brenda Fairweather has found that, rather than focusing on just one medium, she prefers to draw from techniques in both basketry and ceramics. Whether weaving or working with clay, she loves artwork that can be created with her hands and reflects her love of nature. Likewise, she enjoys the variety of working in solitude or in an atmosphere with others. To brenda, it is about the process, not just the end result. “It’s not about producing,” she says. “It’s about creating. There’s a difference.”
ON WEAVING
Marketing her weaving under the name d’vine baskets by brenda, brenda creates her baskets and handles out of wild grapevines from the Shenandoah Valley, some of which are spotted by her friends during excursions in the mountains. “I have friends that call and say, ‘brenda, there’s a grapevine – come get it,'” she laughs. brenda prefers using grapevines as she feels they lend an “organic, natural feel and look” to her baskets, her favorite of which use ribbed designs. “The technique for weaving is pretty basic; it’s just a matter of developing your own style,” she remarks.
ON CLAY
brenda first discovered her love of working with clay while taking pottery classes. So inspired by the medium, she soon purchased her own equipment and set up a studio at home. As her interest grew, she began marketing her work as Hot Flash Pottery and developed a children’s event called Clay Play Day.