A Study of the Textile Art in its Relation to the Development of Form and Ornament | Page 7

an ancient work basket obtained at Ancon, Peru, and shown in Fig. 299. The surface features are in strong relief, giving a pronounced herring bone effect.
[Illustration: FIG. 299. Peruvian work basket of reeds, with strongly relieved ridges.]
Slight changes in the succession of parts enable the workman to produce a great variety of decorative patterns, an example of which is shown in Fig. 298. A good illustration is also seen in Fig. 286, and another piece, said to be of Seminole workmanship, is given in Fig. 300. These and similar relieved results are fruitful sources of primitive decorative motives. They are employed not only within the art itself, but in many other arts less liberally supplied with suggestions of embellishment.
[Illustration: FIG. 300. Effects produced by varying the order of intersection. Seminole work--1/8.]
Taking a second type of combination, we have a family of resultant patterns in the main distinguishable from the preceding.
[Illustration: FIG. 301. Surface effect in open twined combination.]
[Illustration: FIG. 302. Surface effect of twined, lattice combination in basketry of the Clallam Indians of Washington Territory--1/8.]
Fig. 301 illustrates the simplest form of what Dr. O.T. Mason has called the twined combination, a favorite one with many of our native tribes. The strands of the woof series are arranged in twos and in weaving are twisted half around at each intersection, inclosing the opposing fillets. The resulting open work has much the appearance of ordinary netting, and when of pliable materials and distended or strained over an earthen or gourd vessel the pattern exhibited is strikingly suggestive of decoration. The result of this combination upon a lattice foundation of rigid materials is well shown in the large basket presented in Fig. 302. Other variants of this type are given in the three succeeding figures.
[Illustration: FIG. 303. Surface effect in impacted work of twined combination.]
The result seen in Fig. 303 is obtained by impacting the horizontal or twined series of threads. The surface is nearly identical with that of the closely impacted example of the preceding type (Fig. 292). The peculiarities are more marked when colors are used. When the doubled and twisted series of strands are placed far apart and the opposing series are laid side by side a pleasing result is given, as shown in Fig. 304 and in the body of the conical basket illustrated in Fig. 307.
[Illustration: FIG. 304. Surface effect obtained by placing the warp strands close together and the woof cables far apart.]
[Illustration: FIG. 305. Surface effect obtained by crossing the warp series in open twined work.]
In Fig. 305 we have a peculiar diagonally crossed arrangement of the untwisted series of filaments, giving a lattice work effect.
[Illustration: FIG. 306. Decorative effects produced by variations in the radiate or warp series in an open work tray. Klamath work--1/4.]
Fig. 306 serves to show how readily this style of weaving lends itself to the production of decorative modification, especially in the direction of the concentric zonal arrangement so universal in vessel-making arts.
The examples given serve to indicate the unlimited decorative resources possessed by the art without employing any but legitimate constructive elements, and it will be seen that still wider results can be obtained by combining two or more varieties or styles of binding in the construction and the embellishment of a single object or in the same piece of fabric. A good, though very simple, illustration of this is shown in the tray or mat presented in Fig. 286. In this case a border, varying from the center portion in appearance, is obtained by changing one series of the filaments from a multiple to a single arrangement.
[Illustration: FIG. 307. Conical basket of the Klamath Indians of Oregon, showing peculiar twined effect and an open work border--1/8.]
The conical basket shown in Fig. 307 serves to illustrate the same point. In this case a rudely worked, though effective, border is secured by changing the angle of the upright series near the top and combining them by plaiting, and in such a way as to leave a border of open work.
Now the two types of construction, the interlaced and the twined, some primitive phases of which have been reviewed and illustrated, as they are carried forward in the technical progress of the art, exhibit many new features of combination and resultant surface character, but the elaboration is in all cases along lines peculiar to these types of weaving.
Other types of combination of web and woof, all tapestry, and all braiding, netting, knitting, crochet, and needle work exhibit characters peculiar to themselves, developing distinct groups of relieved results; yet all are analogous in principle to those already illustrated and unite in carrying forward the same great geometric system of combination.
Reticulated work.--A few paragraphs may be added here in regard to reticulated fabrics of all classes of combination, as they exhibit more than usually