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Wednesday, September 23, 2020 @ 7:00 pm8:30 pm

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Fiber Farming: Growing Flax & Making Linen


The movement and conversation around local food and what we put in our bodies is well established and continuing to gain momentum. But what about the conversation around local textiles and what we put on our bodies?

Join Philadelphia textile artist Heidi Barr and Chester County farmer Emma Cunniff to learn about their collaborative 2020 pilot project at Kneehigh Farm: growing and harvesting flax for making fine linen. 

Topics covered will include the horticultural aspects of growing flax, from seed to harvest, as well as post-harvest processing into linen. We’ll also consider the cultural history of flax, note similar initiatives happening in other parts of the country, and discuss the potential to expand this work in the Mid-Atlantic region.

Speaker information

Heidi Barr is a Philadelphia-based artist working in textiles, costume design, and mixed media community-based installation art. Her passion for gardening and her attention to environmental issues inspired her to found and design “The Kitchen Garden Series,” a line of kitchen textiles made from reclaimed materials that are sold to support urban agriculture. Her inspiration in growing flax from seed to fabric is part of a larger vision for creating urban farm product diversification and developing local fibersheds. 

Emma Cunniff is the owner/operator of Kneehigh Farm, a women-run diversified vegetable CSA in Chester County, Pennsylvania. In addition to partnering with Heidi on the flax project in 2020, Emma is also in her second year of small-scale indigo production as she works to expand the role of small, sustainable farms beyond food and into fiber and dyes.

Questions?

Contact this event’s coordinator, Aaron de Long, by email at aaron@pasafarming.org or by phone at (814) 349-9856 x709.

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Fiber Farming: Growing Flax & Making Linen


Date: Wed, Wednesday, September 23, 2020

Time: 7:00 pm - 8:30 pm


Cost: Member | $5 Standard | $10