Each Little World

IVOM: Posies for the party

Each June the Friends group of the Helen Louise Allen Textile Collection at UW-Madison host a High Tea. It's part fund-raiser, part social event and often is held at the home of someone who collects textiles and has them on display for the event. I was unable to attend this year, but sent along five small bouquets to put on end tables as my contribution. (I'm on the board of the HLATC Development Committee). I put them together in the basement by the laundry sink, using the top of the washer and dryer as my work surface; so not the most romantic backdrop for pictures.  

These needed to be rather small bouquets so I used empty jam jars. I always keep an array of small jars and bottles with my vases to use to bring small gift bouquets when we go visiting.  

I wanted these to look a little more finished, so I wrapped them in garage sale hankies, held in place with a rubber band at the neck of the container. I also wrapped large leaves around the inside of the container for one of the larger jars. 

As for flowers, I just randomly grabbed a bit of everything. Three were arrangements in shades of red and pink and two showcased yellow flowers. 

I used my go-to method for transporting bouquets: a sturdy box shallow enough that the flowers will mostly be above the edges. I stuff bubble wrap in between, so nothing moves and no vases touch each othe. Then I set it on the floor of the car. I have a box with bubble-wrap on a shelf in the garage that is always ready to go. It makes me much more likely to put a bouquet together quickly if I don't have to think about how to deal with it in the car. 

To see what other gardeners have put together this week, visit Cathy at Rambling in the Garden who hosts this meme. 

Textile Symposium next month!

 

COLLECTORS SYMPOSIUM

“A Collection that counts”:

The History, Practice, and Future of Textile Collecting

Why do people collect textiles? How do they collect them? And what does it mean to ‘collect’? Join us to explore these questions and more during a symposium hosted by the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s Center for Design and Material Culture in the School of Human Ecology in celebration of the 50th Anniversary of the Helen Louise Allen Textile Collection.

The symposium will explore:

• the history of textile collecting, especially as an arena for women’s collecting;
• the varied motivations of contemporary textile collectors;
• practical aspects of collection care and display;
• the dissemination of textile collections, through exhibitions, events, or inheritance;
• the future of collecting, for example as a digital rather than material practice.

When: Saturday April 6 2019

• Registration opens at 8:30 am
• Keynote speaker at 9:00 am

Where: Nancy Nicholas Hall, School of Human Ecology, University of Wisconsin-Madison

. . .

I've already signed up! It sound like it should be informative as well as fun. The first weekend in April is still too early to do much work in the garden, so I am indulging my other passion: textiles. I just finished reading "Vintage," one of the textile-themed novels by Madison author, Susan Gloss, who will be the introductory speaker at this event.

The Ruth Davis Design Gallery and the new Lynn Mecklenburg Textile Gallery both have wonderful exhibits that I've seen once and am looking forward to taking in again while I'm there for the Symposium. Hope to see you there. 

Details about the event, including the other presentations can be found here.

Fiber Friday

The two galleries in Nancy Nicholas Hall on the UW-Madison campus were filled with visitors last Sunday afternoon. Despite the cold temperatures, everyone came out to enjoy the beautiful textiles on display before the next storm hit. I snapped these two images because I was charmed by the ideas they encapsulated and thought they might inspire other party givers.

Given that the event was a ribbon cutting ceremony for the opening of the new Lynn Mecklenburg Textile Gallery, the table with hors d'oeuvres and desserts was decorated with spools of fiber appropriate to celebrate the weaver whose memory we were honoring. 

And many of the foods were fiber-licious: Candy cotton, French Silk (chocolate pie), Red Velvet Cake and Brownie Buttons (chocolate cookies that looked like big buttons with four holes in the center where one would stitch a real button). As clever as they were delicious. 

Fiber Friday: Helen Louis Allen Textile Collection 50th Anniversary Celebration

 

One of A Kind Ahead of Her Time:
The Legacy of Helen Louise Allen

January 27 – April 18, 2019

Opening Reception: January 27th, 1 – 3 pm
Ribbon cutting and remarks at 1:30 pm

Lynn Mecklenburg Textile Gallery

School of Human Ecology, UW-Madison

Guest curated by Lynn K. Mecklenburg, the inaugural exhibition of the textile gallery showcases collection pieces representing the travels of Professor Helen Louise Allen (1902-1968).

