Published Friday, October 18, 2002
Herald Staff Writer
Quilts aren't merely for making beds or keeping warm.
Take for instance the traveling quilt exhibit now on display at the Trumbull County Butler Institute of American Art. These aren't the quilts grandma used to make. This exhibit contains a powerful array of wall-hangings that are way too spectacular for beds.
The exhibit is called "Expanding Boundaries" and features quilts from 34 artists from around the United States and Canada. The show comes as a sequel to "Crossing Boundaries," a previous quilt exhibit that traveled throughout the United States.
The wall hangings were made by members of a group called the Art Quilt Network, made up of both American and Canadian artists. The network was founded in 1986 when artist Nancy Crow was inspired to start a web of quilters through her travels of teaching, lecturing and meeting other quilters.
The network has since grown to 60 members who meet twice a year in Columbus, Ohio, for a three-day retreat to share ideas, information and new work.
Art quilts have quickly evolved from the traditional decorative bed covers they once were into aesthetic wall hangings. The works deal with the same issues, themes and design problems that are encountered by other artists working in other media. Now, much like a painting, a quilt can be viewed in its entirety.
Using a kaleidoscope of colors and patterns, each quilt in the exhibit weaves a story of family, community or self-expression.
"This is the story of my life," one museum visitor said as she stared Dorothy Flynn's "Woman III," a quilt that incorporates many different objects, such as cats and irons to describe her cluttered life.
"This reflects today's contemporary woman who, at certain times in her life, finds herself surrounded by too many possessions and overwhelmed by too many activities," the artist statement reads. "Little by little it happens until she finds herself surrounded by all the stuff that is her life."
Ms. Flynn says representing women in fabric form is fitting since fabric has many meanings -- clothing, shelter, warmth, love and family.
Mixed media quilts incorporate wood, plastic and metal as integral parts of the overall design. Some are highly embellished with various fabrics, beads buttons, sequins and found objects to make a personal narrative.
Other quilts such as "Beauty Bomb" makes good use of objects to portray a message. "Beauty Bomb" describes the lengths women go to in the name of beauty. It centers on a woman with ruby red lips, inspired from a Lyle Lovett song called "M-o-n-e-y." "That Old Devil Moon" is a highly detailed piece complete with buttons, puffy paint and embroidered words. The artists, Susan Shie and James Acord, say the title of the quilt fits, calling it lop-sided, imperfect and glow in the dark.
In the Art Quilt Network originality is prized and no one style is dominant. Size and shape no longer matter and small quilts are increasingly common.
From far-away "Primitive Door Series," looks exactly like paint and canvas and gives the illusion of three dimensions. It's one of the smallest and most unique of the quilts made completely by machine embroidered to fabric.
Stitches and fabric also tell stories that reflect the quiltmakers' personality and passion. In "Hold On My Heart...Throw Me a Lifeline," Ellen Guerrant pours her heart into her quilt after her 13-year-old son, with end-stage heart failure, is saved through a heart transplant from another 12-year-old boy.
"This terrifying experience left me needing a way in which to express my overwhelming feelings," she states.
Her quilt is full of symbolism, with darkness representing near-death and broken hearts representing her family, she says.
Network members have lectured and given workshops all over the world. One member was awarded a Ford Foundation Grant and four have received National Endowment for the Arts fellowship grants.
"Expanding Boundaries" is developed and managed by Smith Kramer Fine Art Services, an exhibition tour development company in Kansas City, Mo. The exhibition of fiber art runs through Nov. 10. The Butler is located at 9350 E. Market St., Howland. For more information call (330) 743-1711.
You can e-mail Herald Staff Writer Larissa Theodore at ltheodore@sharon-herald.com