabric being woven on the loom. As you can tell from our facial expressions in the photos – pure happiness.
The trip was educational, so besides observing the fabrics on the loom, we toured all departments such as design, CAD for weaving, yarn control, winding, warping, final inspection of the goods, etc.
It was near 2:00 pm when we finished the tour and said our goodbyes. While we were waiting for our ride, I noticed in the vestibule window a beautiful pattern forming from the condensation. Maybe it will one day become a fabric pattern.
Equinox – Inspirations and Influences
19.11.2015 § Leave a comment
In the year 2008 I visited The Baccarat Museum in Paris, France. The museum was absolutely spectacular. Among the many crystals displayed inside, my attention gravitated towards an exhibit of exceptional glass bottles. Drawn to the evident cubist influence, each bottle was created with an intricate shape made from non-symmetrical facets.
After my visit, my mind was occupied with the idea of facets. I soon realized that my fixation began long ago. One particular recollection was about a contemporary ceramic artist I had met early in my career. His work consisted of modern tables created to look like folded paper. As a young, new entrepreneur, I was unable to afford the beautiful work of art I so desperately admired. I often find myself wondering what became of him and his work. My encounter with the ceramicist, among other experiences, collectively inspired my growing geometrical interest.
My original intention with Equinox was to create an asymmetrical tessellation of facets contradicted by the symmetrical repeat. My fascination with astronomy, stars, the Milky Way, and the indefiniteness of space paired with my curiosity with facets helped push my creative process for Equinox. The concept called for a textile with large repetitive facets surrounded by a star inspired design. Once the design was complete I was humbled by the success and overwhelming positive response. Moving forward into the next collection, I have been working on creating Equinox with a smaller repeat to offer a wide variety to designers.
Original Drawings and Inspirations
Woven-Words 