Allen had a lifelong passion for handwork and the creative crafts. In 2019, she would thrive in society’s revitalization of the artisanal, the handmade, and the original. One of A Kind Ahead of Her Time invites gallery goers to consider the woman, the collector, and the educator who looked at textiles as carriers of human culture, a thought that remains relevant in today’s diverse and globalized world.

The exhibition is on view in conjunction with the Ruth Davis Design Gallery show from Applique to Zardozi: An Anniversary Sampler.

About the Helen Louise Allen Textile Collection: Over the past half century, the collection has grown from an original 4,000-piece gift to more than 13,000 objects that have inspired and informed thousands of students, researchers, historians, and textile aficionados. The new Lynn Mecklenburg Textile Gallery is a permanent space dedicated to year-round displays of the collection.

Editor's note: I am a boardmember of the Friends of HLATC and am a big fan of textiles and the collection. I am posting this information because of that interest and not because I received any remuneration. The text is taken directly from the collection's website. If you have an interest in textile design, I suggest you "like" the Design Gallery's Facebook page which posts about textiles just enough to whet your appetite without overwhelming other FB posts. I love to see what they have discovered that's new, old, from here or there. 

Fiber Friday: Whirling Return of the Ancestors

Mark and I went to the opening reception for "The Whirling Return of the Ancestors: Egungun Arts of the Yoruba in Africa and Beyond" last month at the Ruth Davis Design Gallery on campus. Mark took photos while I schmoozed with friends. As always, the people who come to these fabulous textile exhibits wear their own finery. No matter where you look there is something interesting to see.

The exhibit runs through April 8th and there are a number of special programs in conjunction with it which I've listed below the photographs. 

There is more in-depth information about the work in the exhibit and a short video on the gallery's website (click link above).

. . .

Captivated by the gallery's window display

Drop-dead drama inside the gallery

This exhibit was researched, organized, and curated by students in the fall 2017 Art History Curatorial Studies-Exhibition Practice class taught by Evjue-Bascom Professor Henry Drewal (below).

The opening included an evocative Yoruba language call-and-respone performance led by the gentleman below.

Lots of discussion about the items on display

Watching the videos of Egungun dancers on an almost wall-sized screen

Rumi (center) and Jim O'Brien talk with another gallery visitor. Rumi had a show of her own stunning artwork in a variety of media in the gallery at this same time last year.

Professor Drewal stayed in the gallery answering questions . . .

and more question about the exhibit.

Lots of great clothes — especially headgear — was in evidence on gallery-goers

A series of public programs will supplement the exhibition:
Email Will Porter, Events Coordinator of the African Studies Program, at [email protected] for questions about event times, locations, or other details.

· Thursday, March 1, 6-7 pm: Death, Culture & Coffee: Honoring ancestors in Madison
Room 1199 Nancy Nicholas Hall, School of Human Ecology, 1300 Linden Drive
Join the African Studies Program for coffee and conversation on the ways that we honor our own ancestors in Madison. Four local presenters will discuss some of the funerary practices and traditions observed within various communities in the Madison area. Light refreshments provided. Please feel welcome to arrive early and visit the gallery exhibition prior to attending to the presentation.

Presenters:
Karen Reppen, Death Awareness Educator
Elizabeth Humphries, Death Midwife
Bryan Foster, Foster Funeral Services
Shedd Farley, Linda and Gene Farley Center for Peace, Justice and Sustainability

· March 7, 2018: Lecture-demo about African American Second-Line funeral processions in New Orleans
· April 5-8, 2018: Performances by a troupe of Egúngún masqueraders, singers, and drummers from Ọ̀yọ́tunji Village, South Carolina, who will give workshops at UW-Madison, the Madison Children’s Museum, and a Madison public school
· April 6-7, 2018: Two-day Symposium on the theme Honoring Ancestors in Africa: Arts and Actions

Rumi O'Brien exhibit ends Sunday

Today, Friday and Sunday are your last chances to see the fabulous quilts and other art works by local legend Rumi O'Brien at the Ruth Davis Design Gallery in Nancy Nicholas Hall on the UW-Madison campus.

