33rd Annual Friends of Art SIUE Auction-the fiber connection

Pardon me for not posting lately--I tend to have a one track mind and my mind has been on some volunteer work I do for the Friends of Art, a non profit organization connected with my alma mater.  We are planning an art auction, the proceeds of which benefit the visiting artist program in the Department of Art and Design at Southern Illinois University Edwardsville.

Anyhoo, since last fall I've been photographing all the work, posting on facebook and supplying images to our webmaster so that visitors can see the catalog of items.  If you are on facebook, be sure to stop by Friends of Art SIUE to see the catalog. The above item is my contribution to this year's 33rd annual auction.  You've seen the fabric before in previous posts here and here.  My friend Lillian Bates who owns By Design boutique in Alton agreed to partner with me.  She will make a custom garment with my silk for the lucky bid winner.  Lillian's been sewing for years and dreamed of creating her own fashion line.  Her shop is a little slice of heaven and now she is also offering classes in sewing for beginners to advanced techniques.  Here's a sampling of her work.  If you click on the picture above you can read the details of the donation.

Samples of Lillian's work above.  The fabulous fabric on the left is embroidered with bumblebees!  The 2nd dress is fabric of Lillian's own creation using thread and wash away stabilizer.  The 4th dress is a custom wedding gown.

Confluence Over Ogallala Reservoir c2009 Laura Strand

Friend, colleague, collaboration partner and Head of Textiles at SIUE, Laura Strand has donated this gorgeous jacquard weaving for the auction.  Confluence Over Ogallala Reservoir was woven for Laura's solo show at Jacoby Arts Center for the 2009 Innovations in Textiles event.  It is around 50 inches wide.  Laura is always generous for the auction.  She has donated weavings the last several years, but wow is this one a doozy!

Three scarves by Erin Vigneau Dimick, using tie-dyed t-shirts L and R.  Center is recycled wool, cashmere, and angora

Another collaboration partner, Erin Vigneau Dimick, who also teaches at SIUE, has donated three scarves.  Erin has been making scarves and other fashion using upcycled used clothing.  Erin was recently interviewed for one of the local papers in anticipation of the auction.  She is also launching a blog but it is in very early stages yet.  I'm sure she'll get some posts up when her bookarts class winds down this semester.  She does incredible work with embroidered text on vintage textiles and clothing in her other artistic life.  I'll be writing about her soon regarding our work together last year.

Another highlight of the auction is the work of Deborah Waldman-Pontious who has been whipping up dazzling coats for several years.  A former student of Laura Strand's she recently was invited to audition for Project Runway and we are all rooting for her success.  The wrap coat on the left is brown and turquoise rayon acetate outer with a pumpkin silk lining.  The jacket on the right is black print cotton velvet.  

More fiber work was donated from current and past students of Laura's.  And there is much much more to see of every medium of art-paintings, drawings, prints, sculpture, glass, photography, graphics and mixed media-donated by students, alumni, faculty and friends in the community.  With 195 items in the live auction and 75 items in the silent auction, this is one of the biggest events we've ever hosted!

Consider yourself invited!  If you live in southern Illinois or the St. Louis area this is a great opportunity to get in on the action and add to your art collection.
WHEN:  Thursday, April 12    6 pm preview, 7 pm live auction begins
WHERE:  satellite campus of Lewis and Clark Community College, 600 Troy Road, Edwardsville, IL
ADMISSION:  $5 (free to current SIUE students, donors, FOA members and volunteers)
Cash bar, free snacks and tons of fun await you.  

LIKE us on Facebook at Friends of Art SIUE
Or visit the website at www.siuefriendsofart.com

SIUE Art Auction Update

The Friends of Art Auction site has been updated with 2010 information.  The cataloging of donated items will be done on the 28th and soon after the entire auction catalog will appear online in a lovely slide show so that visitors can get a sneak preview ahead of the auction which takes place Thursday, April 8.  As of our FOA meeting last night, 145 items had been logged in with many more arriving tomorrow and early next week. On auction night, a preview time starts at 6 PM with the live auction beginning at 7 PM. 

Doing my part for Friends of Art

I've been donating one or two pieces each year to the SIUE Friends of Art Auction for the last ten years beginning when I entered grad school.  Three years ago I was invited to join the board of directors for FOA which organizes the auction.  Since 1980 proceeds from art donations have funded the visiting artist program bringing scores of local, national and international artists to the campus in every area of art.  The money has also gone to fund an art scholarship, prize money for undergrad and grad shows, a high school art competition and the auction competition, the Lovejoy Library fund, conferences, travel stipends, student art organizations, the Mexica project, and ARTEAST.  

Grad school was a fantastic experience for me, coming after 25 years of teaching art at the high school level.  The experience was greatly enhanced by the incredible number of visiting artists I got to meet so I will gladly donate to support the cause.   

I'm donating the piece pictured above.  I've also posted the image under the event calendar for the auction at the right.  The piece is called Sunfish (c 2008)  It measures 77" long by 45" wide.  Hanging brackets allow the silk to float away from the wall about 4".   The blue comes from elderberries, the other colors and design were made with the rust process.

BTW, students, alumni and friends of SIUE Art & Design and artists in the community are encouraged to donate. Original art donations are juried the day of the auction.  Students can compete for 5 prizes totaling $1250 and non-students have a chance to win a $200 prize!   
The entire auction catalog will be online sometime after March 28 at www.siueFriendsOfArt.com.  I'll post the updated link when it is up and running for 2010. You can also view the donations at the 6 PM preview the night of the auction.  The live auction will start at 7 PM.