Our Town...DownTown, Summer 2005,
By Jody Sanderson
Oakville's Vibrant fibre arts festival
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Our Town...DownTown, Summer 2005,
By Jody Sanderson
Oakville's Vibrant fibre arts festival
(insert photo) From left, Grace Delottinville, Oakville Arts Council Executive Director, Janice Joyner of Mary Kay Cosmentics, Michael Maynard, Associate Dean of Visual and Performing Arts at Sheridan College, Jane Coryell, Chair of Common Threads and Helen Barnes from the OAC.
Fibre artists from across Canada and around the GTA painted the town red, and blue, and yellow, and orange and every other imaginable colour during the 4th Annual Fibre Arts Festival which took place the last two weeks of May.
"The Festival was a celebration of heritage arts as well as an exhibit of how modern fibre artists are expanding on traditional techniques to create innovative new pieces," says local artist Jane Coryell, who helped to organize the event.
"It was also an opportunity for the artists to share their knowledge with the public and to gain inspiration from each other".
Special guest speakers included well-known fibre artists Barbara Klunder and Lorraine Roy, who also served as a jurist for the Common Thread exhibit.
A highlight of the Festival was the 6th Common Thread exhibition, a national juried show of fibre arts held at The Sheridan ITAL Gallery which attracted 187 entries from Calgary, Winnipeg, Brampton, Eliot Lake, Georgetown, Hamilton, Kingston, London, Manitoulin Island, Port Hope, Scarborough, Toronto, Wainfleet and Montreal.
Best Traditional Award, ($500) sponsored by The Wool Bin, went to Li Chai, of Toronto, for Pink Baby. Karen Thiessen, of Hamilton, won Best Contemporary Award ($500) for Shadow; Hope #4. The award was sponsored, and presented by Janice Joyner, Mary Kay Cosmetics. The Best of Show Award ($1000) was given to Kirsten Boehm. Of Montreal, for Mother & Daughter.
"I was struck by the very Canadian, and Native feel of this show," said jurist Lorraine Roy, a professional textile artist who provided one of the workshop during the festival.
The Festival, a collaborative project of the Oakville Arts Council and the Oakville Fibre Guilds, has been growing every year since its inception in 1999. This year, exhibitions were also located at The Red Thread Gallery, The Silver Thimble, Town Hall, Oakville Museum, Julia Restaurant, Abbozzo Gallery and the Cicada Gallery.
The 4th Annual Fibre Arts Festival was organized in cooperation with the Oakville Art Council and Oakville's five fibre arts guilds including The Oakville Stitchery Guild, The Oakville Quilters Guild, The Oakville Ring of Tatters, The Oakville Handweavers and Spinners Guild and The Marjorie Carberry Rug Hooking Guild.
Abbozzo Gallery presented "Traveling Threads" in conjunction with the World of Threads Festival. The exhibition featured hand-embroidered scenes by Jane Coryell, fabric collage landscapes by Marie Kajdasz, and concepts in textile by Barbara Klunder. There was an opening reception held May 13th at the gallery with all of the artists present.
The Festival is a bi-annual event that has become a much sought after opportunity for artists across the country to submit and exhibit their work. Missed it this year? Discover more about upcoming arts events by calling the Oakville Arts Council at 905-815-5977 or check them out on-line at www.oakvillearts.com.