Some people wear their heart on their sleeve. Melbourne-based weaver Tammy Kanat pours hers into her woven wall art. "My work is very connected to my soul and my heart, and whatever I'm feeling and going through will impact on what I create," says the mother of three. No doubt it's the emotional honesty embodied in her works that has contributed to her phenomenal success. Tammy has followers and commissions from Perth to Paris and Portugal, thanks to Instagram, and the accolades keep coming for her mesmerising, abstract weavings.
Large and textural, Tammy's works are crafted from mixed yarns in a range of shapes, but her signature statements are circular and ovoid works resembling massive eyes or spiralling vortices. "Some people say they look like slices of agate or desert rock," says Tammy. "People see so many different things." And what does Tammy herself make of them? "There's a joy to them," she says. "They're organic and soft, and lift my spirits."
A former jewellery designer, Tammy began weaving in 2011 when she was seeking a feature artwork for her home; she couldn't find what she was looking for, so she made her own. Quickly hooked, she attended classes at Melbourne's Australian Tapestry workshop. "Traditional tapestry is all about perfection. I took that knowledge and began playing with it. I made some mistakes, but I liked my mistakes. I find the imperfections beautiful, and they give the work personality."
Some of Tammy's works feature bold, riotous swirls in jewel-like colours, others are in muted, earthy tones. "I love rainbow colours, but then there's another part of me that is very connected to nature and loves earthy and natural tones," she says. Unifying all the pieces is Tammy's deep love of fibre and fabric. She works with all types of wool (merino, alpaca and mohair, ultra fine and super chunky), linen, silk and even hessian. "I love yarn. I love the feeling of it and the way it twists and turns in my hands as I work with it," she says. "Weaving centres me. It's my form of meditation." Tammy's latest venture is a collection of wool and silk rugs, her second collaboration with Cadrys, launched in June at the Denfair design show.
