INTERMOUNTAIN WEAVERS CONFERENCE A CONFERENCE FOR FIBER ARTISTS
THE INTERMOUNTAIN WEAVERS’ CONFERENCE
And Why I Love Attending
Pamela Bliss
The Intermountain Weavers’ Conference, held every other year in Durango, Colorado, is a nationally known fiber arts conference that attracts attendees from across the country. Held on the beautiful Fort Lewis Campus in southern Colorado, the four-day gathering celebrates all the fiber arts, including knitting, spinning, weaving, felting, embellishing, dyeing and more. I look forward to every conference.
The next one will be July 27-30, 2017. It is a four-day event and many of the workshops are three days in duration. I have always liked the depth of study that a three-day experience provides. One-day workshops are also offered. This format allows a flexible mix-and-match approach as attendees can chose to attend one, two, or three different workshops. Visit www.intermountainweavers.org for a full list.
I always stay in a dorm on campus. The rate is very reasonable and some units have kitchens so I can make my own breakfast or organize a mini potluck dinner with friends. And while the cafeteria does not provide fine dining, the chef always supplies fresh salads and a variety of reasonably good entrees for us. You can, of course, stay in a local hotel and eat off-campus.
Inside or outside the classroom, inspiration for the fiber artist is everywhere. Besides the workshops, there is an opening convocation with a featured speaker, this time silk expert Karen Selk. There is a fashion show of members’ creations and a raffle of gift baskets. The vendor hall is a great way to see (and purchase!) a variety of fiber art specialty items that are conveniently all in one place. For creative inspiration I visit the non-juried exhibit featuring members’ work, another featuring teachers’ submissions, and a tapestry exhibit. There is also time built into the schedule for visiting other workshops – a feature I very much appreciate, as I am perpetually curious about other fiber arts.
Personally, I love being with other fiber artists for four days – people who understand my passion and support it! I love the deer that live on campus and the occasional refreshing rains that visit the mesa. I appreciate the size of the conference – not overwhelmingly huge, but big enough to attract major teaching talent.
And the IWC is a home-grown product – a non-profit organization made up of representatives from Arizona, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico and Utah. I urge you to give it a try and hope you love it too!
Registration begins February 1, 2017. Many classes fill early, so be sure to register as soon as possible. See you in Durango!
