"CUT AND DYED" FIBER EXHIBITION AT CVA GALLERY

 

"The Climb" and "Detour".  Two of five of my works on display at CVA Gallery

Last night was the opening of and reception for "Cut and Dyed: a fiber arts exhibition". The exhibit is on display at the CVA Gallery in Greensboro, NC until November 10. CVA is located in the Greensboro Cultural Center building.  It promotes the arts, provides education and reaches out to the community in addition to holding exhibitions. 

This is the first time I have shown work in the Greensboro area and I could not have asked for a better experience. Do stop by if you are in the area. Enjoy some views from the show:

A view into the gallery

Art greets all from the entry.  "Side Streets 2" is on the far wall.

"Hambridge Meadow" by Joyce Watkins King

"My Hank Shook (after Rockwell) by Ellen Kelly-Bryan

"Ain't that some shit!" by Ann Tilley

"Geometric" by Jerry O'Donnell

"Hammered Enamored" by Ann Tilley

"Shirtwaist Waste: Landfill Slice" by Joyce Watkins King

TEXTILE/FIBER ART AT THE CAROLINA DESIGNER CRAFTSMEN SHOW

It was a busy weekend full of packing , traveling, visiting, setting up and tearing down. Here are some photos from the Carolina Designer Craftsmen Fine Art and Craft show which took place over Thanksgiving weekend.

  This is what greets us when we arrive to set up for the show.  It is actually quite amazing how quickly this bare space turns into a warm, inviting area for people to come meet artists and shop for art and gifts.

Mary Kircher's booth.  Mary creates contemporary weavings.  She does custom dyeing and has a wonderful eye for combining colors.  Some areas of her weavings are left open creating a sense of mystery through the warp.  She has a studio at Artspace in Raleigh, N.C.

Michael Smith's booth was a rainbow of color and texture.  Who wouldn't feel good wearing one of these shibori dyed designs?  For a closer look at the intricacy of the dyeing visit Michael's website by clicking on his name above.

Teresa and Mike work in bookbinding using leather with a sense of character.  They create one-of-a-kind designs.  You can hardly wait to fill the pages with your  adventures, thoughts and dreams. 

Lisa M. LeMair incorporates Morse Code and other hidden messages in her stitched clothing. Her use of contrasting fabrics make for a bold fashion statement.

Jill Wagoner is a master of marbled fabric.  Each of these ties has its own original pattern created through the dye process.  She also designs clothing with marbled fabric.

Jen Swearington uses screen-printing and shibori techniques to create stylish clothing.  Her styles have a definite feminine flair.  They are shaped well leaving any woman feeling great about herself.  Jen has also authored the book "Printing on Fabric: Techniques with Screens, Stencils, Inks and Dyes"

Nancy Raasch designs jewelry using various fiber materials and wire.  Her creations are unique works that would make great additions to anyone's collection.

 Liz Spear weaves fabric that just begs to be touched.  She has recently added felting to the garments she creates with her woven cloth.  Her clothing is soft, comfortable and adds an aura of class to the woman who wears it.

Neal Howard weaves scarves and shawls.  She also hand-dyes yarns into some luscious colors where one hue blends beautifully into another.  I used one of her combinations to whip the edges of a piece I showed at University of Connecticut's Art Gallery recently.  It couldn't have been a more perfect fit.  Thanks, Neal!

Here I am Sunday, getting ready to pack up and head home.  I had a great time at the show meeting old and new friends and seeing pieces find a new home.

Check out the shows in your area and have a great day.

BEST OF SHOW AND ASHEVILLE'S RIVER ARTS DISTRICT

I had, unfortunately, missed the opening of "The Cutting Edge" show at Desert Moon Designs Gallery in Asheville due to finishing up a class at Penland. The good news was a phone call received letting me know my work, above left in the photo, had won Best of Show.  It was well displayed against the beautiful orange and yellows in the wearable art and handbag pieces.  As I am taking a new direction in my work, mixing metal and other media with rug hooking, this was great news. It is always exciting to see rug hooking receive recognition as an art form.

A wonderful display of fiber art.

Great texture seen in a wearable art piece by Karen Donde.  Amazing use of fabric manipulation.

Fiber jewelry pieces by Paisley Holloway.  I love the way the metal was stranded through the fiber in the piece on the left. 

This is a close-up of a weaving by Jean McGrew.  The random threads brought through add great texture.

After visiting Desert Moon, my husband and I spent the afternoon browsing around the rest of the River Arts District of Asheville. What a wonderful place! I love old industrial buildings, and to see them turned into artist studios is even better. The artists we spoke to were warm and welcoming. We stopped by award-winning photographer David Simchock's studio where we viewed a variety of amazing photographs and David was kind enough to explain some of his photography methods.

Our next stop was for lunch at The Junction, where we had a great brunch of arugula salad, open face short rib sandwich and pale ale with lemon-lime soda. Relaxing and extremely friendly service.

After lunch we headed to The Cotton Mill, above, to visit two textile studios. Cloth Fiber Workshop is run by Barbara Zaretsky. She uses natural dyes and had some phenomenal colors in her sophisticated designs. There were scarves, wall hangings and pillows. A plus was being able to see her work tables and dye kitchen, all open to the public. Also in the building was weaver Karen Donde's Sutherland Handweaving studio. The looms are all on view along with a wall of scarves and baskets of hand-spun and hand-dyed yarns. Here is a photo of some yarn I could just not resist. I have plans to use it in a hooked piece soon alongside my own hand-dyed wool.

We had a wonderful day out and I would encourage anyone visiting the Asheville area to take the time to visit the River Arts District. The talent is amazing and we will have to make another trip soon as we only caught a small glimpse of the more than 150 artists that have studios in this area. Enjoy your own explorations and have a great day.

WORKS JURIED INTO "THE CUTTING EDGE"

I am pleased to be a part of an upcoming fiber art show in Asheville, NC. Desert Moon Designs Gallery is presenting "The Cutting Edge: The Language of Textiles and Fiber Art" from April 4 - May 5, 2012 with an artist reception from 5-8 pm on April 14. This particular show caught my attention as the call for artists encouraged the use of non-traditional materials and techniques with the primary material being fiber. The show is also looking at what a piece of fiber art says about the artist.

"Diamond Road"  Lori LaBerge  2012

When I create a piece I need to see a reason for it to be done in fiber, otherwise the drawn design sits in a work file and never gets transferred to backing fabric. I love to see how the textures and colors add to the meaning of a piece and how other materials can be blended into a fiber design in a complimentary fashion.

"Free Passage"  Lori LaBerge  2012

Rug hooking is not a widely shown medium and I enjoy peoples' reactions when they see it in a contemporary venue. The call for this show came at a great time as I have not yet shown any of my mixed-media pieces outside of my own studio and this blog. It is always a little scary when you change your work and veer into new territory. An artist is never quite sure how previous collectors will react and how people new to the artist's work will receive it. It is always encouraging to have new work juried into a show and I look forward to seeing other fiber artists' work there and having the chance to converse with them.

Take chances, believe in yourself and your art and have a great day.