MEET LMRMLMRM (“loom room”) is a project space fostering opportunities for art-making, research, and community programming around digital weaving. Based in Chicago, LMRM is currently one of few places in the world offering public access to a TC2 digital jacquard loom and the only one in the U.S. with an open studio model: no residency application, and no university enrollment.
Through rental equipment, workshops, events, and collaborations, LMRM strives to emphasize weaving as a contemporary art practice.
QUICK FACTS
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We offer a pay-per-use model for our looms, where renters can request rental periods that are bespoke to their individual needs and financial capabilities.
Typically, digital weaving is only available where the looms are: in universities and private studios. LMRM has changed this for a public audience in Chicago.We put opportunities for research, experimentation, and production back in the hands of individual artists, who engage with LMRM at their own pace and largely on their own terms. We intentionally have no jury or application process for rentals or workshops. An open studio model allows us to provide incremental access to these tools, so users can engage with highly coveted and cutting-edge technology without huge investments of time, money, or physical labor.
Check out “What to Expect” during an open studio rental!
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TC2 digital jacquard loom 4W
TC2 digital jacquard loom 2W
Norwood Floor Loom
See our page on loom rental information for full list of available equipment and pricing.
This is my first time weaving at LMRM - what would you recommend is a good amount to request for?
Most first-time renters book 4 sessions to acclimate to our looms, test their files, and comfortably weave 1-2 fully formed ideas in that time. If you have the flexibility of time, we strongly encourage scheduling 1 session on your first day, where you can dedicate the first four hours of your rental period toward sampling and acclimating. Many renters enjoy scheduling their sessions in a 1:2:1 ratio to give them time to digest ideas and edit their files or take longer breaks between hours of weaving.
Generally:
2-3 sessions are ideal for just sampling and testing new structures and portions of designed files.
4-6 sessions are great for sampling + 1-2 fully formed thoughts/pieces.
6-10 sessions are necessary for 3 fully formed ideas with sampling and new file design time. -
Through various workshops, artist talks, and events, LMRM is proud to present the work and research of creative thinkers pushing the field of contemporary weaving and textile art.
See our program archive here.
Get notified of upcoming programs via our mailing list. Sign up here!
Get to know LMRM at a glance.
THE PEOPLE
LMRM was founded by visual artist Hope Wang in 2020. Since then, LMRM expanded to include creative administrator Murat Ahmed as Co-Director. Between their shared passion for alternative art economies and maker spaces, Hope and Murat are committed to building a studio culture organized around experimentation, cross-pollination, and slowness.
VISIONWeaving has always required some of the most specialized equipment and processes in human history. LMRM utilizes access—specifically, lack of access—as a tool to explore how we can share knowledge and invest in each other. Our programs grow at the pace of our relationships, shaped by every person who engages with us through their questions, ideas, and excitement for the technology.
Film: Daniel Kwon
In many ways, weaving on a digital jacquard loom as a contemporary art practice is an emergent new discipline. It's slippery to define, and it exists in the cross sections of many other disciplines, such as photography, painting, sculpture, and performance. An open studio model is an exciting access model for us because it allows us to be nimble in our responses to what our weavers use this loom for, as they are the ones who are defining what they do with access. Rather than assigning a specific way to engage with tools through the artist residency model, we hope our studio model can serve as an open forum for what people of varying disciplinary backgrounds might envision for the medium and its artistic potential.
“We believe makers are the experts of their own practice, and that artists need to explore without justifying their ideas as exceptional or asking permission from outsiders.”
Hope Wang • Founder & Co-Director
Get in touch
Contact
lmrmchicago@gmail.com
Location and Hours
2003 W Fulton St, #215
Chicago, IL 60612
By appointment only.
Located in the Near West Side of Chicago, LMRM is a close walk from the Damen CTA Green Line Station or off of the #50 CTA Bus Route. Street parking is free on Fulton St.
See our welcome page for more details on how to enter our building.