California Fibers Exhibit Opens at the Beatrice Wood Center for the Arts

Last Sunday, the most recent California Fibers exhibit opened at the Beatrice Wood Center for the Arts in Ojai, California...

The exhibit continues through March 30, with an artists panel planned for the closing day.

Michael F. Rohde's Labrang, Polly Jacobs Giacchina's Accumulated, Charlotte Bird's Habitat: Granite, Peggy Weidemann's Of the Same Beginnings, and Carol Lang's Orbital Moves.

The exhibit was juried by Kevin Wallace, seen here with Polly Jacobs Giacchina, after he juried the Soka University exhibition...

The exhibit includes a wide variety of fiber work, from crochet, through quilting, felted work, basketry, surface design, embroidery, weaving, wearables, and other mixed media.

Ashley Blalock's Untitled Doily Arrangement #2

Some of the artists traveled to Ojai for the opening; this is a sampling of the show from their photos.

 Brecia Kralovic-Logan's silk collage Redemption

 Cameron Taylor Brown with her piece Indigo Vat: Colors of Gujarat

 Chari Myers' piece 5931 Street

Above is a piece of Gail Fraser's Illusory Path, Lydia Tjioe Hall's Barnacle, VALYA's Memories A, and Susan Hart Henegar's The Invisible Man Series.

Above is Lori Zimmerman's Soon on the left, with Lydia Tjioe Hall's Three Studies next to Fraser's piece.

 Julie Kornblum's Our Layer in front of Doshi's Black and White wearable on the back wall.

 Doshi's piece again with Peggy Weidemann's sculpture Of the Same Beginnings and Carol Lang's Orbital Moves in front.

 Carrie Burckle and Lori Zimmerman in front of Burckle's Rend 2.

 Kornblum with her piece Our Layer.

 Tjioe Hall's Three Studies

 Polly Jacobs Giacchina's Warehoused.

Kathy Nida's Here.

Marilyn McKenzie Chaffee's piece Marking Time #6.

The exhibit continues through the end of March, so there is plenty of time to stop by and see it. We will have a list of participating artists and times for the artists' panel as soon as they are available.

California Fibers Opening at Soka University

Thursday, January 30, California Fibers' members gathered at Soka University for the official opening of their show, which will be open through May 8.

California Fibers' members installed the show themselves in early January...with Charlotte Bird's Small Wonders featured here...

Lynne Hodgman's Altarpiece is being hung here...

The opening included piano music and singing...

 

The first song was sung by Erica Charlton, SUA Class of 2016, with piano Selections by Chihiro Tsumori and Yurika Nakagawa from the SUA Extended University Bridge Program.

 California Fibers' president Peggy Wiedemann spoke about the exhibit...

And Arie Galles, Professor of Painting/Drawing and Director of Creative Arts at Soka welcomed the group and introduced the students...

These are pictures of the exhibit, which is in a very large space in Founders Hall on the campus. 

It's nice to have an exhibit with so much open, airy space around the pieces...

 giving you the opportunity to experience each piece on its own.

 Here is California Fibers' artist VALYA with her piece Waiting List...

And a detail of that piece, which includes felting.

 VALYA's piece Porcelain BABA...

 and a detail, also in felt.

 VALYA with her piece Cell Memories...

 also here.

 Susan Hart Henegar's Triptych with Brecia Kralovic-Logan's Hush Hush and Vision Quest...

 Cameron Taylor Brown's Indigo Dreams 1 on the left, with Gail Fraser's Impulse hanging in the corner.

Kathy Nida's Earth Mother on the left, with Polly Jacobs Giacchina's Specimens and Ashley Blalock's Keeping Up Appearances in the corner.

 Continuing around the corner, you can clearly see Michael F. Rohde's Sisyphus on the right.

These are Ellen Phillips' Tribal Women India 1-6.

 This interesting piece is Lydia Tjioe Hall's Pins and Needles Second Incarnation.

 Susan Henry's Vortex is next to Carrie Burkle's Bruised and Empty Purple and Pink.

 This is Polly Jacobs Giacchina's piece Textures: Strung Out.

 Kathy Nida's quilt Earth Mother...

 Ashley Blalock's Keeping Up Appearances next to Susan Henry's Vortex...

On the left, three of Cameron Taylor Brown's smaller pieces, with Julie Kornblum's Plastic in the Trees in the middle and Michael F. Rohde's Pastorale on the right.

A closer shot of Gail Fraser's Impulse...

 A closeup of one of Ellen Phillips' Tribal Women India.

Carrie Burckle's Bruised and Empty Purple, with Bruised and Empty Pink behind it.

Lori Zimmerman with her Mending 1.1, 1.2, and 1.3.

Members whose work will be included in the exhibition are: Ashley Blalock, Charlotte Bird, Carrie Burckle, Marilyn McKenzie Chaffee, Doshi, Gail Fraser, Polly Jacobs Giacchina, Susan Hart Henegar, Susan Henry, Lynne Hodgman, Julie Kornblum, Brecia Kralovic-Logan, Carol E. Lang, Chari Myers, Kathy Nida, Ellen Phillips, Michael Rohde, Cameron Taylor-Brown, Lydia Tjioe Hall, VALYA, Peggy Wiedemann, and Lori Zimmerman.

The exhibit is open Monday through Friday from 9-5 and admission is free. Click here for a map and directions.

California Fibers Opens at Beatrice Wood Center for the Arts

Tomorrow, February 9, the new California Fibers exhibit opens at the Beatrice Wood Center for the Arts in Ojai, California, running through March 30.

Here is Lydia Tjioe Hall's Three Studies...

 Ashley Blalock's crocheted Arrangement 1...

and Julie Kornblum's Our Layer, made of recycled materials.

