Threading through history

Long before male designers like Louis Vuitton, Christian Dior and Michael Kors dominated the high-fashion textile industry, women used fibers to weave baskets and even tell stories.

Today, textiles aren’t what come to mind when most people think of fine art, which is why Maria Phillips of Avenue 9 Gallery decided to hold “Fibers of Life.”

The exhibit, showcasing primarily the work of female artists, will feature a number of different pieces including quilts, knitted hats and beaded dolls, as well as crochet, Batik painting and weaving demonstrations. The objects stem from a variety of eras and themes, from the anti-war quilts Winder Baker began weaving in the 1960s to the young and hip purses by Genevieve Dietz, a member of Chikoko fashion collective, a group made up of local designers.

In addition to the fibers, many pieces are speckled with morsels of glass, ceramic and wood for texture. Dietz said it takes about seven hours to create one of her purses, while artist Daphyne Altman’s beaded and embroidered cloth “spirit dolls” (which she insists are not toys) can take weeks at a time.

Altman said she draws her inspiration from a few interesting sources.

“I pick the dolls up when I think about someone or some feeling,” Altman said. “After a while they take over and tell me what they want. Most of the time they tell me they want a lot of color.”

For her hanging tapestries, Orene Owen is inspired by more traditional sources such as cultural designs—particularly Aboriginal—and landscapes. She said her art allows her to work out family issues.

“It’s like free therapy,” Owen said.

Indeed, Phillips said, many forms of textile art function like therapy.

“The repetitive motion of knitting is good for people who are anxious,” she said. “But painting is good for people who are down and depressed because they can just sling paint.”