ative urge—pulled her from her work as a minister and led, eventually, to the loom. Sacred Text As a child in Louisville, Kentucky, Susan grew up in a world infused with head and heart—a world of academia, church, and scripture. Her mother was an atten- tive homemaker and accomplished seam- stress, “an artisan of very practical things,” Susan says, recalling the beautiful clothes and decorative items her mother lovingly made in her basement sewing room. Her father, a learned minister, pro- fessor, and the respected dean and provost at the Southern Baptist Theo- logical Seminary, captivated Susan with his masterful weaving together of the intellectual and spiritual. After college at Baylor University in Waco, Texas, she set off to find her own theological footing in preparation for the ministry, enrolling at the decidedly non-conservative Harvard Divinity School, where the study of world religions and rigorous feminist critiques were transforming religious studies. After earning her Master of Divinity degree in 1982, Susan became the first Baptist woman ordained in the state of Louisiana, where her family then lived. Seeking a denomination that was more welcoming to women, Susan also re- ceived full clerical standing in the United Church of Christ (UCC, the umbrella denomination for Congregational churches) and served a Congregational church in Maine, as chaplain at a psychiatric hospi- tal in San Francisco, and then at the Circular Congregational Church in Charleston. By all accounts, her gifts and talents were well-suited to the pulpit. “I think Susan may be the best preacher I’ve ever listened to,” says her former col- league and Circular Church senior pastor Bert Keller. Nonetheless, after 18 years in ministry, Susan felt drawn to follow an unknown thread—to move on. She left the church to explore new—and still undetermined—creative directions. “I loved being a minister, especially the work of interpreting sacred texts, delving into the ancient poetry and familiar Bibli- cal passages to discover fresh meaning to bring forth in sermons,” Susan explains. “The problem was the sacred texts I loved were written by men. That didn’t make them less valuable or beautiful to me, just woefully incomplete.” There MAY 2006 | 123 loom 1 , v: to appear indistinctly, come into view. loom 2 , n: a machine in which yarn or thread is woven into fabric by the crossing of vertical and horizontal threads (called respectively the warp and the weft). —New Shorter Oxford English Dictionary P rofiles don’t usually begin with def- initions, but this one is concerned with the meaning of words. It’s a story about weaving—specifically, about the way the two meanings of “loom” have found themselves interwoven in the life of textile artist Susan Hull Walker. Twelve years ago, a growing awareness of some- thing—an indistinct but compelling cre- 122 | CHARLESTON BY STEPHANIE HUNT • PHOTOGRAPHS BY LARRY MONTEITH A minister-turned-artist weaves together the spiritual and material the charleston profile • • ▼ Woman of the Cloth SUSAN HULL WALKER Tools of the Trade: Susan weaves intricately detailed tapestries utilizing numerous threads of various colors and textures strung from the wooden shuttle (above). A Woman’s Touch: Vibrant colors and interwoven textures are both key elements in Susan’s work. Throughout her home these elements are on display, both in her own work and in items she has collected from her travels around the world. Pillows, tapestries, and exquisite throws make it a warm, inviting place. • CP-Susan DESIGN:CP-Susan DESIGN 4/18/07 4:16 PM Page 1
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Transcript
ative urge—pulled her from her work as a
minister and led, eventually, to the loom.
Sacred TextAs a child in Louisville, Kentucky, Susan
grew up in a world infused with head
and heart—a world of academia, church,
and scripture. Her mother was an atten-
tive homemaker and accomplished seam-
stress, “an artisan of very practical
things,” Susan says, recalling the beautiful
clothes and decorative items her mother
lovingly made in her basement sewing
room. Her father, a learned minister, pro-
fessor, and the respected dean and
provost at the Southern Baptist Theo-
logical Seminary, captivated Susan with
his masterful weaving together of the
intellectual and spiritual. After college at
Baylor University in Waco, Texas, she set
off to find her own theological footing in
preparation for the ministry, enrolling at
the decidedly non-conservative Harvard
Divinity School, where the study of world
religions and rigorous feminist critiques
were transforming religious studies. After
earning her Master of Divinity degree in
1982, Susan became the first Baptist
woman ordained in the state of
Louisiana, where her family then lived.
Seeking a denomination that was more
welcoming to women, Susan also re-
ceived full clerical standing in the United
Church of Christ (UCC, the umbrella
denomination for Congregational churches)
and served a Congregational church in
Maine, as chaplain at a psychiatric hospi-
tal in San Francisco, and then at the
Circular Congregational Church in
Charleston. By all accounts, her gifts and
talents were well-suited to the pulpit. “I
think Susan may be the best preacher I’ve
ever listened to,” says her former col-
league and Circular Church senior pastor
Bert Keller. Nonetheless, after 18 years in
ministry, Susan felt drawn to follow an
unknown thread—to move on. She left
the church to explore new—and still
undetermined—creative directions.
“I loved being a minister, especially the
work of interpreting sacred texts, delving
into the ancient poetry and familiar Bibli-
cal passages to discover fresh meaning to
bring forth in sermons,” Susan explains.
“The problem was the sacred texts I
loved were written by men. That didn’t
make them less valuable or beautiful to
me, just woefully incomplete.” There
M A Y 2 0 0 6 | 123
loom1 , v: to appear indistinctly, come
into view.
loom2, n: a machine in which yarn or
thread is woven into fabric by the crossing
of vertical and horizontal threads (called
respectively the warp and the weft).
—New Shorter Oxford English Dictionary
Profiles don’t usually begin with def-
initions, but this one is concerned
with the meaning of words. It’s a
story about weaving—specifically, about
the way the two meanings of “loom” have
found themselves interwoven in the life of
textile artist Susan Hull Walker. Twelve
years ago, a growing awareness of some-
thing—an indistinct but compelling cre-
122 | C H A R L E S T O N
B Y S T E P H A N I E H U N T • P H O T O G R A P H S B Y L A R R Y M O N T E I T H
A minister-turned-artist weaves together the spiritual and material
the charleston profile
••
▼
Woman of the ClothS U S A N H U L L W A L K E R
Tools of the Trade: Susan weaves intricately detailed
tapestries utilizing numerous threads of various colors and
textures strung from the wooden shuttle (above).
A Woman’s Touch: Vibrant colors and interwoven textures are both key elements in Susan’s work. Throughout
her home these elements are on display, both in her own work and in items she has collected from her travels
around the world. Pillows, tapestries, and exquisite throws make it a warm, inviting place.
Function & Art: The color and design on this hand-
woven Guatemalan huipil identifies the village in which
it was made.
Foreign Exchange: Susan has traveled extensively, studying the textile-rich cultures of Central America and the Near East. In the mountain village of Santiago Atitlán,
Guatemala, she learned the age-old process of weaving on a backstrap loom (pictured) which involves stretching a loom tied to a tree; the weaver keeps the loom taut by
affixing it around her back while performing the weaving in her lap.
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