This past weekend was Pacific International Quilt Festival. With over 800 quilts, 300 vendors and 25 Quilt Artists offering workshops & lectures, I spent the better portion of the past 5 days at the Santa Clara Convention Center soaking up lots of quilting inspiration! In the next few posts, I will recap some of my highlights from the show and will kick off with the Threads of Resistance exhibit.
I was honored to have my RE$I$TAN¢E included in this incredibly powerful exhibit.
While I had previewed all the artwork via the website, blog and book, I was in total awe upon seeing the exhibit in person. Photographs simply do not do justice to any of the individual pieces, nor the exhibit in its entirety.
Moreover, photographs do not capture the power of this exhibit to engage the audience. Any time I visited the exhibit, I would always find a gathering of attendees viewing the exhibit--oftentimes moving in closer to read the Artist Statements, study the details and to reflect on the message. Yes there were several attendees that opted to skip the exhibit entirely and/or walk through at a brisk pace, which was to be expected given the controversy of the exhibit and the pieces included. The Mancuso Show organizers hung signage letting attendees know that there were controversial subject matter that may not be appropriate for young viewers. However, the overwhelmingly positive response served as confirmation for the importance of this exhibit to be included and to the significance of the messages contained within each piece. Many attendees freely shared that this was the best exhibit of PIQF in years and that some came to PIQF just to see the Threads of Resistance exhibit. Others expressed sincere thanks and appreciation for giving voice to what they've been experiencing this past year. I overheard two men who commented "These are some angry women!" and went onto elaborate that they wholeheartedly agreed that women have so much to be angry given the current Administration.
16 of the 63 artwork included with the traveling exhibit were created by California Artists. Many of us were able to participate in Saturday's Artist Gathering. Jamie Fingal, one of The Artist's Circle members flew up from Southern California to experience the exhibit firsthand. She presented each of the artists with a Threads of Resistance button that I wore proudly. As Jamie welcomed everyone and shared the story of how The Artist's Circle formed and created the Threads of Resistance exhibit. As we toured the exhibit, each attending Artist shared a few personal remarks about their piece. For those that were unable to attend, I highly recommend listening to the Artist recordings posted to the Threads of Resistance blog.
Like many of the other Artists, working on "RE$I$TAN¢E" served as a way for me to channel my frustration, anger and confusion. It also provided therapeutic benefits as it gave me some semblance of control and purpose given the events of the past year. Experiencing the exhibit first hand and in the company of some truly amazing Artists gave me Hope for a more compassionate future. It also ignited my resilience and courage.
My sincere thanks again to The Artist Circle for establishing the Threads of Resistance exhibit. Special thanks to David and Peter Mancuso (and the entire Mancuso Quilt Show Staff) for inviting Threads of Resistance to be part of Pacific International Quilt Festival and their unwavering support of both the exhibit and the Artists. Many thanks to my fellow Artisans for their comraderie and support. Last but not least, special thanks to all those who visited the exhibit.
I was honored to have my RE$I$TAN¢E included in this incredibly powerful exhibit.
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Threads of Resistance Exhibit
Left Top: "The Disgrace--Words and Deeds" by Barbara Brandel, "Equal Means Equal" by Jessica Levitt, "Nevertheless, She Persisted" by Dawn Allen and "Priviledged Times" by Martha Wolfe.
Left Middle: "Zahra, Age 5" by Sandra Bruce, "Capitol Guns" by Ellen November, "The Kiss" by Maryte Collard and "RE$I$TAN¢E" by Mel Beach
Left Bottom: "Liberty Marches" by Susan Bianchi, "Don't Shoot (Until You See the Whites of Their Eyes)" by Sheila Riess, "My Flag, Our Colors" by Mary Bolton, "Poisonous Words" by Susan Brubaker Knapp and "Untitled" by Melanie Testa
Right Top: "#notnormal" by Kristin La Flamme, "Equality" by Kerri Green, "Death of Science" by Phyllis Cullen and "What Does an American Look Like?" by Deb Cashatt & Kris Sazaki.
Right Bottom: "A Day to Remember" by Emily Robertson, "Hands Off!" by Karen Musgrave and "My Body, My Rules" by Sue Bleiweiss.
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16 of the 63 artwork included with the traveling exhibit were created by California Artists. Many of us were able to participate in Saturday's Artist Gathering. Jamie Fingal, one of The Artist's Circle members flew up from Southern California to experience the exhibit firsthand. She presented each of the artists with a Threads of Resistance button that I wore proudly. As Jamie welcomed everyone and shared the story of how The Artist's Circle formed and created the Threads of Resistance exhibit. As we toured the exhibit, each attending Artist shared a few personal remarks about their piece. For those that were unable to attend, I highly recommend listening to the Artist recordings posted to the Threads of Resistance blog.
Like many of the other Artists, working on "RE$I$TAN¢E" served as a way for me to channel my frustration, anger and confusion. It also provided therapeutic benefits as it gave me some semblance of control and purpose given the events of the past year. Experiencing the exhibit first hand and in the company of some truly amazing Artists gave me Hope for a more compassionate future. It also ignited my resilience and courage.
My sincere thanks again to The Artist Circle for establishing the Threads of Resistance exhibit. Special thanks to David and Peter Mancuso (and the entire Mancuso Quilt Show Staff) for inviting Threads of Resistance to be part of Pacific International Quilt Festival and their unwavering support of both the exhibit and the Artists. Many thanks to my fellow Artisans for their comraderie and support. Last but not least, special thanks to all those who visited the exhibit.
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