A Call for Moss Tents!

Moss Eave Tent  

For an upcoming exhibition at the Grand Rapids Art Museum. Do you have a Moss Tent, in excellent condition, that you would be willing to loan to the museum for the show Michigan Modern?

Of course, if you live in Michigan that would be great, but we are looking for vintage tents from all over the county. Please email jane@chawezi.me or fill out the form on the contact page of this site.

And if you are in Michigan, or are planning a visit, don't miss the Michigan Modern symposium in June 14. Marilyn Moss will be participating. Details to follow!

Thanks.

Let the Book Talks, Signings and Receptions Begin!

Marilyn has been crazy busy introducing Bill Moss: Fabric Artist & Designer to our local Maine audience. There have been a number of receptions this past month and the book has been met with great enthusiasm. Stay tuned as we soon expand our horizons beyond the state border. But next up: a slideshow at the Center for Maine Contemporary Art in Rockport, Me on September 22 at 5PM.  

A lecture on Bill Moss at CMCA

 

15,000 Pounds of Books!

Moss Books Arrive  

Yes, at long last the books have arrived. It was one long journey from China, but they finally made safe and sound to Camden, Maine on a very rainy morning last week. We are thrilled with the way these beautiful books turned out. Let the packing and shipping begin!

 

The Books Are On Their Way

Bill Moss: Fabric Artist & Designer  

 

Yes, the books have been printed and are stunning! They are gradually making their way to Maine from across the ocean. We expect to receive them in early August and are most excited about all sorts of upcoming Moss events. Stay tuned!

 

The Bill Moss "Tent" Greenhouse

  The Bill Moss Tent Greenhouse

 

 

When we bought an old house in West Rockport in the earlier ‘70s, I started a large vegetable garden on the side of a slope facing south.  For the most part, it was successful, providing us and a few friends with fresh vegetables all summer. I soon learned that the short Maine season wasn’t going to bestow the needed sun and warmth for some of the produce I wanted, such as peanuts, celery, melons, and certain tomato varieties. So I asked Bill if he could make a greenhouse with the polypropylene material with which he had been experimenting. That was the rigid material he was using for his Polydome, a folding, portable disaster shelter. Instead he came up with a non-rigid polypropylene material that had solar qualities used in large produce-growing fields. And, of course, my greenhouse was a portable, folding, light-weight, easy-to-erect “tent” greenhouse that I could easily move around. He also made several small cloches for me to use on single plants that had zippers to open the “tent” for cooling as well as watering. Later, we tried to produce these for the garden market, but were told it was too expensive.

-Marilyn

Bill Moss, Rico Eastman & the Moss Omar Tent in Abu Dhabi

   

 

The Bill Moss Omar Tent

 

 

In the late ‘70s, when Bill Moss and Rico Eastman set up tents in Abu Dhabi, some Bedouins rode their horses in from their nomadic desert tent dwellings to look at the Moss tents. Bill called this particular tent, “Omar.” It was purchased by the Prince of Abu Dhabi for his falconry sport in the desert.

-Marilyn

Steve Discovers a Hidden Moss Outland Tent

  Steve's Moss Outland Tent

We just received this lovely message from Steve:

Hi Marilyn,

 I have been a Moss tent fan for a good long time. I have owned several and in fact I am writing you today after finding a tent hidden in my gear closet. I can't recall the model but it has been on many journeys with me and after pitching it again today with my 9 year old daughter it will make its way back into the rotation. I also currently own a Parawing and it is 15 plus years old and still going strong. 

I went searching for the model on line and came across your website. Nicely done by the way. 

When your book is ready so will I. 

I have access to a ton of gear as I am sales rep for a number of outdoor brands here in the Rockies. But quality like the Moss tents I have owned are far and few between. Thanks for kindling my fire regarding quality gear. Bill was clearly ahead of his time. 

