Everything a Body of Work, Becky Johnson

January 17–31, 2026

"Everything a Body of Work" is a retrospective exhibition showcasing a selection of the work that Becky Johnson created as a graduate student in textiles in the Visual Art department at the University of Kansas.

Exhibition Brochure (About the Artist)

Becky Johnson was a graduate student in Textiles at KU from 2023 to 2025. In her practice and her studies, she explored the deep history of human identity through natural materials, specializing in textiles and fibers. Her work with felted wool, weaving, and natural dyes investigated how our ancestors used materials to communicate meaning, drawing connections between early symbolic expression and contemporary feminist critiques. Inspired by “deep time,” her process engaged with the origins of symbols and bodily forms, disrupting patriarchal narratives through layered textures and hidden motifs. By transforming organic materials, Becky Johnson created bodies of artwork that felt both ancient and visceral.

A Weaving for a Friend, by Ashleigh Robek

It’s a weird feeling, entering someone’s studio without their knowledge or presence. I had visited Becky’s studio a few times before being asked to work in it, but this time it was different. In a space that was so full of color and energy, it was heavy and quiet. Yet, personally, it felt almost like a blessing. As I sat where she sat, looking at the loom in front of me and piecing together what she had planned for this work, I discovered that Becky had originally had a different idea. She had woven ten inches before officially starting this piece, playing with different colors and textures that don’t appear in this one. Becky had explored using a twill weave structure. She added raw wool into the sample and played with creating larger vertical floats within the structure of the cloth. Even the loom setup was unconventional. It is most common to place the most-used pedals in the center of the loom when connecting everything together. Becky didn’t do that; she put the most-used pedals on the left side of the loom. She made the loom uniquely hers and programmed it to her strengths and needs. What has been the most interesting part of finishing someone else’s weaving is understanding their process. Once realized, she had this weaving all planned out. On the wall of her school studio, a felted mockup of the imagery; at her desk, a doodle she made with colored pencils; and on top of the loom lay parchment paper, a life-size rendering of exactly what she planned, with yarns placed to mark their location within the weaving. I’m not sure what imagery others will see in this piece, but for me, I see a woman. Her arms are enveloping something, as if she were protecting it. This figure is larger than life; she is responsible for life itself. The piece is quintessential Becky. Natural colors for the horizontal and vertical threads, hand-painted warp, and supplemental organic linework sitting on top of a structural grid below. Becky had a clear vision, and it was a pleasure being able to finish it.

For Becky, by Cassandra Liuzzo

There it was—the loom. One couldn’t miss it. A huge wooden contraption in the middle of Becky’s home studio, with just enough space to walk around it on all four sides. Behind the loom, a shelf filled with cones of yarn. Above the loom, a hanging lamp—a cylindrical, woven jute shade whose warm yellow glow created an aura of pure coziness. I observed the place of things­—the shuttles and bobbins on the small table beside her weaving bench, the rolls of tracing paper stacked in the corner, the snips of yarn ends still sprinkling the carpet. This was Becky’s world. I had been asked to finish the weaving that she had started—an honor and a privilege. Before beginning to weave, I examined what she had done already. The weaving was long, with the end of the warp in sight. A wide plaid with chunky intersecting blocks of light neutrals, featuring different types of yarn—thick and thin, nubby and smooth—woven so loosely I wondered what would happen when I eventually cut it off the loom. I was reminded of the large weaving she had made for a group show we were in together last spring—I could tell this one was a continuation. Her commitment to iteration is so evident in her volume of work. Every artist has rules, and I wanted to understand Becky’s. To allow myself to weave, I also had to let go of the idea that I could do it exactly the way she would. Before it was my turn, our friend Meredith Smith had woven a few rows with white yarn. A demarcation line—before and after. I began by using the bobbins that were sitting on the side table. Becky had prepared these. Slowly at first, I sent the shuttle through the shed from one side of the loom to the other. Though I might not make all the same choices or be able to piece together exactly what she was intending, I could commit to every row, snip, and knot being made with presence and care. I am honored to have been trusted with this sacred task.

Weaving in Unison, by Merry Sun

A floor loom is a modular tool that can be programmed by its weaver to create patterns in the cloth construction. Each harness holds vertical warp threads, which can be lifted and lowered in rhythm to form horizontal passageways for the shuttle to cross through. By stepping on combinations of floor pedals, the yarn structure is variegated with the choreographed movement of each harness. Illuminated by a fixture from Becky’s home studio, the loom in this exhibition was transplanted from her graduate studio into the gallery’s heart. The weaving pattern given through the loom’s treadles was last laid by Becky and remains unchanged, holding in them the impression of her most recently imagined form. Throughout the exhibition, visitors are invited to retrace Becky’s wefts and steps, intertwining her residue threads with stories from family and friends into a collective tapestry. Participants may write memories and messages on strips of cloth to be included in the weaving. The thread pieces on her worktable behind the loom are remnants from her studio and may also be incorporated between the warp. Becky said that every human has a relationship with cloth, and her work is timeless in this matter. Here, it is draped with the weight of a sewn forest and presented in such mass. Through retellings of moments and repetitions of gestures, we weave in unison with and for Becky, stretching and assembling the shared histories with her cloth into our very present.

This collective weaving project was conceptualized alongside Becky’s former students, Maya Sabatini and Emily Bell, who together will lead a public weaving performance during the closing reception of Everything a Body of Work on Friday, January 30th, from 5 pm to 8 pm.