Anni Albers exhibition

Anni Albers was one of the most important textile artists of the 20^th century. From her early days studying at the Bauhaus, to her printmaking in later life, Albers created exciting new works, pushed boundaries and evaluated how we look at objects around us. As the first ever weaver to have a solo exhibition at MoMA, Albers also helped to raise the presence of textiles as art. Last month I visited the Dovecot gallery in Edinburgh to see the 'Inspired by: the legacy of Anni Albers' exhibition. This exhibition itself contains two separate entities. Firstly an introduction to the work of Anni Albers. An insight in to her methods of working, examples of her textiles, prints and jewellery. The samples and sketches fascinated me, a real peek into her starting blocks for creating.

The second room, looked at how contemporary textile artists are inspired by Albers, confirming her lasting legacy as an innovative and inspiring artist. There was an amazing triaxal weave by Laura Thomas. The complementary colours of yellow and aubergine draw you to this piece and it reminded me of quilted tumbling blocks or entralac knitting.
The bold colours of the Wallace Sewell cloth jump out, it is as if Paul Smith and tartan have collided.
Whilst an installation called Sanctums by Fiona Mathison distorts the senses. A forest of vertical poles with horizontal wrappings fill a space, whilst boxes on the wall contain small tapestries and mirrors.
As I looked closer to the tapestries, I found myself feeling as if I was a contained within this special place. And, inspiringly, it made me want to find the time to weave.