Hello Friends,

Before the New Year gets going (too quickly), here’s a colorful, vibrant look at 2018 out on the Trails! This gallery showcases members’ work from all five Midwest Fiber Arts Trails. It’s like the old Life magazine adage – a year in pictures. I hope you find inspiration when you view this presentation of beautiful fiber and textiles from Midwest Makers.

“The textile artists and businesses featured on these unique art trails are a part of the new tradition of makers that is fueling the resurgence of textile arts. Joining together, the trail members have formed a vibrant and diverse gathering place that fosters creativity and innovation.”  — Jennifer Wilder, Founder of Midwest Fiber Arts Trails in the Midwest

Each of the Trail members have their own story, which I encourage you to read. Links are below. The gallery layout is set to a random presentation of images, so it will be different each time you see it. That fact is interesting, too, as composition and presentation play big roles in how we perceive art.

If you are interested in visiting the Trails this year, we have three Fiber Arts Trail Tour weekends set up so far this year. The first one is the Cedarburg Spur’s 5th Anniversary. The second event happens just a week later, also in Wisconsin. Threaded Streams’ members have organized a three day festival of workshops called, A Maker’s Experience. Pine to Prairie Fiber Arts Trail members, who are located in Northern Minnesota, are organizing an exhibit beginning in April and running through May. They also plan to host a studio/maker space tour in late April.

Best,

Jenny

 

Cedarburg Spur Fiber Arts Trail

(Cedarburg – Grafton – Thiensville – Mequon, Wisconsin)

Historic mills, stone buildings and meandering creeks and rivers describe Cedarburg, Grafton and Thiensville, Wisconsin. While all three villages are snug as bugs and within ten miles of each other end to end, each place has its own character. Cedarburg’s iconic downtown is the jewel tucked in the middle. Cedarburg Spur Fiber Arts Trail

Pine to Prairie Fiber Arts Trail

(Bemidji – Solway – Turtle River – Tenstrike, Minnesota)

The word ‘headwaters’ is used a lot around here. Heading north and west out of Itasca before curling around in an easterly fashion, the Mississippi River flows through Lake Bemidji, giving Bemidjians an honest right to call their home the ‘First City’ on the river. The diverse culture in this area has a long history of indigenous peoples, voyageurs, settlers and pioneers. Pine to Prairie Fiber Arts Trails

Threaded Streams Fiber Arts Trail

(Baraboo – Portage – Lodi – Prairie du Sac, Wisconsin)

The name Threaded Streams Fiber Arts Trail is an artful reference to the geological formation that makes up this part of Wisconsin. The beautiful Baraboo Hills that hug the city of Baraboo are the terminal moraine of the most recent advance of glaciers. Melt water flowed from under the ice sheet forming rivers that cut valleys as the rocks and sediment were deposited along their routes. Today’s streams are like shimmering ribbons, rippling along the surface of the land. Threaded Streams Fiber Arts Trail

Weaving Waters Fiber Arts Trail

(Little Falls – Randall – Brainerd – Staples – Wadena – New York Mills, Minnesota)

Articulture’ — where art is our agriculture! Located right smack-dab in the middle of the Land of 10,000 Lakes, Weaving Waters feature three regional arts centers and offers Trail visitors an opportunity to experience Central Minnesota’s rich textile heritage and celebrate the work of the area’s contemporary fiber artists. Weaving Waters Fiber Arts Trail

Madison Fiber Arts Trail

(Madison, Wisconsin)

Everyone knows Madison is a fun town. Whether you’re a student, bureaucrat or a fiber artist, the chances of finding someone else to share your groove are high. Home to UW-Madison, the town is wide-open high energy and creativity. Balance that with state government HQ and you’ve got a place that’s hip, political and surrounded by cornfields. Madison Fiber Arts Trail