Uncommon threads coming to Park Circle Gallery
A Thread Runs Through It opens April 2
The City of North Charleston’s Cultural Arts Department is pleased to announce that works by Art Quilters of the Lowcountry will be on display at Park Circle Gallery from April 2-24, 2021. The group exhibition is free and open to the public.
The Art Quilters of the Lowcountry is a group of five award-winning fiber artists who share a passion for creating art using fabric and thread. Their work ranges from large to small and from abstract to realistic, using fabric, thread, and quilting techniques to create the illusion of 3-dimensional art. This group of artists exhibits monthly at the Hilton Head Island Art League at Ats Center at Shelter Cove on Hilton Head Island. The artists have been selected individually for many juried quilt and art shows. "A Thread Runs Through It" features fiber pieces that showcase the individual interests and talents of the Art Quilters of the Lowcountry. Ron Hodge creates his art using various fabrics, but there is always one constant – his precision piecing and bead work. Donna Stankiewicz paints her fabric with various dyes and then embellishes with applique and thread painting. Ro Morrissey uses strips of fabric along with thread painting to create painterly images of seascapes and landscapes. Peg Weschke creates fiber collages to realistically portray Lowcountry scenes, and Jody Wigton uses color and improvisational piecing to create beautiful abstract art. The artists’ five unique styles together create an interesting and eclectic fiber art show. To learn more about the Quilters, visit their website at www.artquiltersofthelowcountry.com.The Park Circle Gallery is located at 4820 Jenkins Avenue in North Charleston, in what was formerly known as the Olde Village Community Building. Admission is free and free street parking is available on Jenkins Avenue in front of the gallery, as well as on the adjacent streets and in parking lots close by. The gallery is open 10 a.m.-6 p.m. Tuesday-Friday, and Noon-4 p.m. on Saturdays. In compliance with safety recommendations from the CDC and SCDHEC, gallery capacity is currently limited to 10 people at a time. Staff and all visitors must wear a mask while they are in the gallery and practice social distancing. Hand sanitizer will be provided upon entry. For more information about PCG, call 843.637.3565 or email culturalarts@northcharleston.org. For information on other Cultural Arts programs and artist opportunities, visit the Arts & Culture section of the City’s website at www.northcharleston.org.
English-style pieced quilt medallion from the 1950s. Provided by McKissick Museum.[/caption]
As the day nears for the 2019 South Carolina Arts Awards, The Hub is taking 15 days to focus on this year's recipients: nine receiving the 
Dorothy Glover is well-known for her distinctive use of traditional quilt design elements and patterns from the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Born in 1925, she was the child of farmers Essie and William Glover creates exquisite quilt tops incorporating improvisational design methods that were popular among quilters whose social and economic status did not allow for the purchase of store-bought fabric for use in quilt making.
Like most farm girls of her time, Glover was introduced to quilting by watching her mother make the quilts beneath which she slept as a child. These family treasures were created from strips and blocks of fabric salvaged from various articles of family clothing that were worn out and no longer wearable. The quilt backings were made from feed sacks and other pieces of old cloth from around the household. As a young adult, Glover took up the tradition and in time, through her patient and persistent devotion, she became a master of the art form.
After marrying, Glover and her husband, Curtis, made their home in Lincolnville, where they raised their children. Continuing the family tradition, all three children slept each night beneath the quilts made by their talented mother.
Lincolnville Town Hall, across the street from Glovers’ home, became an important artistic oasis. It was there that Ms. Glover embraced a community of women who organized an ongoing quilting bee, via which they shared an infinitude of creative ideas and tales of town history. This unique quilting bee, among other significant achievements, pieced together a group quilt to provide an historical timeline of Lincolnville—a place that had been founded by freed African-Americans following the Civil War. The women’s powerful history quilt paid homage to the days of the Reconstruction era, when Lincolnville became a haven to which formerly enslaved families came for a better life and community support. This special bee came, in time, to capture the hearts (and hands!) of many of the women of Lincolnville.
For decades, Glover has inspired countless quilters, young and old, to join her in her artistic journey. Glover’s quilt reputation does not stop at Lincolnville. Quilters from throughout the state come to seek out her impressive quilting knowledge. Interested quilters watch her work painstakingly on intricate patterns like the “The Cathedral Window,” a quilt design known for the artist’s use of “invisible hand” applique stitches and precision piecing.
Glover gracefully transforms thoughts and visions onto fabric and encourages other quilters, regardless of skill level, to experiment with patterns, colors, and designs. She generously shares her knowledge with all who want to learn and makes herself available to younger artists who seek out her experience and guidance.
