HOOKED ON RUGS
MISSISSIPPI VALLEY TEXTILE MUSEUM
3 Rosamond Street, Almonte, ON
MARCH 3- April 11, 2015
Tuesday to Saturday: 10 am to 4 pm.
$5 admission. MVTM members, free.
Artists Loretta Moore and Lesli Zanetti welcomed friends and visitors to the Mississippi Valley Textile Museum on Saturday March 7th for their Vernissage and opening of their HOOKED ON RUGS Exhibition in the Norah Rosamond Hughes Gallery. Their hooked rugs display beautifully with artful designs from primitive to modern.
Both artists will be conducting demonstrations in the Gallery today, March 12th from 11 am to 2 pm.
Visitors at the Opening of Hooked on Rugs Exhibition |
Lesli’s interest in rug hooking began with a 1992 visit to Cape Breton, where she was struck by the unique and complex Acadian scenes depicted on beautiful rugs. On a subsequent trip to Newfoundland she was drawn to the vibrant colours and simple scenes of their rugs.
Stunning Contemporary and Primitive Hooked Art abounds in the Gallery |
With one of Deanne Fitzpatrick’s rug hooking kits, Lesli taught herself to hook, and her passion for the craft was firmly entrenched. After 10 years, Lesli has found her own style. She prefers to use recycled wool from garments donated by friends or found at second hand shops. Imagining the history embedded in a wool garment as it is ripped apart and refashioned into a new rug is an important part of her creative process.
She describes her rugs as simple in style, bordering on the primitive, but without a traditional palette. Somehow, she just has to inject bright colours into her designs. ( and the COLOUR... amazing!)
Loretta’s passion for fibre arts developed at an early age, sitting in her mom’s sewing room and making doll’s clothes from scraps. She later made her own clothing and learned to quilt. It was in a quilt shop that she discovered her first rug hooking kit.
“After the first few loops I pulled, I realized that I had discovered a fibre art that appealed to every creative bone in my body. I loved the almost zen-like feel of pulling loops, loved playing with colour and developing my own through dyeing, and loved the final product,” says Loretta. You will often find Loretta in her booth at Ottawa and area Quilt Shows and Needle Arts Fairs. She maintains a studio in her home near Westport
More of Loretta's Rug Art...beautiful. |
While Loretta's preferred style is primitive, folk art wide-cut rugs, she loves playing with various fibres and techniques. She also teaches and sells supplies through her business “Hooked on the Lake.” Do visit Loretta's blog at https://hookedonthelake.wordpress.com/
Don’t miss a chance to enjoy these wonderful rugs. You may well become “hooked” yourself.
Note: Some text from the Event Posting announcement at Mississippi Valley Textile Museum website HERE