It was a poem by artist Emily Carr that inspired the theme for the season opening show at Fibreworks Gallery in Madeira Park. The two professional fabric artists, Anni Hunt and Catherine Nicholls, were already tending towards West Coast images – Hunt had stitched a depiction of a totem in soft shades of grey and brown. Nicholls had interpreted spring sunshine in one of her pieces.
Though originally from England, Hunt is very much a Canadian now and she and Nicholls share a love for the West Coast, especially the forest that surrounds them. Carr’s words: “What hearest thou? / Whisperings, murmurings, now / loud, now soft, the trees talking, / squeakings, groanings …” The title of the show is Whisperings, A Celebration of the Forest World – and indeed the artwork softly speaks to the viewer.
“The theme was right for us,” said Hunt. “We wanted it to come from the forest.”
The two have known each other for about 10 years and they found their way to a joint show at Yvonne Stowell’s Fibreworks gallery and studio after Hunt took one of the many workshops there.
“The fibre artists are a close-knit community,” Hunt said. “No pun intended.”
One of Hunt’s pieces depicts a Douglas fir – it’s an ecoprint, using dye on linen, a meticulously stitched image and transfer on silk. How long does it take to produce something so detailed as this?
“You stop counting in hours,” said Nicholls, “and you’re into days.” Nicholls painstakingly inked the lettering of Carr’s words on the banner that hangs in the centre of the round gallery, doing each letter by hand in pointillist style, a series of dots.
Both women teach professionally and both will be part of Cherry Blossoms: A Textile Translation that opens at the Silk Purse Gallery in West Vancouver. Read more about Catherine Nicholls at www.ravensthread.com or find Anni Hunt’s tutorials on YouTube.
In addition to the fibre art, potter Elizabeth Harris, a friend of Nicholls, complements the work with some of her brilliantly coloured ceramic pieces, also inspired by Emily Carr. When Harris saw the piece Signs of Spring by Nicholls she was moved to create a matching piece. Several of her dishes are on show along with other items: wearable art from local artisans.
The show will be up until May 15 and Fibreworks is open Wednesdays to Sundays from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. or by appointment. It is located in the yurts near Madeira Park on Highway 101. See www.fibreworksgallery.com for more.
