Points of Departure: Inspirations from the Helen Louise Allen Textile Collection

press release: September 18–November 24, 2019, Ruth Davis Design Gallery

Reception Thursday, September 19, 2019 | 5:00–7:00 PM, School of Human Ecology Central Foyer ("The Link")

Artist panel, 7 pm, 11/7: Contributors to the Points of Departure show Maggie Sasso, Teresa Faris, and Yevgeniya Kaganovich discuss their work and experience as activist women artists.

Printmaking Workshop with John Hitchcock and Jason Ruhl, 5 pm, 11/14:  UW Indigenous art faculty John Hitchcock and Points of Departure artist Jason Ruhl discuss their respective inspirations and processes as John leads a workshop on screen-printing with Fresh Hot Press, the UW-Madison print club. Indigenous print-maker John Hitchcock uses the print medium of screen-printing with its long history of social and political commentary to explore relationships of community, land, and culture. Jason Ruhl is a Madison-based artist who predominantly works in print-based media, taking fragmented pieces of graphic ephemera and reworking them into simplified, enigmatic images.

Programs RSVP: https://uwmadison.co1.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_3WPv0YW7YX9xfox

The Ruth Davis Design Gallery, as part of the 50th anniversary celebration of the Helen Louise Allen Textile Collection (HLATC), is pleased to present Points of Departure: Inspirations from the Helen Louise Allen Textile Collection. An opening reception will be held Thursday, September 19, from 5:00–7:00 p.m.

David Newell, former director of exhibitions and outreach for the Gallery, with the assistance of three other directors emeriti, invited sixteen artists from Madison and beyond to enjoy special access to the Collection. They used it for research, study, and inspiration, and then created pieces based on their findings, exclusively for the show. Points of Departure will feature these new works alongside their respective inspirational sources.

Participating artist Nirmal Raja, of Milwaukee, found the experience especially fruitful: “I am always eager to look at history and historical or vintage artifacts and make them meaningful to the current moment. The invitation to investigate the Textile Collection triggered an idea that demanded extensive research and work. My project has since grown into a major recent work in my portfolio.”

Newell noted of the exhibition, “It truly highlights the Collection’s amazing capacity to inspire and stimulate, while also serving as an unparalleled reference resource for the university.”

Working largely in textiles, but in a variety of styles, and some in other media, Points of Departure participating artists include (in alphabetical order):

Mary Bero (Madison); Craig Clifford (Appleton); Theresa Faris (Madison); Craig Grabhorn (Appleton); Christiane Grauert (Milwaukee); Emelia Haglund (Middleton); Mary Jaeger (New York City); Haichi Jihn (Whitefish Bay); Yevgeniya Kaganovich (Milwaukee); Dakota Mace (Madison); Nirmal Raja (Milwaukee); Bird Ross (Madison); Jason Ruhl (Madison); Maggie Sasso (Saint Francis); iane Sheehan (Madison); Michael Velliquette (Madison)

To learn more, including about special programming events related to the exhibition, visit sohe.wisc.edu/departure or sign up to receive the latest gallery news and events by email.

The Helen Louise Allen Textile Collection advances understanding of cultures and their history through engagement with textiles for the creative, technical, and educational benefit of scholars from the University and beyond. It is a teaching collection, with over 13,000 textile artifacts spanning 16 centuries and 108 countries. 

The Ruth Davis Design Gallery organizes a major curated exhibition each academic semester related to a major design topic, followed by showcase installations of Design Studies student creative work at both the undergraduate and graduate level. The Gallery is open Wednesdays and Fridays 10 AM–4 PM, Thursdays 10 AM–7 PM, and Saturdays and Sundays 12–4 PM. Admission is free.

The Center for Design and Material Culture is the primary destination for the multidisciplinary study of material culture and design at the University of Wisconsin–Madison, with particular focus on the study of textiles, material culture, and design thinking. This vision is supported by the rich resources of the Helen Louise Allen Textile Collection; two galleries, the Ruth Davis Design Gallery and the Lynn Mecklenburg Textile Gallery; and the SoHE Innovation Studio.

The School of Human Ecology (SoHE) at the University of Wisconsin–Madison was founded in 1903. For over a century, it has promoted real-world problem-solving research and teaching to improve the quality of life for children, families, consumers, and communities.