Linda Kennedy
Viola, Wisconsin
 

Linda Kennedy’s passion for weaving began in a chance stop at a weaving workshop and farm store in 2002, and her art has taken over her life ever since. 

Born and raised in Forest City, Iowa, she spent a year at Waldorf College there after high school graduation in 1969.  She minored in art, had always knitted and crocheted growing up, but had not expected to find herself a weaver.

Kennedy’s multi-faceted career has included work in day care, as a magistrate and acting coroner in the courts in Barrow, Alaska, and as a paralegal in Rochester, Minnesota, and now in Westby, Wisconsin.

When she and her husband, Ron Hein, married 13 years ago, they shared an interest in motorcycle travel and antiques, she in old trunks, he in  Hoosier-style kitchen cupboards.  They searched out, refinished, and exhibited and sold their pieces at antique shows.  Often in their searches, Kennedy says, they “looked, sounded and smelled like junk dealers” on their way home with a van full of their finds.  

Early in the 90s, while preparing to exhibit at an antique show, she created an oversized doll, Maggie Mae, to welcome patrons to their booth.  Miss Maggie continues to preside over Kennedy’s studio in the off-season and is a prominent part of her display at various art shows during the summer. “She started out as an attention getter and has remained my silent partner ever since,” Kennedy says.

In one exploration trip after recently moving to Wisconsin, Kennedy and her husband stopped by Avalanche Looms in Avalanche, Wisconsin. The charm of old-fashioned weaving caught her imagination and began what she calls her addiction to weaving. The couple’s frequent motorcycle trips often encounter nature scenes that inspire her designs.

In weaving, Kennedy finds peace, solitude and a creative outlet. She enjoys working with colors, experimenting with design and technique, and is always on the hunt for different fabrics and textures with which to work. Self-taught, she started on a used loom which she and her husband bought in pieces and reconstructed. 

She has attended classes at the Duluth Art Institute, Avalanche Looms, Lakeside Fibers in Madison, and Sievers School of Fiber Arts on Washington Island.  She works on four different looms from her bright and spacious studio in the lower level of an off-grid log cabin near Viola, Wisconsin, which she and her husband have been building since 2001. The rolling hills and dramatic vistas inspire much of her work.

She has exhibited her art at shops and art fairs across Wisconsin, including locally at the Spring Green Art Fair and the Driftless Area Art Festival in Crawford County. She offers one-of-a-kind rugs in cotton, Icelandic wool and keepsake fabrics, as well as chenille scarves, purses and other hand woven items.

“All rugs are machine washable,” says her web site. “To dry, rugs should be hung or laid flat to preserve the integrity of the warp threads.” 

She has also created commissioned pieces, such as a recently completed set of seven rugs for a newly remodeled home in Viroqua.  In commissioned work, Kennedy says, the challenge is to match her vision with the wants and desires of the customer.

Other commissioned works include keepsake rugs, which she describes as “a link between the past and future, woven of your own fabrics: grandpa’s bib overalls, curtains from your first home, baby clothing, that favorite dress, even clothing donated by classmates for a retiring teacher.  Keepsakes rugs are visual representations of how families are bound together- not one person or piece of fabric is more important than the other.”

www.elkrunhandwovens.com
linda@elkrunhandwovens.com

Interview by Sharon Murphy
Photos courtesy of Linda Kennedy