Nineteen years of the Norwegian Textile Letter are a trove of information on a variety of textile techniques – particularly rye. Or is that rya? The Norwegian authors consistently use the official Norwegian spelling – rye – but Americans often substitute the version ending in ‘a.’ There have been articles on historical boat ryes, on contemporary ryes in Norway, articles about Textile Tour participants learning to weave ryes, analyses and drafts of ryes in the collection of the Vesterheim Norwegian-American Museum, and a report of a rye study group. All told, rye articles from Volumes 1-19 comprise 50 pages! They’ve been scanned individually and as a compiled document.
The compiled document:
Rye – Rya – Ryijy? A Compilation from the Norwegian Textile Letter, 1999-2013
Individual Articles:
“A Small Båtrya from Lofoten.” Janet Meany. Vol. 6, No. 2, February 2000.
“Weaving a Norwegian Style Båtrya. Sally Scott. Vol. 5, No. 4, August 1999.
“Nordnorsk Ryer.” Inger Anne Utvåg. Vo. 7, No. 3, May 2001.
“Båtrya.” Ellen Kjellmo. Part of “Viking Women’s Textiles: A Report of a Seminar at the Viking Museum at Borg in Lofoten.” Vol. 10, No. 3, May 2004.
“Ryas in Norway.” Helen Engalstad (translated by Loraine Leftwich and edited by Betty Johannesen). Vol. 11, No. 2, February 2005.
“New Rya Study Group Forming (an initial notice).” Vol. 12, no. 2, February 2006.
“Voss Ryer – Traditional Bedcover and Contemporary Art.” Marta Kløve Juuhl. Vol. 12, no. 3, May 2006.
“Excerpt from Båtrya i gammel og ny tid.” Ellen Kjellmo (translated by Lorraine Leftwich). Vol. 13, No. 1, November 2006.
“The Contemporary Rya Rug in America.” Marion T. Marzolf. Vol. 16, No. 2, February 2010.
“Textile Artist Laura Demuth.” Vol. 16, No. 2, February 2010.
“Visiting the Vesterheim Collection.” (First in a series) Jan Mostrom. Jan analyzed a rya in the Vesterheim collection and provided a weaving draft to reproduce it. Vol. 18, No. 2, February 2012. (Vesterheim description)
“Some Pieces from the Rya Study Group Exhibition at Vesterheim.” Vol. 18, No. 2, February 2012.
“Visiting the Vesterheim Collection.” (Second in a series.) Jan Mostrom. Jan analyzed a rya in the Vesterheim collection and provided a weaving draft to reproduce it. Vol. 18, no. 4, August 2012.
“Visiting the Vesterheim Collection.” (Third in a series.) Jan Mostrom. Jan analyzed a rya in the Vesterheim collection and provided a weaving draft to reproduce it. Vol. 19, No. 3, May 2013.
“Visiting the Vesterheim Collection.” (Fourth in a series) Jan Mostrom. Jan analyzed a rya in the Vesterheim collection and provided a weaving draft to reproduce it. Vo. 20, No. 1, November 2013. (Vesterheim record)
Robbie LaFleur