Exhibition brings fabric creations to campus

A textile exhibition on campus shows the work of a painter-turned-fiber artist whose creativity four decades ago is now considered “ahead of its time.” Thirteen pieces by Nell Battle Booker Sonnemann can be viewed in the Arts West Gallery through Jan. 23.

Patricia Malarcher spoke with dozens of students Jan. 4 about the life and work of her friend, Nell Battle Booker Sonnemann, the creator of 13 pieces of textile art now on display in the Arts West Gallery.

Sonnemann, who died in 2004 at the age of 86, spent years traveling the world to photograph various garments, fabrics, fibers and appliquéd items. She collected nearly as many samples for her own use in textile artwork, which longtime friend Patricia Malarcher calls “unapologetically religious.”

“This work was very much ahead of its time, with the possibilities she was seeing with working creatively with fabric,” Malarcher said. “She did not dye and print her own fabric. But she was very conscious of printed fabrics being the product of someone’s own creativity.”

Malarcher spoke Jan. 4 about Sonnemann during an hour long discussion in Arts West. Dozens of art students filled the gallery to see the work. Sonnemann earned an undergraduate and master’s degree from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and a master’s of fine arts from Catholic University of America.

A color catalog of Sonnemann’s work, which Malarcher put together, is on sale for $10.

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Tagged: Art and Art History