I received my complimentary ATB8 catalog recently; that’s because I am one of the lucky ones whose work was accepted for this, the Cadillac of tapestry exhibits. I know, it’s a weird analogy, but my father worked for GM his whole life, so humor me.
I don’t want to spoil the surprise for those who will see this exhibit or buy the catalog, so here is a TINY image of my tapestry. 
It’s Chaotic Fragments: Part 3, 14x14”
In the past, the American Tapestry Alliance’s prestigious, international juried ATB shows have opened during the big biennial summer weaving conference, Convergence, but this time a gallery could not be found at the conference venue, Albuquerque, NM. So the exhibit will open September 20-November 15, 2010, at the Elder Gallery, in Lincoln, NE, in conjunction with the Textile Society of America conference.
It will also travel to the American Textile History Museum in Lowell, MA, January 22-May 1, 2011.
It’s really too bad it won’t be showing during Convergence, since so many weavers will be in Albuquerque, and I remember gallery sitting at past ATBs, where many conference attendees told me it’s always their favorite exhibit. They will miss it this year.
Meanwhile, the catalogs have already been printed; they will be available at Convergence, and can also be purchased online or by mail through the American Tapestry Alliance website.
It’s an excellent catalog. Technically it’s perfect: no typos, no errors, layout and print quality are perfect. 53 pages of tapestries in full color, YUM!
The front cover is a slightly cropped version of “Riverroad” by John Nicholson. The back cover is a detail from “Peggy” by Joanne Sanburg, and I have to confess, it’s one of the funniest tapestries I’ve ever seen, while irresistably sumptuous in color and texture. Tempted to buy the catalog?
The juror, Rebecca A.T. Stevens, is a renowned scholar with a deep knowledge of tapestry, and Consulting Curator of Contemporary Textiles for the Textile Museum in Washington D.C. Her essay is thought provoking. A second essay is by Paula Owen, president and CEO of Southwest School of Art and Craft. She writes about her 10 favorite tapestries from this exhibit.
I was very nervous that maybe the photo of my tapestry might be out of focus or something. In the past I have seen catalogs where one or two of the photos were not clear, but I was quite relieved to see how nicely my photo printed up.
I have entered this show many times before, but this is the first time I’ve been accepted. Submitting all the catalog information caused me a few moments of anxiety, because after all, once it’s in print, it’s permanent!
So I agonized over writing the artist statement and the brief bio, and which photo of myself to submit.
Here’s the original photo that I cropped to show just my face.
It’s me and my old 9th grade best friend, Dagge, when we reunited in northern Sweden last September.
It makes me happy to know that she was standing next to me when the photo was taken, even though you can’t see her in the catalog.
It’s as if she’s there holding my hand and keeping me company.
I chose the other one for the catalog because it’s more flattering, but I love this one with us laughing together, just like old times!
5 comments:
It is a wonderful catalog! I hope to get to see you again at the opening in Lowell, MA. I'll be there, tho' I won't get to be at the one in Nebraska.
Fun to see where your photo came from. I think mine was a self-taken one I did up against the wall with my digital camera for a passport photo - so it looks backwards to me!
I will see you in Lowell. So you were "up against the wall!" ? Aren't all photos backward compared to looking in the mirror?
I'll be at the first opening, I just bought my plane ticket to Nebraska, since I'll be on my way home from California around then anyway....
I can't wait to see the exhibit. Congratulations!
I was also SO impressed with the catalog (and LOVED Joanne Sanburg's piece! Hilarious!)... and am still stunned that I am in there actually. As I looked at it I just kept thinking, this show is so GOOD, how did I get in? I hope to make it to Lowell as well. I doubt I will make it to Nebraska, though I'd like to go to the TSA conference. It is just too soon after my show in Germany and I will not have recovered financially yet. I like your piece a lot Jan and can't wait to see it in person.
Rebecca, I hope to see you in New Mexico, and I will definitely be in Lowell (it's only about 60 miles). Don't worry, the juror really knows her stuff, and your piece is really great. I too am drawn to spirals, especially moon snails!
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