By Dedra Cordle
Staff Writer
Quilt artist Bobbie Brooks explains to friends Marybeth Matthews and Shirley Brough the methods Susan Ahern used to create her unusually-shaped piece, ‘Playing with Fire.’ Both Ahern and Brooks, as well as 15 other artists, will have their quilts on display at City Hall in Grove City during a month-long exhibit that celebrates the talents of area quilt artists.
The Art Concern has hosted more than 100 exhibits throughout its history, but the one currently on display is something that has never been seen before at City Hall.
“This is one-of-a-kind,” said curator Ray Kline.
What makes this new exhibit so unique, he said, is that fact that the artwork is comprised of quilts rather than paintings or sculptures.
“It’s a little odd, isn’t it?” he said with a laugh. “When you think of quilts, you immediately think it should be on a bed and not hanging on a wall.”
But that challenge of perception is what makes the exhibit so special, he said.
“It makes you think beyond.”
For the artists involved, that perception of what the typical quilt looks like or what the typical quilt should be is one they enjoy changing.
“These are not your grandmother’s quilts,” said Bobbie Brooks.
Like so many of her fellow artists in the Art Quilt Alliance, Brooks has been looking forward to the month of February when the art quilts would go on display at City Hall in Grove City.
She said they love knowing that it can blow people’s minds when they find out how many non-traditional materials can be used to construct an art quilt.
“This one is made from Tyvek,” she said, pointing to the quilt ‘Orbiting Meteor Belt’ by Becky Dickson. “You don’t usually find that traditional quilts are made out of construction material.”
But it is not just the changing of perception that the quilt artists want people to discover.
They also want the community to find a certain amount of joy in the use of colors for the submitted creations. The theme is, after all, called ‘Color Escape – Brightening Winter.’
“I think we’re all tired of these winter grays,” said Kline “and these artists have certainly met the theme of the exhibit with these bright colors.”
He said he believes a visit to City Hall to see the exhibit could help lessen some of those winter blues.
“It adds a lot of brightness to an otherwise drab winter.”
‘Color Escape – Brightening Winter’ will be on display and open to the public through the month of February. The regular visiting times run Monday through Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., but appointments can be made by calling Kline at 614-875-2423. City Hall is located at 4035 Broadway in the Grove City Town Center.