Regards,

Steve

Thank you, Steve,

-Marilyn

 

Moss Fabric Design: The Wallpaper Effect on the Op 200 Tent

   

 

The wallpaper effect on the Moss Op 200

 

 

This old photo is of the Op 200 tent interior. The ornamental wall on the left was an experiment Bill assembled with a prototype, using a patterned fabric for an interior second skin sewn to one of the regular white panels. "A kind of wallpaper effect," Bill said. "And when it's sunny and bright outside, it will function like a stained-glass window." I didn't like this particular fabric and preferred just the white, with shadowed patterns forming from tree branches and the curved seam lines. "But some people like wall paper," he insisted. And he was right; some did.

-Marilyn

The Moss Space Articulator: Bringing Tension Fabric Technology Inside

Bill Moss Space Articulator  

 

In the late '70s, Bill brought his tension fabric technology inside.  He felt these curved shapes could enhance a boring ninety-degree-cornered room and also serve as relocatable dividers. These particular ones were prototypes of different fabrics. He installed them in our fabric passive solar studio, naming the design, "Space Articulators." Some were sold in offices and hair salons to provide attractive privacy between desks and wash basins. Also, he designed and installed "Space Articulators" in art galleries and museums.

-Marilyn

A Moss Canopy at the Eating Gallery, Camden, ME, late '70s.

  A Moss Tent canopy at the Eating Gallery in Camden,ME

 

While at Moss Inc, Debbie Brown designed this canopy for a Camden restaurant called "The Eating Gallery." (Currently, "Long Grain.") She painted the name and vines on the "valance" section. It served the purpose of blocking the sun in the first sitting area as well as attractive signage.

-Marilyn

The Moss Event Tent, Inspired by Bedouin Tent Design

   

Bill Moss Event Tent

(top photo: a model of the modular Moss Event Tent; lower left a photo of the Event Tent System; top lower right Hammond Castle, Gloucester, MA; bottom lower right the Event Tent used one evening along the shores of Maine for a nonprofit organization fundraising event)

The modular Event Tent, with a modified pole system that Bill Moss developed as a result of his travels to the middle-east. Prior to his exposure to Bedouin tents used in the desert by nomadic Arabs, he had designed his Event Tent with poles, erecting the tent into pointed peaks. He liked the Bedouin idea of a curved pole at the top, distributing the stress over a larger area and he incorporated it into his design.

The Event Tent provided a dramatic, versatile and spacious protected area for a wide variety of outdoor occasions including: conferences, business meetings, cultural events, fairs, shows, lectures, parties and receptions.

-Marilyn

Inspecting Moss Tents

   

mosstentinspectorA Moss Tents employee inspecting seams in a tent before shipment. Until we, the Moss Tent company, participated and engaged a Total Quality Management process, we inspected every tent before it was shipped. After this two-year learning experience, it wasn't necessary to inspect the finished tent. We learned how to put quality into the manufacturing process.

Marilyn

The Land Jib: Moss Fabric Sculpture & Architecture

Moss Land Jib sculpture and entrance gallery  

Bill was invited to show his fabric sculptures at a number of galleries. This particular one, called Land Jib, also served a purpose for an entrance canopy. It was first shown at Maine Coast Artists (now Center for Maine Contemporary Art), Rockport, Maine, in the mid-'70s.

It was also featured at the Elaine Benson Gallery in Bridgehampton, NY.

Marilyn.

Clint and His Moss Tents: A Love Story

Moss Olympic Tent  

 

Clint contacted us recently to share his camping adventures with the Moss Olympic and StarDome tents. The enduring quality of his Moss tents under challenging conditions put his camping companions and their "econo yurts" to shame. To this day, he remains a steadfast Moss tent enthusiast. Stay tuned for Clint's stories in my upcoming book and know, for now, that:

My Olympic tent is in the best of hands momentarily, and will return to me shortly with a new, odor-free floor, and you can bet I'll be exercising my options with this tent as soon and as often as possible. If I ever get my hands on a dollar bill again, I may hold on to it until the eagle starts to smile, but then I'll be looking for a Moss Encore, or any other Camden, Maine Moss tent to add to my collection!

What a great tent. Anyone associated with creating them in any way ought to be proud of that association. If only all things were made as well !

Thank you, Clint. Marilyn