In Stitches: Contemporary Approaches to Needlework

September 23, 2020 – May 8, 2021

Rosy Petri
Asase Yaa, 2020
Cotton and dyed cotton thread
48 x 36 x 3/4 inches
Racine Art Museum, Courtesy of the Artist
Photography: Courtesy of the Artist

For some, needlework and other fiber-related techniques are pastimes, while for others, they are used for professions. For still more, these practices are employed to depict ideas. The contemporary artists whose works are included in this exhibition prioritize these processes and use handcraft techniques like embroidery, sewing, crocheting, and quilting to explore a wide range of subjects. They investigate labor, gender, memory, and history, and popular culture as well as personal or social issues.

Primarily drawn from RAM’s collection, the works featured in this exhibition demonstrate contemporary methods of working with materials such as fabric, thread, yarn, and embroidery floss through the use of needles, hooks, or hands. Works on loan from Milwaukee area artists Sharon Kerry-Harlan, Rosemary Ollison, and Rosy Petri expand this conversation even further. Incorporating African influences, Kerry-Harlan uses textiles, as well as other media, to explore the potential metaphors and meanings of the human face and figure. Ollison collects glass, leather, bracelets, beads, bones, and jewelry that she then incorporates into all manner of works, including quilts. Interested in personal and cultural heritage, and often linking her work to her African roots, Petri uses traditional quilting techniques to create contemporary portraits.

Diverse examples shown next to one another offer opportunities for comparison and contrast. Large-scale quilts using found linens are shown alongside small-scale photo-realistic embroideries, crocheted earrings, and stitched baskets. In whatever form, these works reflect how handcraft traditions can be incorporated—and expanded upon—to make creative, aesthetic, thoughtful, symbolic and practical statements.

More About the Exhibition

Exhibition Notes (PDF)

Additional information about featured artists, Sharon Kerry-Harlan, Rosemary Ollison, and Rosy Petri:

Sharon Kerry-Harlan at Portrait Society Gallery

Sharon Kerry-Harlan on the Wisconsin Academy of Science, Arts & Letters

Sharon Kerry-Harlan’s website

Rosemary Ollison at Portrait Society Gallery

Rosy Petri’s website

Rosy Petri on Midwest Fiber Arts Trails

Artists in the Exhibition

James Acord, Jackie Abrams, Renie Breskin Adams, Mary Beth Baloga, Diane Banks, Linda Behar, Mary Bero, Michael Brennand-Wood, Sally Broadwell, Joyce Marquess Carey, Marcia Docter, Theodora Elston, Arline Fisch, Teri Greeves, Janet Haigh, David R. Harper, Marilyn Henrion, Cindy Hickok, Jan Hopkins, Diane Itter, Michael James, Cherry Barr Jerry, Rosita Johanson, Sharon Kerry-Harlan, Kay Khan, Ai Kijima, Anne Kingsbury, Lilla Kulka, Amy Lipshie, Dona Look, Tom Lundberg, Patricia Malarcher, Therese May, Norma Minkowitz, Ellen Moon, Diana Mott-Thornton, Charlene Nemec-Kessel, Mark Newport, Rosemary Ollison, Judith H. Perry, Rosy Petri, Lily Poran, Andrzej Rajch, Tom Rauschke, Gretchen Romey-Tanzer, Joan Schulze, Susan Shie, Carol Shinn, Barbara Lee Smith, Blanka Sperková, Missy Stevens, Barbara Stutman, Feileke van der Leest, Carol Warner, Katherine Westphal, Kaaren Wiken, Anne Wilson, and Claire Zeisler