Tawney, Lenore

Tawney, Lenore (1925–  ) weaver; born in Lorain, Ohio. After studying sculpture, she began weaving in 1948. In 1957 she left Chicago for New York. She influenced a generation of American weavers with her nonfunctional hangings. Her 1950s work influenced by abstract expressionism gave way to figurative pieces with religious themes, then to sculptural shapes in the 1960s and then again in the 1970s to the exploration of new materials such as paper and feathers, and assemblage techniques. Her weavings for architectural commissions were often of monumental size.