Juror Kevin Wallace recently put together a California Fibers' exhibit at Soka University in Aliso Viejo, California, and was so impressed with what was submitted that he asked to curate an exhibition of work to be presented at the Center, to share a selection of the exciting work exhibited at the SOKA University Art Gallery.

Here is Charlotte Bird's Habitat: Granite.

The creative expressions of California Fibers' members include weaving, basketry, sculpture, quilting, embroidery, felting, surface design, knitting, crochet, wearables, and mixed media.

The opening is Sunday from 2-5 PM. There will be an artists' panel on March 30, the closing day of the exhibit.

California Fibers at Soka University

California Fibers is excited to announce three upcoming shows in the next 30 days, the first of which is California Fibers at Soka University in Aliso Viejo, California. This exhibition features exemplary work by 22 Southern California fiber artists and will open on January 13, 2014, at Soka University’s Founders Hall Art Gallery in Aliso Viejo. The Opening Reception will be held on January 30, 2014, from 5:30-7:45 PM. 

Vortex by Susan Henry

 

This comprehensive exhibit features 66 different works by members of California Fibers, and was juried by Kevin Wallace, Director of the Beatrice Wood Center for the Arts.  The bold new works in this exhibition speak both of tradition and of wide-ranging contemporary artistic exploration. “We are at times amazed by content in viewing these works – to have concept, narrative, statement and abstraction explored utilizing materials and processes that bring to mind our childhood homes and walks in nature. I couldn’t have dreamt up a more wonderful experience of contemporary fiber art than I was presented with as juror,” said Mr. Wallace. 

Lichen Cluster by Polly Jacobs Giacchina
 

California Fibers, founded in 1970, supports artistic growth and professional advancement for contemporary Southern California fiber artists. The imagination and superb craftsmanship of these artists place them in the highest echelon in their fields. The group has an extensive exhibition history in the USA and abroad. Many of its members are well-represented in museums and private collections and are recipients of prestigious awards from around the world. Their creative expression includes weaving, basketry, sculpture, quilting, embroidery, felting, surface design, knitting, crochet, wearables, and mixed media.  

 

Plastic in the Trees 1 by Julie Kornblum

 

Members whose work will be included in the exhibition are: Ashley Blalock, Charlotte Bird, Carrie Burckle, Marilyn McKenzie Chaffee, Doshi, Gail Fraser, Polly Jacobs Giacchina, Susan Hart Henegar, Susan Henry, Lynne Hodgman, Julie Kornblum, Brecia Kralovic-Logan, Carol E. Lang, Chari Myers, Kathy Nida, Ellen Phillips, Michael Rohde, Cameron Taylor-Brown, Lydia Tjioe Hall, VALYA, Peggy Wiedemann, and Lori Zimmerman.

 

Mending 1.3 by Lori Zimmerman

 

Soka University Founders Hall Art Gallery, located at 1 University Drive in Aliso Viejo, CA, is open Monday through Friday from 9 AM-5 PM. Admission is free. California Fibers will be on display from January 13-May 8, 2014.  Click here for a map and directions.

C Is for... at the Visions Art Museum

California Fibers' member Charlotte Bird currently has an exhibit with Cathy Denton at the Visions Art Museum in Liberty Station, San Diego, California. The show is running through January 19, so the holiday season is a good time to stop by and see their collaboration if you haven't already.

The basis of the exhibit began when the two artists wondered what would happen if two artists whose names begin with the letter C opened the dictionary to words that begin with C, closed their eyes and pointed to a word on the page, and then created a work of art from the definition? This long-distance collaboration became C is for…, combining the talents of these two multimedia artists who have interpreted their "C" word definitions in cloth.
  

Calliope by Charlotte Bird

When the two artists imagined the exhibition in 2011, their goal was for each to create one small art quilt per month for 15 months. Now there are 15 sets of quilts, each set interpreting a different word that begins with the letter "C." The artists set the rule for themselves that they couldn't throw any words back and they each had to use the same word for that month.

Charlotte Bird's art quilts, one seen above, incorporate her hand-dyed and silk-screened cotton fabrics, which are constructed with hand-cut and fused appliqué, machine-quilted, and hand-embroidered. Their dimensions range from 12x11 inches to 26x20 inches.

Calliope by Cathy Denton

Cathy Denton's art quilts are hand-painted, machine-quilted silk. Four quilts were drawn in Photoshop® and printed with a pigment printer on a variety of fabrics. Her diminutive quilts range in size from 6x8 inches to 10x13 inches.

Both artists infuse their work with much whimsy and humor. No two interpretations are alike. This exhibit is running concurrently with the Del Thomas Collection exhibit at VAM, both worth a first and second view.

In Remembrance of Artist Ruth Asawa

San Francisco Artist Ruth Asawa died at her home on August 6.  She was 87.

 http://www.latimes.com/news/obituaries/la-me-ruth-asawa-20130808,0,3036563.story

http://www.npr.org/ruth asawa

Ruth was a student at Black Mountain college from 1946 - 1949 and she studied under Josef Albers.
In the 1950's her use of wire combined with looping was considered very daring and a new form of experimentation with materials.
"I was interested in ... the economy of a line, making something in space, enclosing it without blocking it out.  It's still transparent.  I realized that if I was going to make these forms, which interlock and interweave, it can only be done with a line because a line an go anywhere." Ruth Asawa, The sculpture of Ruth Asawa, Contours in Air, University of California Press

    

1954 Life Magazine Feature, photograph by Nat Farbman

1967, bronze wire, 12 x 68 x 68 in.

1950's printed cork ends, ink on paper

California Fibers welcomes our newest members

California Fibers would like you to meet our new members, Brecia Kralovic-Logan, 
Lori Zimmerman,  and Lydia Tjioe-Hall.