Timeless Textiles: Traditional Craft Meets Contemporary Art

Description

Peters Valley School of Craft is thrilled to invite submissions for Timeless Textiles, an exhibition-in-print (EIP) opportunity that celebrates the breadth of fiber art as part of our 'Mediums Revealed' EIP series. This exhibition invites artists to explore and showcase textiles that blend traditional techniques with contemporary approaches. The theme emphasizes the duality of fibers: the comforting, familiar textures of traditional textiles juxtaposed with groundbreaking innovations in textile art. Timeless Textiles seeks to highlight how age-old skills have adapted and evolved, revealing new and exciting dimensions within the world of textiles. By merging historical craftsmanship and modern experimentation, this exhibition aims to provide a platform for both established and emerging artists by presenting an array of work from traditional to unique interpretations in the textile medium.

Mediums Revealed is an exciting exhibition-in-print series hosted by Peters Valley School of Craft, designed to give inspiration to potential students by spotlighting the diverse creative outcomes that can be gained through taking workshops in each of their specialized studios. This series will have multiple volumes focused on Ceramics, Blacksmithing, Fine Metals/Jewelry, Woodworking, Fibers, Glass, and Printmaking/Photography, reflecting the various studio offerings available at Peters Valley School of Craft.  Works submitted do not need to be created on campus or as a direct line from a workshop taken at Peters Valley.

Any works that use fiber, textile, thread or traditionally textile techniques are welcome to apply.  

One artist will be chosen for an Artist Feature in the publication.  If selected we will work with the artist to secure additional pictures, set up an interview, and create a multi-page spread in the publication!

Venue

This is an Exhibition-in-Print (EIP) opportunity.  Works do not need to be delivered to our physical location as there will not be an in person display for this exhibition, rather a high quality publication will showcase the works selected.  Selected artists will have to opportunity to purchase the publication at a discounted rate for a period of time.

Eligibility 

As part of our mission to enhance the learning, practice, and appreciation of craft by pioneering opportunities for America based artists, we limit eligibility to makers who reside in the United States of America.  Works submitted do not need to be created on campus or as a direct line from a workshop taken at Peters Valley.
 

Entry Fee

$25 for up to 3 pieces per submission.  You may submit multiple times, and pay $25 per submission.

Sales

Works do not have to be available for sale.  Interested parties will be able to contact you via the contact information you provide (Instagram or Website).

Image Specifications

Please provide 2 to 5 images for each piece.  Between 1200 and 1920 pixels on the longest side, minimum 300 PPI/dpi (standard print resolution), 5 MB maximum file size.  CMYK color profile will ensure your colors are most accurate through the printing process.  If selected, you are guaranteed one printed image with your full piece displayed. If your work is three-dimensional, at least 2 images will be used to help provide context to viewers in a print publication.  Additional detail shots will be used as need for layout. 

An optional audio description can be included in submission; this would be used to allow visitors to hear about your piece directly from you as the maker.  Audio descriptions will be provided via QR code in the publication.

Jury

Submissions will be juried by a group of talented, working artists:
 

Caroline Kaufman is a New York City based textile artist. Her work investigates the interaction between color, texture, and pattern through processes of traditional craft. The artist uses synesthesia as well as an instinctual relationship with color to translate daydreams into abstract color depictions. At the center of Kaufman's practice is a deep fascination with time and the tonal shifts that emerge during different seasons, years, and ultimately times of the day.

Caroline holds a BFA in Fashion Design with a focus in textiles from Pratt Institute. She is a national winner of the Windgate Fellowship from the Center for Craft, Creativity, and Design. Other achievements include a Positive Impact Award and Junior Venture Fellowship (Brooklyn Fashion + Design Accelerator), Varda Artist Residency returning artist (2017-2020 Sausalito California), Ideas Island Residency (2022 Stockholm Sweden).

Jesse Satterfield was raised in a tourist trap on the Jersey Shore and spent his adolescence working as a carnival barker and boardwalk game-operator, handing out fuzzy, stuffed prizes to sunburnt New Yorkers with bad attitudes. He suffered for several years as a fine art framer, production seamster, upholsterer, and workroom manager in the commercial interior design industry before returning to Fine Art and Academia. He holds an MFA in Textiles from Kent State University, an MA in Critical Studies as well as  a BFA in Fibers from the Maryland Institute College of Art. Satterfield’s work is a meditation on gay loneliness in the current age of digital gay-male sociality made material in a series of dye-painted and handwoven tapestries. He abstracts form, amplifies saturation, and alters composition of images sourced from digital cruising grounds to create weavings of an otherworldly environment. Each tapestry embodies a sense of self-inflicted ennui, a self-defeating act of seeking for connection while simultaneously hiding oneself behind banal and insipid landscapes. Through the remediation of photographs of sunrises and sunsets posted by gay men as placeholders for their own portraits on social media apps, he creates queer textiles, that whisper seductively hushed desires while screaming “look at me, see how I shine”.

Erika Hewston received her BFA in Textiles and Material Studies and BSBA in Business Management from Kutztown University in 2018.  Erika also earned her Masters in Arts Administration from Kutztown University in 2024.  Erika currently serves as the Retail and Gallery Exhibitions Director for Peters Valley School of Craft in Layton, New Jersey.  In this role, she gets to develop and coordinate exhibitions and special events as well as work with artists to showcase and sell their work in the gallery storeroom.  She is striving to increase accessibility to the traditional exhibition space by incorporating touch elements and audio descriptions whenever possible. Her woven work has been exhibited nationally and internationally.  Along with exhibitions, she has sold her work at in person fine craft fairs in the Northeastern United States including at the American Craft Council Baltimore Craft Show, Smithsonian Craft: Fashion & Home, and the Academy Art Museum Craft Show.  Find more information at www.erikahewstontextiles.com
 

Event Calendar

January 18, 2025: Submissions Open

February 23, 2025: Submissions Close

March 14, 2025: Notification Deadline

April 21, 2025: Publication will be available for purchase

Questions?

Contact the Erika Hewston, Gallery Director, at gallery@petersvalley.org or by calling 973-948-5202