On Friday evening I went to an exhibit of textile art at the Textile Center in Minneapolis. The exhibit represented the culmination of eighteen months work in the Protégée/Mentor Program which was sponsored by the Textile Center. This is the fourth time the Textile Center has offered this program.
Seven protégées are matched with five mentors to deepen their expertise in their selected type of textile art. It was very exciting to know several of the protégées and mentors alike. It was more exciting to see the successful outcome and listen to them talk about their journey through the process of self discovery. At this exhibit, each protégée is asked to exhibit two pieces which are felt show their progression to this point in time.
One of the protégées, Kathie Simon Frank, also has her work featured in this year’s volume of the Fiber Art Almanac. The book shows two of the three pieces she has created in her bird and nature series. Those are the pieces I have included in this blog. It was really exciting to see the third piece in the series because it is so different from the first two.
The first two pieces in the series are called “Walk in the Woods” and “Song in the Wild Woods.” In these two pieces, Kathie arranged the quilt blocks called the ‘Drunkard’s Path’ to create meandering paths through the woods. Each path represents a ‘strata’ within the woods from the ground to the tree canopy. Both quilts are vibrant in color and reveal a strong sense of balance.
I wish I had a photograph of the third piece of the series, but it has been completed recently. It really has a different feel even though the fabric is similar. It is about the intentional placement of composition outside of the quilt block symmetry.
I recommend a stop to look at the creative, intelligent pieces completed within the Protégée/Mentor program. The Textile Center provides opportunities for textile and fiber artists to continue their journeys.
The exhibit runs through May 25th at the Textile Center. Textile Center. Click on the link to get all of the details.
Talk soon!
Jenny