Fellow Spiders, In response to Jeriâs request, I would like to share my excitement about the exhibit Lace, not Lace: Contemporary Fiber Art from Lacemaking Techniques. As the Lace Study Editor of the Bulletin of the International Organization of Lace, I have been writing reviews of any and all exhibits that purport to include lace in my part of the world. But, one thing that had begun to rankle was the realization that very few exhibits of âContemporary Laceâ occurring in mainstream museums included any lace made using bobbin or needle lace techniques. Marching through miles of laser cutting, blow torch work on metal, white ceramic with holes in it, I wondered why we never saw any contemporary lace that was made with needle or bobbin, since I knew there were some wonderful pieces being made. I designed a show that includes 23 artists from around the world who are doing compelling work in needle and bobbin techniques. Also, included in the show is the Urchins by Choi + Shine, which is crochet, on a large scale. Undoubtedly some people on Arachne have been involved as volunteer crocheters on this project. The exhibit is oriented toward introducing the public and fiber artists to these very versatile fiber art techniques. Along the way, I realized that a lot of what we make in lace techniques does not fit the popular conception of what lace is. To the man on the street lace is something white with holes in it. Recent exhibitions have only expanded the definition from a white, holey textile to anything in any substance that is white with holes in it. Meanwhile our work is evolving to include color, and to make textiles that may be more solid in appearance, even three dimensional. Sometimes people will look at a piece that is made in lace technique, such as Dorie Millersonâs tiny needle lace sculptures, or Manca Ahlinâs large bobbin lace installations and they will not recognize that it is lace technique. They just donât know how it is made. Fortuitously, there are in the New York Metropolitan area, three women who have been working on lace technique. They are Manca Ahlin, Alex Goldberg, and J Carpenter. By pure chance, or maybe not, they tend to make large work, so I have been able to source the larger works in the show from them. If need be my husband and I can drive the works to the museum. The artists are excited about the show. One fear I have had is that artists who decide to work in the techniques will turn away from them because there are no shows for their work to appear in and people are not able to understand their artistry, other than as a novelty. This show, at least, will provide some positive feedback for working in the techniques and may introduce other fiber artists to the techniques which I believe to be the most fluid of textile techniques. I have included in the show work such as that of Milca Erimiasova, Ros Hills, Lenka Suchanek and Jill Nordfors Clark, trailblazers of contemporary lace in the 20th century. Also included are Penny Nickels, Maggie Hensel-Brown, Nava Lubelski and Veronika Irvine, who have recently joined the lace art community. International artists, Pierre Fouche, Nicole Valsesia-Lair, Louise West, Wako Ono, Agnes Herczeg, Dorie Millerson, Jane Atkinson and US based, but Czech trained, Daniela Banatova. Among those artists who are teachers within the US lace community, are Laura Friesel, Lauran Sundin, and Dagmar Beckel-Machyckova. In addition, a life time dream of mine, to see Lieve Jergerâs Carriage of Lost Love displayed in a public venue is included in this show. Lieve will have to travel to New Jersey to erect the Carriage, and then return to take it down. It is going to be magical! The Hunterdon Art Museum has an extensive childrenâs art program. I canât wait for the young girls to see this carriage. Also, the museum is in negotiations with Choi + Shine to display the Urchins outside on the museum terrace which is in the center of the historic town of Clinton, New Jersey. One of them may even be suspended over the South Branch of the Raritan River. The museum is an historic mill building, so it is located next to a small waterfall that originally powered two mills. The museum believes that this spectacular outdoor display will draw attention to the exhibit from the public and the press, and increase the number of visitors. Jeri was kind enough to mention the fundraising effort to support this show. Because very few people in the US even know what bobbin and needle lace are, the group of people, corporations and foundations who feel strongly that these techniques should be explained to the public is very small. So, the museum has set up a fund, the Lace Fund to collect donations specifically for this show. https://hunterdonartmuseum.org/support-lace-fund/ There has already been tremendous support for this show from the lace community. Groups and individuals have been very generous. But, as Jeri says, more donations are needed to fully fund the show. Thoughts? Devon
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