January 17, 2019 – 5:30-7:30PM
Public Opening of The Umbrella Community Arts Center’s “Migration: A curated fiber arts exhibition”
Free and open to the public
Join The Umbrella Visual Arts Program for the opening reception of its new gallery show. This major fiber arts invitational responding to the theme ‘migration’ including works by Louise Berliner, Nayda A. Cuevas, Jodi Colella, Merill Comeau, Nancy Crasco, Alexander Davis, Tica de Moor, Jeanne Flanagan, Kimberly Harding, Janet Kawada, Donna Rhae Marder, Valerie Maser-Flanagan, Lois Russell, Joyce Utting Schutter, Adrienne Sloane, Sisters in Stitches Joined by the Cloth Quilt Guild, and Ngoc-Tran Vu.
Curated by Jess Muise, Director of Visual Arts, the show runs from January 10 Through February 28, with numerous related public programs including drop-in workshop nights, artists’ roundtable, and more. For complete schedule, see https://theumbrellaarts.org/migration
Exhibition Description
Migration has become a recurrent theme for our artist community in transition as we witness the migrations of people and other living creatures in this current social, environmental and political climate. As we watch thousands immigrate across continents and risk their lives, or entire species’ patterns shift or decimate entirely, we turn to a tactile and historic tradition of meaningful utility.
We contemplate ‘migrations’ within shifting and fluid ways of being and defining our own cultural, gendered and embodied identities. With the our physical gallery space in transition as the container, we have invited artists working with fiber arts from diverse contemporary and craft traditions, to engage with this theme and our community.
Fiber is a rich tactile medium embedded with stories that reflect its connection to origin place and materials. The exhibit will pull together a collection of objects that store and carry, those that inscribe personal and family histories and traditions of place and new narratives on migration as journey. An evolving exhibition in its installation and opportunities for engagement are acts of moving from one place to another in and of themselves.
We are excited to partner with Dignity in Asylum, a local non-profit with the mission to provide safe transitional housing and support for asylum seekers, refugees, people who have been granted asylum and unaccompanied minors at risk of homelessness on this exhibition. A portion of funds raised during this exhibition will be donated to support their work.
The Umbrella Community Arts Center
40 Stow Street, Concord, MA
978-371-0820