This year I was selected to participate in MASS MoCA’s Assets for Artists Program, a platform for professional cultivation, networking and capital investment for new developments in the studio. With the help of a matched savings grant I am pursuing a new direction in my work: establishing a conceptual textile practice centered on handloom weaving with a large upright tapestry loom. Using natural fibers and hand techniques similar to those used by traditional weavers, I am learning to make large-scale, functional woolen textiles based on a body of drawings that I have been developing over the past 10 years. My first project, a janamaz (prayer carpet) for my son Hadi, is underway.