Jeanne Bieri: The Way in

Opening Reception Saturday, November 4 at 6 PM - 10 PM
Gallery Hours Saturdays, noon-6pm, November 11-25
Artist talk Saturday, November 18, 2pm

Hatch Art Gallery, 3456 Evaline St, Hamtramck, Michigan 48212

2017 Kresge Artist Fellow Jeanne Bieri's first solo exhibition at Hatch features lush and large scale fiber works never shown before.

"I was in an antiwar show three years ago and to prepare I did considerable research on war in general, In particular about WWII. My Dad was a pilot and brought back Army Blankets, those scratchy things that we took to the beach, Y Camp, and used in the barn. They never wore out and were the last things any of us kids chose when we went camping on family vacations. During my anti-war research, I began mending and piecing these blankets, an act of making them whole. A blanket is the border between wakefulness and sleep, a border between warmth and cold, sometimes between surviving and death.
I have also collected quilts and studied their patterns and stitching. The hand stitched quilts, even the raggedy pieces were too good, too personal to discard. Like the Army blankets, quilts are loaded with stories. I began to piece and combine the Army Blankets with the quilts.
All work is hand sewn, an act I cherish because each stitch is a meditation. The chain stitching is practiced on the surface of Muslim clerical garments, each stitch a prayer. With the world in such turmoil it is my profound hope that in restructuring and mending these blankets, by defining the surface with the chain stitch, the horrors of war that exist today can be kept at bay. It is my practice of healing and peace."

-Jeanne Bieri