Images 2011 Opening Reception

 I had a wonderful time at the opening reception for Images 2011 at the Robeson Gallery on the campus of Penn State University last night.  As always, it was a quality exhibit, well arranged and well lit, in an excellent gallery space.  The food was tasty also!  Here I am with my Watt & Shand #4, above, and a panorama shot showing it in situ below (all pictures enlarge if you click on them):

Below is another portion of the gallery, and the enthusiastic crowd:

Here's my friend Anni Matsick, with her Raveled.  Anni is a very talented and professional watercolorist and illustrator.  She has two pieces in this show, and it was wonderful to spend some time with her and her work.

 My friend and fellow fiber artist Marcia DeCamp has three pieces in the show, and her Storm Clouds at Sunrise won an Award of Merit:

 Below is a panorama that also shows her Jet Trails #8 on the right:

 Here's the truly remarkable thing about this exhibit.  Ron Rumford, this year's juror, used the textile pieces as the basis for pulling together his choices.  I'm going to quote from his Juror's Statement, as printed in the show booklet (hopefully it will be up in its entirety on the website soon):

"Upon reviewing all submissions for Images 2011, a particularly strong group of textile works set the bar high.  Their structures--piece quilts built from shapes of cloth and constructed by stitching are from a grand tradition of functional and utilitarian work that now straddles high art with highly sophisticated design, pattern and color and the folk art tradition of quilt making.  The approach of these 6 artists varies significantly and this strengthened the impact within the overall pool of submissions.  It soon became clear that these works would become the fulcrum on which the exhibition wanted to be balanced.

With their structures evident, the visual building blocks of other works began to resonate and rhyme.  Geometry is the common path these works take to clue us into how we are to read them.  Elemental triangles, squares and circles are the bedrock organizing principals of all visual arts.  They are prehistoric signs and the base language for a visual literacy.  Content and cultural references are grown out of this same system and it serves to signal our common origins.  These origins include a need to make a recognizable order and point of entry for all viewers."

Wow...it is such a thrill to see my medium of choice treated with such understanding and respect!  You can see the work of the other textile artists, as well as the rest of the exhibit, on the website here.  If you are anywhere nearby it's well worth a visit--it's up until July 17th, which coincides with the Festival of the Arts.  I'll be back in town then, for my role as a juror, and am looking forward to getting another chance to view the exhibit.

And last but by no means least, here's a great candid shot Anni took of Rick Bryant, the Executive Director of the Central Pennsylvania Festival of the Arts.  He and his stellar staff make it all possible, and make it look easy.  Thank you!