Date: Fri 20-Feb-1998

Publication: Ant

Author: CAROLL

Quick Words:

Quilts

Full Text:

Pieces, Parts And Passion

w/2 cuts

GREENWICH, CONN. -- The Bruce Museum of Arts and Sciences will present

"Pieces, Parts and Passion: The Quilted Medium" through April 26.

The exhibition features a collection of contemporary quilts created by artists

from throughout the United States and Canada. Exploring new and often abstract

visual themes through the use of old-fashioned quiltmaking techniques, the

quilts represented are created as contemporary art.

The 19 quilts selected for the show range from pieces demonstrating

traditional patterns and techniques to those incorporating a wide variety of

innovative and unusual processes, such as photography, stenciling, hand-dying,

and painting.

Quilting is one of America's oldest folk art forms. Traditionally made from

scraps of cloth and old clothes, quilts are sewn together using a variety of

stitches and color patterns to produce a coverlet. This coverlet is then

backed by plain fabric. Cotton or another soft batting material is sandwiched

between these two layers to create a warm blanket. Quilts were originally

created by pioneer women as strictly functional pieces.

"Pieces, Parts and Passions" examines what is possible when the quilt is no

longer seen as a blanket but is considered a work of art. The past few decades

have witnessed a renewed interest in quilts, with many artists discovering the

quilt's unique capacity to transform color and texture into dynamic patterns.

Works included in the exhibition range from abstract renditions of stained

glass and rain to tender images of mother and child. Other quilts make

dramatic political statements about environmental and social concerns. The

artists represented, both men and women, explore the history of a traditional

craft while reconsidering its practical purpose.

The show was organized by the Lubbock Fine Arts Center, Texas. Partial funding

for the exhibition is provided by a grant from the Texas Commission on the

Arts.

The Bruce Museum is at 1 Museum Drive, open Tuesdays through Saturdays, 10 am

to 5 pm, and Sundays, 1 to 5 pm. Admission is $3.50.