The exhibit "Double Take," a collaborative effort between Tactile Expressions of Northwest Oregon and the Pacific Quilt Artists of San Diego County, California, is a show featuring contemporary fine art through the medium of textile and other tactile media. Art quilts, different from what we know of as the traditional quilt, are made by artists who combine visual concerns with traditional quilt-making techniques and other techniques such as silkscreening, photo-imaging, metallic foils and various types of textile paints. Additional materials such as beads and buttons are also incorporated into contemporary designs. Subject matter and content include those of color and design aesthetics to images of exterior and interior landscapes, to conceptual, sociopolitical, and/or environmental issues. The highly detailed work is done by both hand and sewing machine. These wall hangings and three-dimensional sculptural artworks are now on display at the Florence Events Center Gallery in Florence, Oregon.Pacific Quilt artists is a juried group of studio artists in San Diego County, CA who are dedicated to making, exhibiting and promoting the quilt as an art form. Members included in the show are: Tanya Alpert, Charlotte Bird, Marilyn McKenzie-Chaffee, Patricia Klein, Robert Leathers, Jill LeCroissette, Suzanne MacGuineas, Dan Olfe, Susan Root Skywalker, Suzanne Taylor, and Bonny Tinling.
The members of Tactile Expressions come from diverse backgrounds - artists with skills in graphic arts, ceramics, and watercolors - others from the worlds of education, psychology and business. Members included in the show are: Lauren Ball, Ruth Bass, Theresa Boock, Diana Cleland-Boyle, Christina Brown, Georgia French, Barbara Friedson, Mary Goodson, Marcy Gregg, Laura Jennings, Linda Johansen, Daphne John, Nancy Kibbey, Jean Liittschwager, Shirley MacGregor, Kay Pearson, Beki Ries-Montgomery, Sidnee Snell, Sheila Steers, and Julie Williams.
Two of the many artists showing work in this wonderful show are Jean Liittschwager and Daphne John.
Mrs. John, a local Florence artist and curator of the show, is showing her art quilt Fractured - When The Earth Moved. Memories of the Northridge earthquake and TV images of the destruction were the impetus for this piece, she says. Mrs. John has been creating fabric art for 13 years - first with Pacific Quilt Artists and since 1998, in Florence and Northwest Oregon. "I found early on that traditional patterns and methods of quilt making, while beautiful, were not my cup of tea. I have a tendency to 'break the rules' which disturbs purists." Daphne John's work has been shown around the country in prestigious judged and juried shows. Most recently her pieces were displayed at the LaConnor Quilt Museum, LaConnor Washington, the Mathers Museum of Contemporary Art, Indiana University, and as part of an international show traveling in Europe, Japan, and the U.S.
The Cutting Edge, a piece by artist Jean Liittschwager of Walterville, Oregon, was created with cotton fabrics, some over-dyed and painted, synthetics, metallic and cotton threads. Construction was by machine, including piecing, appliqué, stencil and pin-tucks. About her work, Jean says, "Current and past practices to produce food, timber products and electricity are the 'needs' shown along the side and top edges. In producing for these needs, the resulting erosion and pollution so destructive to wildlife is depicted here, in relation to salmon in particular. Here the cutting edges refer to chain saws, hydroelectric turbines and cattle. With hundreds of dedicated people working to correct these side effects, I'm hopeful restoration can take place."
Many members of the Oregon Tactile Expressions will also be showing work concurrently through the month of April at the Jacobs Gallery in the Hult Center for the Arts in Eugene, Oregon in show called "Under The Surface."
For more information, Please call:
Florence Events Center Gallery
715 Quince Street, Old Town Florence, Oregon
Phone: 541-997-1994 or 1-888-968-4086
