Posted by Pat Weiler on December 15, 1998 at 09:22:49:
There are numerous influences on the quality of a weaving, including: the age and experience of the weaver; local weaving traditions such as offset knotting; physical limitations such as bad eyesight, "carpet-tunnel syndrome"; external influences such as the weather, lighting, "hurried-ness"; and likely many more.
Pic 1:rural, visceral
Pic 2: urban, restrained
Pic 3: pile copy of a reverse soumak, could affect the outcome. The border elements are a pattern, left to right, not merely random variations on a theme, clues to a puzzle?
Pic 4: powerful/totemic medallion. Refined border. A mature weaving.
Pic 5/6: The lower minor guls were woven first, the second row was a "correction" in spacing. Remember, they did not have a "delete" function.
Pic 7: My favorite. Extemporaneous. Why were so many Kurd weavings "crude"? The offset knotting transitioning at the borders to regular knotting? Weaving tradition? Something "in the water"?
Pic 8: Yomud. nin-commercial, rudimentary
Pic 9: Kurd, commercial, copy of turkoman, no soul
Pic 10/11: Ikat chuvals. Similar concept but from differing family traditions/materials
Summary: Many "oops" in weaving are due to hurried weaving, harried weavers, no commercial or ritual need to refine the outcome and as suggested, poor skills.
Many of our collecting criteria are due to external influences (Best of Type mentality) rather than the effect the weaving has on us in and of itself.