I've been to see it at least three times. Her work just draws you back again and again to study it, which is what I was doing when I took these casual snaps of her stitching details. But mostly I went back to bask in the charm of Rumi's images and in the stories embodied in every piece of her work.

This small quilted picture (I've cropped the edges) is a perfect image of life in Wisconsin in the early spring. It's called "Ice."

Rumi's quilting style is unique to each of her designs. The quilt lines contribute to the story as much as stabilizing the fabric. 

She changes thread color and adds stitched details as well as appliqued motifs.

Perhaps the most wonderful part of this memorable exhibit is the ability to see the backside (detail below) of two of Rumi's huge quilts. They are as beautiful as the front side.

If you go, be sure to go across the hall from the gallery to the Lynn Mecklenburg Reading Room to look at the equally creative display of origami by Ruthanne Bessman.

And don't leave that room without opening the flat file drawers on the fall wall. They are filled with an amazing display of 18th century fashion fabrics and related items.

You can find more information about Rumi's work and the exhibit HERE.

MAP: How to get to the Ruth Davis Design Gallery

PARKING: Click parking lots on map for real time availability http://map.wisc.edu/

Fiber Friday: Rumi O'Brien Reception

. . .

Crossing Mountains and Other Adventures

Story Quilts by Rumi O'Brien

and 

In the Fold: Origami by Ruthanne Bessman

Opening receptions: 

Sunday, January 29, 1 pm - 3 pm

Nancy Nicholas Hall on the UW-Madison campus

Natasha Thoreson, Assistant Curator and Collections Manager of the Helen Louise Allen Textile Collection, took the overview photos and I snapped a couple of close-ups with our phones when we stopped in Ruth Davis Design Gallery in Nancy Nicholas Hall after a meeting in the building on Monday. The exhibit is fabulous and it is a thrill to see so much of Rumi's work over the years all gathered together in one place. This is a display that lets you get close enough to study all the stitching and details on the quilts, front and back.

I've always been in awe of Rumi's creativity and skill but this exhibit is breath-taking. It is hard to take in the degree of artistry that infuses everything she does from the tiniest little origami and fabric figures to the massive quilts. This is a show that many of us have been waiting years to see and enjoy. Don't miss this chance!

Both Exhibitions run: Sunday, January 22 – Sunday, March 5. You can find more information about Rumi's work and the exhibit HERE.

MAP: How to get to the Ruth Davis Design Gallery

PARKING: Click parking lots on map for real time availability http://map.wisc.edu/ 

Fiber events Tonight and Thursday

Afghan Carpets: Past to Present

 A talk by Carnig Minasian

Thursday, February 5th, 5:00 - 6:00 pm

Room 1199, School of Human Ecology

Nancy Nicholas Hall, 1300 Linden Drive

UW Madison

. . . 

Brothers Carnig (above left) and Armen (right) Minasian are the current faces of Minasian Rug Company, a third generation family business that has been a source of handmade antique, vintage and new rugs and carpets since 1897. The current exhibit in the Design Gallery — "Woven Gardens of Hope: Afghan Women's Carpets" — features carpets from the Miniasian's collection as part of a stunning display of textiles. 

According to the Miniasian's Website, they can provide rugs and carpets for everything from "a custom installation for a private jet, a palace size antique carpet for a governor’s residence or an accent rug for your family room." This helps to explain the dramatic size of many of the carpets on display.

Carnig Minasian is a member of the Advisory Council, Textile Museum Washington, DC, who specializes in Oriental Carpets.Minasian Rug Company Photo

Minasian Rug Company has a Facebook page as well as a beautiful Website. Both are well worth a vist. Frankly, after looking at both sites I am ready to visit their Evanston, Ill. headquarters in person. I'm guessing much of their merchandise will be out of my price range, but it looks like the experience would be similar to a trip to a museum. And after seeing the incredible carpets they loaned the Design Gallery I would love to see more.  

. . . 

TONIGHT

IDA Networking:
Transforming Poverty into Opportunity

Wednesday, February 4th, 5:30 - 7:30 pm

Join the Madison design community and UW IIDA students in learning how Afghani rug-weaving and other fair trade initiatives alleviate poverty and empower women. 

