Lowell National Historical Park News Release
Release date: Immediate
Contact(s): Phil Lupsiewicz
Phone number: 978 275-1705
Date: November 13, 2015
Release code: 16-03
Lowell National Historical Park to host
Piecing Together a Changing Planet
At the Boott Cotton Mills Museum, December 6, 2015
Lowell, MA – A juried show of twenty-six art quilts created by over 20 Florida artists is coming to the Boott Reflections Room at the Boott Cotton Mills Museum Sunday, December 6th. The show, titled Piecing Together a Changing Planet, highlights a few of the many ways that America’s 405 National Parks are being impacted by climate change, water pollution, air pollution and other human-caused phenomena. Look for programming as part of the celebration of the National Park Service’s Centennial in 2016.
The artworks were created by members of Studio Art Quilt Associates (SAQA), a 3000-member national organization dedicated to promoting the art quilt through education, exhibitions, professional development, documentation, and publications. Far from utilitarian where quilts have traditionally been used as bedcoverings, art quilts focus on aspects not only of stitching and piecing, but also of layering, “thread-painting“ and graphic design. The resultant pieces are often literally and figuratively three-dimensional: showy pink lady slipper orchids pop off the forested background, putting the viewer In Great Smoky Mountains National Park; icy glaciers melt down into an ocean of bleached coral heads, tying two drastically different impacts of climate change together in one compelling piece.
Maya Schonenberger, the exhibit’s curator, said that “the artists’ goal was to help open people’s eyes to the beauty of nature that surrounds them, and share their concern for its loss.” Melani Brewer, one of the exhibiting artists, hopes that “our art will serve as a call to action to for viewers to take steps to protect our planet.”
The national tour of Piecing Together a Changing Planet is made possible by SAQA and Biscayne National Park, with financial support from the National Park Service’s Climate Change Response Program, the South Florida National Parks Trust, Les Bouquinistes Book Club, and an anonymous donor.
The free exhibit will remain at the Boott Cotton Mills Museum, 115 John St., Lowell through February 7, 2016. For more details about the exhibit, visit the show’s website at www.nationalparkartexhibit.com, the park’s website at www.nps.gov/lowe or contact Jack Herlihy at 978-970-5241.
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