The Quilted Palette

April 12 – May 11, 2024

The Quilted Palette is a celebration of the boundless possibilities within the world of contemporary quilting. Through a harmonious blend of traditional quilting techniques and innovative approaches, this exhibition presents an array of art quilts created by artists from the PARADIGM quilt group that transcend the boundaries of fabric and thread, transforming them into captivating works of art.

Reception: Friday, April 12, 5 – 8 pm

View and Purchase artwork online.

PARADIGM is a group of artists from Southeast Michigan dedicated to the concept of the quilt as art. Most members are professional artists – teaching, lecturing, or selling their work. Although most of the art is textile based, members use many techniques in the creation of their work. The works range from quilts, to assemblages, collage, sculptures, and painting. Members meet regularly to share ideas, critique each other’s work and organize group projects and exhibitions. As a way to spur creativity and encourage the creation of new work, we routinely challenge ourselves to make pieces centered on a specific theme.

The Quilted Palette begins with a selection of individual quilts, followed by a collection inspired by two themes, Portals & Windows and Magnified.

Portals and Windows

Portals are entries or gateways. They guide us by providing a way to go or an opportunity to see outside our narrow world. They are everywhere. Through a portal a viewer can enter or peer at another world. Mundane or mystical, doorways let us admire the utility of a barn or contemplate the serenity symbolized by an arch. From the confinement of our car, we can look through the window at a sweeping skyline, home to multitudes we can only imagine. Or, perhaps, we can look inside ourselves to contemplate the portals that inevitably lead us through the different stages of our life.

Magnified

As we go about the hustle and bustle of daily life, there is so much in the world that does not get our attention. By focusing in on small things or parts of a bigger whole, images become larger than life and we can find beauty in shapes, lines, and textures invisible at a distance. We pay attention to things we might otherwise ignore and gain a new perspective looking at a world magnified.