Heather Gordon's Black Duck Show

My Nosy Neighbor, 20" square, #3- and mixed cuts, new and recycled wool, hand-spun yarns and roving and Lopi on monk's cloth.  Designed and hooked by Heather Gorden Lunenburg, Nova Scotia, Canada, 2010.

From folk art to fancy stitches

When Nova Scotia's Heather Gordon was asked by The Black Duck gift boutique and art gallery in Lunenburg to present a one-woman rug hooking show, she seized the opportunity as a teachable moment. Her work hanging in a popular gallery in a popular town during a popular month (October) would offer Heather the prospect of educating a cross section of visitors who wouldn't know a rug that was hooked from one that was woven, braided, or broad-loomed.

Heather took up rug hooking in 1976, setting herself up, she recalled, with hook, wool, pattern, and hoop for a whopping $9.56. But then life interrupted. Experiencing her own Rip Van Winkle moment upon returning to the craft after 20 years, she noticed that the landscape—or rather, the "craftscape"—had radically changed, and she embraced the changes.

This article is from the September/October 2011 issue. For more information on our issues, check out our issues page.