MEET LMRMLMRM (“loom room”) is a project space, center for community resources, and gathering place which serves the fiber and textile communities of 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 residencies, and no university enrollment.
Through rental equipment, workshops, events, and collaborations, LMRM strives to emphasize weaving as a contemporary art practice.
QUICK FACTS-
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. -
TC2 digital jacquard loom (4-wide)
TC2 digital jacquard loom (2-wide)Norwood Floor Loom (8-harness)
See our page on loom rental information for full list of available equipment and pricing.
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This is a shoes-off studio. We ask that you remove your shoes when visiting the studio, and welcome you to bring your own indoor footwear. Alternatively, we also provide shoe coverings and slippers.
Rental arrangements are for experienced weavers who can work independently on the looms. We are available for troubleshooting the equipment if anything comes up. We reserve the right to direct you to a training lesson at your own cost if we feel your experience level requires extra assistance.
Read full policies here.
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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.
The best way to stay updated on these events is 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 open 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