In 2009 Dr. Dusenbury travelled through the deserts of Xinjiang in Northwest China to the vibrant trading city of Kashgar, before driving over the Torugart Pass in the Tien Shan mountains to the high summer pastures of Kyrgystan to stay in a herder’s yurt for several days. Then through Kyrgystan – looking at felt making- to the markets of Osh in the Fergana Valley on the border of Uzbekistan. The town of Osh had just celebrated its 3000-year anniversary. In the Fergana Valley she lodged with the weaver Fazlitdin Dadajanov and his family in Margilan while investigating ikat weaving and silk rearing in more detail than she had been able to do previously. She was accompanied by three colleagues who shared expertise and insights and helped by many local craftspeople and specialists. This journey complemented two previous trips, one in 2002 to look at archaeological textiles in Xinjiang and the second, in 2008, to Uzbekistan to look at ikat weaving and other textile production. Dr. Dusenbury’s lecture will relate her experience with textile production in central Asia to the works on display in Reeds & Wool: Patterned Screens of Central Asia.

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