Hanging by a thread— you may be right now, and it can be easy to feel that way. Nearly a year and a half of stress and safety precautions, plus life’s given challenges, has put the most stable among us on edge. Enter: lush weavings and delicate embroidery. Fiber art is the antithesis to chaos, inherently intimate in its construction. Methodical, precise, even tedious, thread-based art demands that its creator take their time.

4.9 Miles to South Haven by Molly Kelley. Rope, Yarn, New Zealand Sheep's Wool. 36 x 20

The pieces included in this group exhibit range from large scale to miniature, with great variation in visual delivery as well. Quilting, weaving, and embroidery create a broad scale of moods, showcasing the designs of each of the different artists. After a prolonged period of isolation and stagnation, themes that ponder relationships, place, and nature are a welcome respite.

Ancestor Dance by Stephanie Lewis Robertson. Indigo, wood, embroidery floss, beads, cotton fabric, canvas. 12 1/2" x 33"

“I Felt a Connection” by Susan Fletcher Conaway and “Ancestor Dance” by Stephanie Lewis Robertson explore linear and repetitive motifs to describe relationships. The collection from Molly Kelley envisions specific locations: “4.9 Miles to South Haven” and “On Lake Macatawa.” Robertson, Boring, and Kelley include natural elements in the construction of their fiber works, incorporating sage and sweet grass, tea staining, and New Zealand sheep’s wool.

The attention to detail in each stitch and knot reveals the time consuming nature of fiber art. Rather than in a robbing sense, this time spent in meditative repetition can be personally restorative. Each piece is like a deep breath, as art makes its home in soft textures that you could imagine running your hands over or resting your head on. Fiber art is especially evocative to audiences because it speaks a language we understand, with materials we have likely felt before, even if the feelings drawn out by them are new.

I Felt a Connection by Susan Fletcher Conaway. Fabric, thread. 40 x 40.

“Hanging by a Thread” will be on display in the Harrison Center’s Gallery Annex for the month of August. The exhibit can be viewed in-person by appointment and in our online gallery, where all pieces are available for purchase.

Artists featured in this group exhibit:

Susan Fletcher Conaway

Karyl Boring

Stephanie Robertson

Lucy Burton

Molly Kelley

Marcia Jones

Beth Guipe Hall

Carolyn Springer

Evaline Skomp

Kate Oberreich

Kristi Marsh Watson