Gratitude
Posted December 13, 2016 @ 4:58pm | by Melanie
Having recently had the honor to exhibit at the Art Gallery of Plymouth Congregational Church, it’s filled me with gratitude at a time when it’s most welcome.
It’s been an interesting exercise & learning experience to set up an ArtAndes Retrospective. Looking back over three decades of Andean work & the items I have collected, I found that it doesn’t take a grandiose collection to tell the story of the rich Andean traditions, & their people that I have so closely bonded with over time.
The other gift of the gallery retrospective process, is that I am exhibiting in the Twin Cities, an engaged community that has been 95% responsible for the existence of ArtAndes. There would not be the creation today of this fine weaving otherwise. There is no other outlet for the complexity of the craft of the rug weaving we do. We’ve managed to keep the small team of weavers, weaving at the highest quality that requires using only hand spun yarn and natural dyes. This level of skill requires an audience to appreciate and support it. My community has been supportive since our start in 1985, and it has made all the difference for many.
