The McLean Textile Gallery is a 501(c)3
charitable organization and does not
take commission from the artists.

A visit to the Mall in Washington DC on Memorial Day 2018 ignited an idea for a textile art exhibit chronicling what war has meant to us over the past 110 or so years. Ten quilters from the Center Street Cotton Collective were invited to participate.

 

Each artist in the group was challenged to make five distinct pieces responding to each of the five prompts “World War I”, “World War II”, “The Korean War”, “The Vietnam War” and “The War on Terror”. Participants could make their own interpretation so long as the result was a finished 24” x 24” piece with the traditional three layers (top, batting and backing) and the color red appearing somewhere on the face of the quilt. While most made their work from an American perspective some of the pieces reflect a more global approach.

 

For this exhibit some artists made their five pieces as a series with the same theme while others worked on a “one off” approach.

​

Invitations were purposely extended to a group of makers having diverse styles and differing years of experience who would be able to interpret the prompt as a personal statement rather than conform to an expectation. On display are pieces made using traditional piecing style up through abstract and contemporary with many in-between/combinations of techniques. 

​

The concept was designed as an exhibit (nothing is for sale) which allowed participants to include personal dedications to family and friends. The hope was to show the diversity of understanding when ten fiber artists respond to the same brief prompt. The result, which you will see in the exhibit, is representative of how we can all see the same thing in an entirely unique dimension.

​

 5 wars, 10 artists, 50 quilts.

​

Sadly war always seems to be a current event.

​

This is a group that was first gathered here in Northern Virginia by Dorry Emmer around 2010. All of the CSCC members are actively working in the quilt/fiber art area. Each artist has written their own story which is on display at the exhibit. All of them are delighted to share their work with you. We are Dena Brannen, Carol Campanola, Annabel Ebersole, Dorry Emmer, Kerry Faraone, Cindy Grisdela, Sue Hickman, Gayle Maisel, Suzanne Meader and Lynn Purple.

Together we comprise The Center Street Cotton Collective.