Interwoven
Pam Miller Downtown Arts Center
141 East Main Street, Lexington, Kentucky 40507
11:00am - 8:00pm EST
12:00pm - 5:00pm EST
January 18th - March 5th, 2022
Gallery HOP - January 21st, 2022
Interwoven
Community Gallery (2nd Floor)
With this exhibit, the featured artists hope to engage the audience in a visual dialogue about the interwoven nature of socioeconomic, cultural and environmental issues, and the need to consider them together. Diane Kahlo, Esmeralda, Sarah Estes and Soreyda Benedit - Bagley use their artistic work as a venue to speak up and promote sustainable practices, labor rights, compassionate immigration reform, diversity and inclusion.
The artwork for “Interwoven'' has elements that highlight the strong creative philosophy and cultural background of the artists. It contains symbols from indigenous and aboriginal people like Aztec and Maya, and integrates elements from religious and spiritual traditions into contemporary fashion and into textile designs. The artists created these pieces from repurposed or sustainable materials. These include repurposed Quinceañeras dresses, vintage beads, fabric scraps, hemp fabric and yarn, linen, leather scraps, organic cotton, feathers, repurposed blue jeans, plastic bottles and more. The skills used include machine and hand sewing, hand beading, fashion design, knitting, embroidery, appliqué, quilting, fabric dying and stamping, painting.
The altar (ofrenda) is dedicated to the artists’ families and friends, and to all who have passed away during the Covid 19 pandemic. Diane, Esmeralda, Sarah and Soreyda believe in the power of women working together, weaving together not only their artistic visions but also the idea that each other's lives have been woven into their artistic journey and collectively they can have a greater impact in their communities and the world.