Yum, Yum! Valdese Weavers at Caldwell Arts Council Exhibition

Yesterday I wrote about the three downstairs galleries at the Caldwell Arts Center and the exhibition of my art work and Sondra Dorn's artwork. Today I want to explore the fascinating exhibition of fabrics upstairs from the designers at Valdese Weavers.

Before lots of folks were downstairs I had the opportunity to spend some time upstairs with the exhibition and the designers. It is eye candy for fabric lovers of many persuasions. Around the room were exquisite framed artworks that were weavings, paintings and embroideries and next to each artwork were examples of the contemporary fabrics created based on the artwork as inspiration.

This is a good example of the antique embroidery work used as inspiration for the hanging contemporary fabric on the right.

Above is a painting that inspired the fabric to the right.

The antique silk above has lots of motifs to be used for inspiration. The designers selected one small motif in the border to create the large scale floral fabric used in the dress to the right. The photo shows how the design can be interpreted in contemporary colorways.

Two of the Valdese Weavers Designers were at the exhibition to discuss the fabrics and their company. It was really interesting to see the commercial aspects of fabric design at the exhibition.

One of the most fascinating aspects were the books of vintage and antique fabrics on display that the viewers could go through. I would love to spend a few hours with them for inspiration and education.

Great exhibition. The curators and placers of the art did a great job. If you are anywhere near Lenoir NC during May I highly recommend spending some time on both floors of this delightful arts building.

Please let me know if you find this interesting. Notes from readers help me know that I am not just writing for myself. 

Nancy

What Fun! Opening Reception of Fabric Fascination

The curators at the Caldwell Arts Council put together a varied and interesting exhibition that showed a lot of variability in how fabric art is handled today.

Today I will focus on the great job done by the volunteer "Placers" who decided which pieces of art went where. And tomorrow I will focus on one of the exhibitors -- the Valdese Weavers Designers.

The Caldwell Arts Council has a very active group of board members and volunteers who work to produce top notch exhibitions for the community. In the downstairs there are three galleries, and two artists - Sondra Dorn and I - were in those galleries.

While Sondra works with fabric, her collage style and processes could not be more different from mine. She uses a lot of surface design techniques combined with applique and stitching to create her collages, many of which are also treated with acrylic medium. Her abstract work referencing natural objects is very appealing.

The curators were quite courageous to choose these two very disparate art forms into one exhibition. Their courage was borne out well with very careful selections of which art would be combined in each room and on each wall. 

A wall of blues and violets

The top photo shows four pieces of Sondra Dorn's work and one piece of my work, Mimosa Dancing, in the center. I think the placers really brought together work that relates well. The photo above has another wall with both our artworks - Dorn's art are the four pieces to the left - and my work, Ligustrum Twilight, is on the right. the work really goes well together. The balance is good in both color and form.

The photo below featured three of Dorn's collage pieces above the fireplace and  one of mine - Pinus Virginianus II on the left.

One gallery had primarily Dorn's art and another had primarily my art. I took several photos of walls featuring groups of my work.  Love the way Winter Fruit looks between Teasel Morning and Teasel Twilight.

The photo below is another wall. I love the way Mossy Cup Oak looks over a fireplace. 

 I was impressed with what a great job the placers did in selecting work to go together when sizes differed and styles of art differed dramatically.  Overall a really great exhibition.

 The Lenoir Woman's Club hosted the reception for the opening, and a lovely reception it was! My artwork was on several of these walls.

Hope you have enjoyed a peak at this exhibition.

Tomorrow I will cover the fascinating exhibition by the Valdese Weavers Designers that was in the large gallery on the second floor.

Nancy

Arts Thrive in North Carolina Counties

Recently I have had the opportunity to visit public art centers across North Carolina, and they appear to be thriving with great respect for fiber art! Communities are creatively using their former court houses, an abandoned tobacco auction warehouse, auto salesrooms and large homes.

Yesterday we delivered over twenty pieces of art to the Caldwell Arts Council in Lenoir NC that is in the foot hills of the mountains.

I took some photos of the building to share.

Love the wrap around porch. Note the colorful panels between the second floor windows. Note also the pig on the roof peak and the colorful sculptures on the right lawn.

Each colorful panel has the logo that conveys arts with boldness and charm!

