‘Textile Tableau’ Opens Jan. 18 at Miller Art Museum

Peter Horjus, JCB, “A Series of Men #3,” cotton and cotton-blend fabric, primarily reclaimed men’s shirts; cotton batting; and cotton thread.

The Miller Art Museum in downtown Sturgeon Bay will host its first exhibition of the new year Jan. 18 – Feb. 24 in the main gallery: a diverse selection of more than 35 fiber-based works titled Textile Tableau: An Exploration of Painting with Fibers. A free public reception on Jan. 18, 3-4:30 pm, will feature light refreshments and music by Cathy Grier.

The invitational exhibition focuses on eight contemporary artists – Susan Hoffmann, Heidi Parkes, Wendy Carpenter, Sandra Martinez, Sandra Wysock, Pam Collins, Peter Horjus and Laura Shrewsbury – who incorporate the methodologies and canons of painting as starting points for a greater exploration of fiber work. Painting with needle and thread for the most part, they create textile tableaus that explore established genres such as portraiture, abstraction and landscape.

Also debuting in the Gerhard CF Miller Gallery on the museum’s Ruth Morton Miller Mezzanine (upper level) is a long-term installation that re-creates Miller’s Bay Shore Drive painting studio on the second level of the Norwegian-inspired waterfront home that the artist built almost entirely by himself. The display features Miller’s studio furniture, personal library of art books, painting equipment, unfinished works and additional personal effects on loan from Miller’s grandson, David G. Utzinger. 

To learn more about the exhibits or the museum, call 920.746.0707 or visit millerartmuseum.org.