‘Out Of The Loop’ At Brookfield Craft Center

Celebrates Innovations In Traditional Rug Hooking

By Shannon Hicks

BROOKFIELD — Sandy Hook resident and nationally known artisan Liz Alpert Fay has curated an exhibition for Brookfield Craft Center that is celebrating one of America’s few indigenous art forms.

“Out of the Loop: Innovations in Hooking” offers 20 works by 13 rug hooking artists from across the United States, each of whom was selected from the Juried Category of the 2007 and 2008 Newtown Hooked Rug Shows. Ms Fay and Sherry Paisley, also of Sandy Hook and the co-curator of “Out of the Loop,” created and have continued curating that one-day event since its inception in 2002. The Brookfield Craft Center (BCC) presentation celebrates the contemporary form of rug hooking with artists who are no longer interested in creating functional hooked rugs that cover a floor but employ age-old techniques as a means of self-expression.

Ms Fay is an instructor at Brookfield Craft Center, as well as a nationally known contemporary fiber artist. In coordinating the show she had three requirements for consideration: the rugs had to be designed and hooked by the entrant; they could not measure larger than 30 by 60 inches; and each work had to contain some form of rug hooking technique. Innovation and experimentation were encouraged.

“All of the pieces that were accepted into those juried events were eligible for this show,” said Ms Fay, who had about 45 works to consider.

“Because this is the first show of its kind, at least being presented at the Craft Center, and because it’s innovate work — it’s taking rug hooking to the next level — I wanted to choose as many different kinds of works possible. I wanted to show as much variety as possible,” said Ms Fay. With no pun intended she added, “The common thread that holds all the pieces together is they’re innovative. All have some type of rug hooking technique and some combine different techniques. Quilting and needlework are just two of the techniques used by these artists.”

The result is a collection of pieces that push the boundaries of rug hooking so far beyond the norm that some pieces can only be considered art, and not an offshoot of the 200-year-old tradition from which they were born. In many cases the techniques of traditional rug hooking (punch needle embroidery or proddy —the technique of poking wool from the back of the burlap, etc) is paired with other art forms, such as quilting and needle felting.

Another commonality in the show is the use of recycled materials. Always an inherent part of the rug hooking tradition, clothing has long been repurposed in the making of hooked rugs. The recycled materials used in this show, however, are a bit different, and range from trash found alongside the Merritt Parkway to valued photographs of long-deceased relatives (like Molly Colegrove’s three dimensional “Ghosts in My House”). The first work referenced here is Constance Old’s “Exit 42 Sampler (Pamela),” a 13½-square-inch piece (within a two-inch-deep Plexiglas case) that the former art director and book designer created using found newspaper delivery bags, sales receipts, tissue paper, caution tape, and even “a mystery spool of grey plastic thread off Exit 42,” according to a note accompanying the work.

Ms Old’s second work in the show, “Sampler: White With Buttons,” also offers a surprise upon close inspection. The “buttons” are bottle caps and her “thread” this time is plastic based, perhaps even paper.

Liz Fay has a pair of works in the show, one of which celebrates the idea of using unusual materials. “Just For Fun” was created just for that reason and won Best in Show during the 2008 Newtown Hooked Rug Show (while she curated the show, outside judges were used for the juried segment), using balloons more familiarly used for balloon sculpting. Other pieces in “Out of the Loop” have incorporated safety pins, wires, pearls, even a pair of suitcases.

The show celebrated its opening with a reception on a Sunday afternoon in March that was so well attended, “if you had many more people in there they wouldn’t have fit,” New York-based fiber artist Marilyn Bottjer said recently. She and a few others artists included in the show gather once monthly at Ms Fay’s home to work on new projects, share ideas, and catch up.

“It was a great turnout,” continued Ms Bottjer, who is represented with a piece called “Four Seasons on the North Fork.” The work replicates an old-fashioned set of fold-out scenic postcards (four, of course) and their box. The postcards are held in place by a stick, creating a three-dimensional presentation. The work is eight inches wide by 2¼ inches deep by 21 inches tall.

The show not only drew a standing-room-only crowd for its opening reception, but has continued to pull in people interested in fiber arts as well as those who are not (yet) familiar with it.

“People are really fascinated by it,” said BCC Education Director Kristen Muller. “Rug hooking is not really well known unless people are already interested in American history. We’ve had all sorts of rug hooking enthusiasts come in, and they’ve been very impressed.”

In addition to the aforementioned artists, “Out of the Loop” offers works by Massachusetts artist Mary Jane Andreozzi, Molly Colegrove of New York, Linda Rae Coughlin of New Jersey, Susan Feller of West Virginia, Glenda Guinn-Gilles of Washington, Tracy Jamar of New York, Beth Kempf of Connecticut, Lara Magruder of California, Alice Rudell of New York, and Missy Stevens of Connecticut.

In addition to the artists selected from the Newtown Hooked Rug Show juried collections, a prominent space was given to a rug that was created by former BCC registrar Dee Wagner. The rug, fashioned after an antique rug of similar design, features two elephants and a sepia background and has been placed just inside the gallery space, near the reception desk and a counter with the biographies and statements of the artists in “Out of the Loop.”

With “Out of the Loop,” Liz Fay and her contemporaries are enjoying the opportunity to show their talent and treasures to new enthusiasts and regular followers. For many years fiber artists followed patterns and color schemes arranged by teachers and others. It was about following, but not creating.

Today’s fiber artists are all about expressing themselves, and they use three dimensions to do so.

“This is only the second time they’ve had a fiber show in their gallery,” Ms Fay said of Brookfield Craft Center opening its Lynn Bignell Gallery to the collection, “and we’re honored they invited us. Rug hooking, I don’t know why, but some people don’t see it as an art form.

“It’s a really big deal, this show.”

Kristen Muller is equally pleased with the exhibition.

“It’s significant because some of the artists in the show are nationally and internationally known fiber artists. There are also some people who are working just because of their passion for the medium, and it’s really interesting to see how passionate and creative they are in working,” she said. “It’s such beautiful work. You can’t tell who’s who just by looking at them because it’s such high quality work.

“To me, what’s been fascinating is understanding that this is a uniquely American craft that has just evolved. To see it continue and evolve into such a sophisticated medium is really wonderful to see.”

“Out of the Loop: Innovations in Hooking” is on view at Brookfield Craft Center, 286 Whisconier Road (Route 25), until May 3.

Liz Fay will offer a gallery talk on Sunday, April 26, at 10 am. The program is open to the public, free of charge.

Ms Fay will also be teaching a traditional rug hooking workshop at BCC on Saturday, May 2, from 10 am to 4 pm. There is are class and materials fees, and registration is required. Visit BrookfieldCraftCenter.org, click on Classes, and then Fibers and Weaving for full details.

Brookfield Craft Center is at 286 Whisconier Road (Route 25). Regular gallery hours are Monday through Saturday, 10 am to 5 pm; and Sunday, noon to 5 pm. Call 775-4526 or visit the craft center’s website for directions and other information.