Interweaving — Fiber and Clay

Volume Gallery announces Interweaving — Fiber and Clay, Terumi Saito's first solo exhibition with the gallery, opening April 10, 2026, from 5 to 8 p.m. Saito combines backstrap weavings toned in natural dyes with handbuilt ceramics to create highly original forms and wall works. Drawn to the intimate connection between body, time, and material that backstrap weaving requires, Saito has made it the foundation of her practice—one of the earliest weaving technologies, it has been practiced across Asia and the Americas for millennia. She sees weaving as a living language, evolving, yet deeply connected to its origins, and a form of reflection, each work a record of time and energy spent. Saito is inspired by both ancient handmade objects from around the world and the artists who have innovated within fiber art over the last century. Her work includes references to weaving from Japan's Yayoi period (ca. 300 BCE – 300 CE), ceramics made during Japan's Jōmon period (ca. 10,500 – 300 BCE), Peruvian ceramics and weaving, Shinto ritual objects, and the expansive woven sculpture of Modern and Contemporary textile art. In her pieces, materials arch and wrap around one another, delicate silk is woven against pronounced hemp rope, while hand-formed ceramic is intertwined with textile in dynamic conversation. With conscientious attention to composition and color, small moves like shifts in scale, gradations of hues, curving protrusions, and carefully chosen material contrasts have great impact. The result is formally compelling and warmly human in scale, honoring living traditions while interconnecting them in refreshing ways.