 

Note: I am a member of the Development Committee for the Helen Louise Allen Textile Collection and strongly support their mission. I am receiving no remuneration or benefit for this post.  

Fiber Friday: Magic carpets

Last Sunday Mark and I went to the opening celebration of the spectacular new exhibit at the Ruth Davis Design Gallery in Nancy Nicholas Hall at SOHE. I'm already planning my next visit to "Woven Gardens of Hope" because this is a show you will want to see more than once. It is so visually rich that it's almost impossible to absorb it all in one trip. 

The opening events last Sunday included an inspiring talk by Connie Duckworth (below), the founder of Arzu Studio Hope whose company works with women in Afghanistan to produce high end carpets for sale around the world. Many Arzu carpets are in the exhibit. So many people turned out for her presentation they had to bring more chairs into a very large lecture room that had already been set up for a big crowd! 

Many of the carpets on display came from the Minasian brothers who have a store in Evanston and are also collectors. The opening included traditional music with food by Kabul Restaurant. It was a vibrant celebration with a huge crowd filling the gallery and every level of "The Link," the atrium surrounding it. The Miniasian Rug Company and Sergenian's Floor Covering funded the opening.

Though you may have missed this special opening, there are other events on the schedule (see link below). But it's the rugs that are the real draw. The exhibit includes new and antique carpets of every size and style on the walls, the floor and hanging from the ceiling. There are rugs running like waterfalls down the wall and puddling in ripples on the floor.

These rugs have to be seen to be believed: the scale of many of the carpets is mind-boggling and the workmanship is supberb. And unlike many fiber exhibits, we are allowed to touch the carpets and even to walk on them! Items from the Helen Louise Allen Textile Collection that are on display, however, can only be enjoyed visually. 

The gallery is filled with an explosion of color, pattern and texture. Walking through it is like rambling through a souk or bazaar, with a surprise around every turn. 

There is enough information to provide context for what you're looking at but not so much as to be either annoying or overwhelming.

In addition to the wealth of carpets, there are also many articles of clothing ranging from robes to hats to shawls like this semi-sheer example covered with embroidery.

All of us got up close and personal in order to fully appreciate the rich detail on so many garments.

Many of the articles of clothing are not only covered with embroidery but they glitter with mirrors and beading, like the items hanging behind Liese Pfeifer, Academic Curator for Ruth Davis Design Gallery at School of Human Ecology, UW Madison.

One of the more impressive groups of textiles are these tent bands draped overhead and trailing down to the floor like giant ribbons.

Woven Gardens of Hope: Afghan Women's Carpets runs through March 1. You can find information about gallery days and hours here.

Here are details on all the events related to the Woven Gardens of Hope exhibit.

Here is more information on the story of Arzu Studio Hope.

Fiber Friday: Women's Afghan carpets

This Sunday, January 25, marks the opening celebration of what looks to be an exciting exhibit at the Ruth Davis Design Gallery in the School of Human Ecology at UW Madison.

Woven Gardens of Hope

3:30 – 4:30 pm – ARZU Studio Hope, Empowering Women Through Their Carpets

Lecture by Connie Duckworth, Founder and CEO of ARZU

4:30 – 6:00 pm – Delicacies by Kabul Restaurant

Most of us only know Afghanistan through the news images of strife and social breakdown that we've seen. In contrast, this exhibition looks at the area’s rich textile traditions that have contributed to our global culture for centuries.

This artisanal tradition will be shown via historic carpets from private collections, objects from the Helen Louise Allen Textile Collection and carpets by Afghan women participating in ARZU Hope Studio. Through their weaving, the women achieve entrepreneurial success and community sustainability.

According to the ARZU website, to be a registered ARZU weaver and receive fair labor wages and bonus payments, families must agree to send all of their children under age 15 to school full-time and to have women in the household attend literacy classes. 

More details about related events and gallery days and times can be found at the Design Gallery here. 

The ARZU website is filled with information, moving images of Afghan women and gorgorgeous carpets. It's well worth a visit. Both pictures here are from the ARZU site.