hand-weaving linen at weefgroep openluchtmuseum, netherlands open air museum, arnhem 

In early 2022, Roelof, one of the skilled weavers in training at Weefgroep Openluchtmuseum, wove 12 metres of linen textile for The Linen Project by hand using the linen yarn produced from the project’s 2019 flax fibre yield. The piece counts no less than 1600 linen threads and was woven without breakage; a testament to the skill and attention involved in handling the linen fibre and Roelof’s mastery on the hand-operated heddle loom. The purpose of Weefgroep Openluchtmuseum, the weavers workshop at the Netherlands Open Air museum, is twofold: supporting the craft in training the next generations of weavers, while sharing the craft with a wider audience as part of the museums’ public programme. Photographs courtesy of Willemien Ippel for The Linen Project and Weefgroep Openluchtmuseum.