These larger than life size musicians greet the visitor the Caldwell Arts Council.


A real first for me is an outside sign announcing the exhibition.

To further demonstrate the community support of the arts, the Lenoir Women's Club hosts the artist reception. 

Really looking forward to the opening. Hope you can come by if you are in the area.

Nancy

 

Be Still My Heart

I love Spring! The flowers, the warm spring breezes, the bird songs....

This was the first pot of daffodils to bloom. They are Tete a Tetes. They were our second daffodil to bloom. The first was a hillside of February Gold. This winter lingered so they began blooming late February and hit their stride in March.Some years they bloom in January and are gone by February. They are good for our wooded garden as they bloom out and harden off before leaves come out and shade them. so they can set buds in their bulbs for next year.

Last year my husband brought all our various pots up to the front of the house and planted some gorgeous pansies in them. They lasted less than 48 hours -- deer dessert.

Remembering that almost nothing eats daffodils, I planted the pots with a variety of daffodils last fall and we have been enjoying them for about a month.

Are deer eating your garden?

I would love to have some venison, my very favorite meat. Low in fat and cholesterol so very heart friendly. Venison on the hoof in our garden, and not a hunter in the family.

Virginia bluebells

These lovelies are my favorite wild flower. They are called spring ephemerals because they will die back during the summer. They bloomed a bit after the Tete a Tetes but February Gold. 

In this photo on a hillside going to the creek at the bottom of our garden, you can see two colors of wood hyacinths, some old Lenten Roses (helebores) and a little bit of Epimedium roseum.

And how does your garden grow? 

I have been out in the garden taking photos for inspiration for quilts. I don't do flowers, as everyone else does, but I have some super lovely buds and seed pods to use.

Nancy

Art for Art

Last week I picked up my artwork at the NC Arboretum minus one piece.

Southern Hospitality sold! It is always lovely when someone responds to my work with enough commitment they want to take it to live with them. And when they chose a favorite, it is even better.

This piece traveled to Britain, France, NY NY, CA and Atlanta. It is better traveled than I am.

One of the traditions I started is that when I sell a full size piece of art, i buy art from another artist - either directly or in a gallery.  This time I fell in love with jewelry by Michael Michaud for Silver Seasons. It is inspired by the vivid purple bean of the lablab purpureus, known at the Purple Hyacinth - a vine.

The beans are purple hand cast glass supported by patinaed bronze.Wearing a seed form really appeals to me.  Love the shapes and the color (not showing well in my photo) is great.

How do you celebrate?

Nancy

SAQA Benefit Auction Donation for 2013

Onions Galore will be my donation for the SAQA Benefit Auction this year. It is from a small watercolor made a couple of years ago. It was really fun to turn this little piece into a 12" x 12" quilt.

This auction raises money for SAQA to support a number of art quilt exhibitions around the world each year. Last year over $60,000 was raised by selling these little quilts. They are sold in a reverse auction starting at $750. Each year there are quilts sold by artists who get more than that for their small work. The final amount is $75. Artists donate hoping their work will sell for a goodly amount.

Many wonderful quilts are donated each year, and I think they get better and better each year. Some are already up on the SAQA website and this year looks better yet.

Here is Onions Galore. Hope the hand stitching of the stem and the roots shows up well.

Would love to get feedback on the piece.

Nancy

Suzanne Golden Presents - A Book of Beaders

Received a fascinating book on beading artists called Suzanne Golden Presents Interviews with 36 Artists Who Innovate with Beads.  While some of the artists do a variety of jewelry, the art of other artists in the book would be classified more as sculpture. Even the jewelry is art and highly sculptural.

The cover of the book gives a tip of the iceberg on the variety and exceptional artists and their work.

Several artists stand out for me.  I was not familiar with Betsy Youngquist's art. She uses porcelain doll heads and beads to create her humorous and slightly menacing sculptures.They are most intriguing. Kay Dolezal creates both pieces for political commentary like Prayer Run #1 and some for her own fun like Bubble Wrap- Unpopped. This last piece looks like a roll of bubble wrap for wrapping something precious instead of being precious. Marina Dempster creates some of the most imaginative shoes I have ever seen using beads and other other a variety of other items, like feathers, antique false teeth, fur, thorns, antlers and others.

This is definitely a book for the lover of bead art.

Nancy