Talent looms large at new show
In Karen Gelbard’s studio, there are 12 pairs of scissors, three sergers, three sewing machines and four looms. With these tools, she designs and creates stunning wearable art inspired by the Pacific Northwest.
Gelbard, known as “The Oregon Weaver,” is the featured artist at the Fiber Arts Studio Gallery inside the Lincoln City Cultural Center. An opening reception at 5 pm this Friday, April 29, will kick off the show, which continues through June 19.
Gelbard is nationally recognized and this promises to be an exciting show of luscious woven and embellished coats, scarves, jackets, vests, pillows and her latest creations for show and sale.
“I want to tell an Oregon story in my handwovens," she said. "First, I develop colorways in warp and weft inspired by the colors, sights and textures of the Pacific Northwest. There are often more than twenty different colors in a warp which adds a richness and depth to the handwoven cloth. Then color, texture, shape and form create a handwoven garment. Wherever these garments are worn, they will tell an Oregon story.”
Embracing technology, Gelbard now teaches online workshops for fiber arts guilds and events. Matching the cadence of the loom with the rolling ocean surf and an occasional owl hoot at her historic home in Pacific City, she continues to create elegant woven art to be worn with confidence.
One of a small group of artists who help with an ongoing textile restoration project at the historic Timberline Lodge on Mount Hood, Gelbard has woven more than 300 yards of upholstery fabric for the lodge in the style of the original handwoven fabrics. Her forever fashions have been featured in Tearsheet PDX magazine, and she has won awards and exhibited at more than 200 competitive juried art fairs across the country.
To see her collection, go to theoregonweaver.com.
The Fiber Arts Studio Gallery is located inside the Lincoln City Cultural Center at 540 NE Hwy. 101, and is open from 10 am to 4 pm, Thursday through Sunday. For more information, go to lincolncity-culturalcenter.org.