Press Release for "Stitch by Stitch"

“Women Helping Women:  Stitch by Stitch”
Afghan Women’s Collaboration with the Women’s Caucus
for Art Philadelphia Chapter

Opens May 2, 2008-May 31, 2008
City County Building, Wilmington, DE

The WCA-Philadelphia has partnered with Rubia to
organize the collaborative project,
entitled: “Women Helping Women:  Stitch by Stitch.”
The project involved the creation
of a quilt, which showcases the work of women from
Darrai Noor, Afghanistan and
over 25 American women artists from the Women’s Caucus
for Art and Rubia.   The
majority of the participating U.S. artists are from
the Philadelphia Chapter; yet,
artists from New Hampshire, Florida, Oregon,
Tennessee, Missouri, Montana, California,
Louisiana, and Washington, DC have also joined in this
collaborative effort. Joining
the Wilmington Exhibit will be several large suzani,
displayed by Afghan women’s
fund. These large embroidered tapestries are fine
examples of the culture of embroidery
in Central Asia and its association with women, in
particular.

The United States artists observed the embroidered
motifs found in Rubia’s handwork,
which include the poppy, the peacock, and the swirling
sun as found on the Rubia
Website (http://www.rubiahandwork.org). Each square
piece is an interpretation of
a Rubia embroidery.  The Women’s Caucus for Art
Philadelphia chapter assembled the
larger tapestry combining embroidery from Afghan women
and each artist’s 10 x 10
inch piece to create an impressive and intricate
tapestry.

WCA-Phila Co-President Mare Elcin observed, “It was
interesting to see how artists
here picked up a needle and thread, perhaps for the
first time, and were able to
better appreciate the time and effort the Afghan women
put into their craft.”

“I am amazed by the diversity of work and techniques
each artist used in this challenge.
Some artists moved far away from their traditional
mediums to express this interpretation
with textile and embroidery techniques. The tapestry
is dynamic and inviting to
the audience, it is truly hard to describe in words”
states Molly Crowley, of Rubia
Inc.

“The outreach to the other chapters of the WCA was a
new undertaking for our chapter.
It had been a long time since we conducted a national
show, and we were thrilled
at the response.  These Afghan women are extremely
isolated, and it is so exciting
to work with them and to raise money for Rubia to
continue its programming to pay
Afghan women a living wage for their art forms,”
WCA-Phila Co-President Bonnie
MacAllister commented. 

“I wrote a poem for the project, and I wrote of the
women’s strengths. ‘With one
hand she bastes, binding the tatters set forth for
her. She can round off, truncate,
confines, trim knotty spots others might skirt, seize
Gordian tangles, effect brim
or hem in her authority,’”  MacAllister continued.

Elcin expressed, “I find chapter collaborations to be
a way to unify the members
of our chapter and get the creative juices flowing.
Members have an opportunity
to address a medium and a topic that they may never
have approached before, which
in turn may prompt ideas in individual studios for
future work. By joining with
Rubia for this collaboration, we were able to open up
our worldview and find commonalities
with women across the globe. We have the added benefit
of helping another organization,
bring awareness to their cause, and hopefully improve
the economic viability of
our sisters in Afghanistan.”

The show will debut at the Redding Gallery in the City
County Building in Wilmington,
DE.  The show will then travel to the Grace Episcopal
Church in Merchantville, NJ.
Shows across the nation are pending approval as many
artists wish to see the quilt
exhibited their home towns.  The quilted piece will be
showcased at the DC Chapter’s
Networking Day at the Arts Club of Washington, DC on
April 5. 

“I am excited to see Rubia’s work in Afghanistan
welcomed by so many artists in
America. The response has been fantastic. In this
exhibit, we get to showcase a
very different view of Afghanistan, the creation of
beautiful crafts, the tradition
of embroidery, and some glimpses at home life in
Afghanistan. I think this is new
to a lot of our audience, and yet there seems to be a
very deep understanding, visible
through the interpretations by American women.” Molly
Crowley continued.

Rubia is a project of Social & Environmental
Entrepeneurs (SEE), a registered
501(c) [3], which provides non-profit status. Rubia
serves women in Afghanistan,
offering education, skills training and income
opportunities through the promotion
of their traditional handwork. Rubia is committed to
building sustainable business
in a fragile environment, empowering women while
respecting traditional ways, reviving
and preserving traditional crafts.

As an official chapter of the National Women’s Caucus
for Art, the Philadelphia
Chapter supports and upholds their mission statement
and by laws. In addition, the
chapter is committed to creating a support network for
women in the visual arts
in Philadelphia and surrounding communities. The
Women’s Caucus for Art Philadelphia
Chapter strives to increase awareness and recognition
of women in the visual arts
through our exhibitions, lectures, publications and
other educational programming.
----
Listing:
“Women Helping Women:  Stitch by Stitch” opens with
“Environmental Distress:  Work
by the Women’s Caucus for Art, Philadelphia Chapter”
May 2, 2008 at the Redding
Gallery, City County Building, Wilmington, DE.  Live
Performances by Sigma Alpha
Iota Women’s Music Fraternity, Temple University
Chapter, FREE.

Rubia/ WCA-Phila Collaboration
http://www.marycrowley.com/rubia/

WCA-Philadelphia Chapter
http://home.earthlink.net/~philawcamembers/index.html

Redding Gallery
http://www.ci.wilmington.de.us/artloop/

WCA-Philadelphia Blog
http://phila-wca.blogspot.com/
--
Stitch by Stitch Artists:

Women's Caucus for Art  Participating Artists

Alison Altergott- WCA-Phila Past President and WCA/DC

Cynthia Back - WCA-Phila

Betsy Bohrer- WCA-FL

Sharon Burton- WCA/DC and WCA-Phila

Donna M. Conroy - WCA- Central Mass

Kathy Dobash- WCA-Phila

Virginia Dragschutz--WCA  St. Louis, MO

Marie Elcin- WCA-Phila

Veronica Gledhill- WCA-Phila

Jo Grishman- OWCA- Oregon

Marilyn Hayes--WCA President, WCA-Phila and WCA-DC
Past President

Martha Knox- WCA-Phila

Becky Kramer--WCA Member at Large, Montana

Bonnie MacAllister- WCA-Phila Co-President and WCA/DC

Virginia Maksymowicz- WCA-Phila Treasurer

Debbie McCarthy- WCA-Phila

Karin Morris- WCA-Phila

Alison Nastasi- WCA-Phila

Marcelle Harwell-Pachnowski - WCA/DC

Diana Riukas- WCA-Phila

Sonia Sherrod- WCA-Phila Secretary

Heather Sundquist- WCA-Phila

Denise Tullier-Holly- WCA-LA

Katie Weaver--WCA/DC President

Michelle Wilson- WCA-Phila Past President

Kay Wood - WCA/ St Louis MO


Rubia Board and Staff,  Participating Artists

Molly Crowley-  Photographer (PA)

Jeanne Freeze- Fabric artist and upholsterer (NH)

Beth Gottschling- Graphic Designer and Photographer
(Wash-DC)

Rachel Lehr-  Photographer and Fabric Artist (NH)

Alicia Luckstead- Painter and Multmedia Artist (MD)

Anna Mueser -  Multimedia Artist (PA)

Sussy-Rose Shields - Metal Artist (NH)



The Women's Caucus for Art, Philadelphia Chapter
http://phila-wca.blogspot.com
http://home.earthlink.net/~philawcamembers/index.html
http://www.marycrowley.com/rubia/ (Collaborative Project with Rubia)
http://www.inliquid.com/wca/framset.html
A Partner of Inliquid