Maryville University Hosts ArtFiber Exhibit
2/21/07
For its 10th exhibit, ArtFiber St. Louis has decided to return to the site where it had its first exhibit in 1998: Maryville University’s Morton J. May Foundation Gallery. The gallery will host “ArtFiber 10,” an exhibit of art quilts and other mixed media, beginning February 26 and running through March 23. A reception for the artists will be held on March 1, from 6-8 p.m.
ArtFiber St. Louis is an organization comprised of six members who come from eclectic backgrounds, said Pat Owoc, spokesperson for the group. Members include a business education and administration major from Denmark who taught preschool and art to children and who now designs and makes liturgical art quilts; a mother of three school-age children who has a master’s degree in liberal arts and whose quilts reflect her love of reading and writing; and a former high school counselor whose work often contains a note of humor or irony.
ArtFiber St. Louis, which was organized in 1996 as Art Quilt Alliance, grew out of the need for a supportive, collaborative organization for a small group of artists in the greater St. Louis area, Owoc said. “Our organization was formed because members wanted to use the quilt form as a way of creating art,” she said. “Although there are approximately 20 to 25 quilting groups in St. Louis, none of the others has art quilts as a focus.”
Most ArtFiber members have appeared in international publications and most have been juried into national and international exhibitions. Members who will display their work in ArtFiber 10 are Marianne Axboe, Drew Donnelly Benage, Carole Braig, Joyce Briscoe, Chris Burton and Pat Owoc.
Morton J. May Gallery hours are 8 a.m. – 10 p.m., Monday – Thursday; 8 a.m. – 6 p.m., Friday – Saturday; and 11 a.m. – 10 p.m., Sunday. For more information on this exhibit, contact gallery director Roxanne Phillips at rphillips@maryville.edu.
Maryville University, founded in 1872, is a private, coeducational institution offering approximately 50 undergraduate, seven master’s and two doctoral degree programs to 3,300 students. Ranked by U.S. News and World Report as one of America’s Best Colleges in the Midwest, Maryville University prepares its students for successful and meaningful careers by offering programs that integrate liberal arts with professional studies. Among Maryville’s most recent graduates, 94 percent are employed or attending graduate school. Approximately 15,000 alumni work and live in the St. Louis region.