Early this February, Twitter was teeming with images of early blossoms from around Vancouver due to an unusually mild winter. The cherry blossoms may have appeared premature this year, but the delicate flowers can be everlasting, or at least for the entire month of May at the Foyer Gallery in a textile translation that celebrates beauty, growth and vitality.
Presented by the FibreEssence and the Vancouver Guild of Fibre Arts (VGFA), the cherry blossom front has moved northward from Vancouver and with the approach of warmer weather, we鈥檙e holding a flower-viewing party in numerous forms of knitting, stitching, twisting, sewing, embellishment and quilting.
In Japan (as early as the third century AD) Hanami festivals celebrated the splendour of the cherry blossom, which provided an opportunity to pause and enjoy a beautiful spectacle symbolizing clouds blooming en masse. This became an enduring metaphor for the fleeting nature of life.
For the VGFA, 鈥淭he theme is based on being part of the positive energy that the cherry tree is said to generate,鈥� said the group鈥檚 artist spokesperson, Bonnie Adie.
Arts, crafts and textiles converge in a colour palette of dark magenta, cerise and cherry-blossom pink to create an exhibition of sculpture, quilts, accessories, felted d茅cor and more.
The piece Spring Storm was inspired by a windy winter outburst that blew the cherry blossoms about like pastel pink snow.
Often associated with mortality (the ephemerality of the blossoms, the bounty of beauty and sudden expiry) cherry blossoms are richly symbolic. Vancouver is famous for its 50,000 or more cherry trees lining many streets and in parks, including Queen E. and Stanley Park, inspiring its annual Cherry Blossom Festival.
FibreEssence has united with the Vancouver Guild of Fibre Arts, a non-profit society that was formed in 1970. Back then, the original members joined together to share and encourage each other in their artistic process. It has grown into a unique guild that encourages both traditional and contemporary forms of fibre art. VGFA鈥檚 goals are to inspire and foster education, expand excellence in art and design, promote fibre art among the community and enable advanced study in this art form.
The membership has wide-ranging interests and experience, from quilting and beading to surface design and doll making.
The VGFA is affiliated with local, provincial, national and international arts and crafts organizations, enabling members to connect with the broader arts community.
An active workshop program, guest lecturers and annual exhibitions help promote fibre arts both within the guild and to the general public.
Come and view this exhibit of exquisite eternal blossoms in one big pink Foyer flower-fest. The exhibit will be up for the month of May.
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Toby Jaxon is the curator at the Foyer Gallery at 麻豆社国产Public Library.
