At an unexpected juncture in her life, artist Jordana Munk Martin turned to the legacy of her grandmother’s trove of textile books. Edith Wyle founded the Craft and Folk Art Museum in Los Angeles in 1973, curating unconventional exhibits and instilling a love of art in her family. Her granddaughter found inspiration and comfort in the books, then opened the library for other artists to explore.

That original collection is now the core of Tatter, a nonprofit organization named for soft, worn, well-used textiles. It includes the iconic Tatter Blue Library, an array of classes, a journal, and retail. “We’re really a conversation about cloth, housed in a cultural arts organization,” says Jordana.

Tatter’s educational offerings began with classes in stitching, adding online classes and presentations when in-person learning became unavailable. One longstanding subject is the World Embroidery Series, which has offered detailed instruction in dozens of stitches and introduction to the rich cultural origins.

The library invokes the cultural and spiritual connotations of the color blue. In an elegant dark blue–paneled space, the collection includes not only books but also drawers of buttons, a collection of swatches following the stitch patterns in Barbara Walker’s knitting treasuries, tools, and textiles. Tatter’s holdings now include treasured collections of 12 women: embroidered samplers, thimbles, darners, textiles, tools, and a luxurious assortment of fiber art books and periodicals. The Brooklyn Museum recently transferred 200 objects to Tatter, reflecting the organization’s deep and growing Brooklyn roots.

Like Tatter, our conversation combines cultural inquiry with human connection.

Links

Read Jordana’s description of the Tatter Blue Library at “The Building of a Library.”
Fina a list of Tatter’s online and in-person classes.
The third issue of Tatter’s journal, entitled Blue, is available online.
Read updates on the organization’s new home in Brooklyn’s Cultural District.

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