By Haley Grinder
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The latest art exhibition, Creative Threads: Quilts by the Valley Piecemakers, concluded last week after a beautiful three-week-long display. The exhibit, which ran from Apr. 23 to May 14, showcased skillful stitch work from members of the Columbia Valley’s local quilting guild: The Valley Piecemakers.
The showcase, held at Pynelogs Cultural Centre in Invermere, was also the scene of Columbia Valley Art’s first soirée in two years, due to social distancing restrictions. Featuring a beautiful moment as attendees and guild members rejoiced once again at in-person events, the kick- off seemed to mirror the artwork itself – the town coming back together much like each individual piece of fabric, creating an artistic
masterpiece in more ways than one.
The last time the guild portrayed their art work in an exhibition style was back in 2014, so their partnership with Pynelogs and the Columbia Valley Arts Council was much appreciated by both guild members and attendees, especially after the isolation caused by the ongoing pandemic.
Around 60 quilts made up the Creative Threads art show, each one more intricately detailed than the next. The guild hopes to put on another exhibition in the future. However, due to the time-consuming nature of stitchwork, likely will not come to fruition for a couple years.
The most significant piece on display is arguably the infamous David Thompson Quilt, which was finishedin 2007 as a celebration of the 200th anniversary of North American explorer David Thompson arriving in the Columbia Valley.
“We just wanted to be able to share the results of all of our hard work, and also to highlight the David Thompson quilt, which is really the an incredibly significant piece of work,” says Pam Meunier, member of the Valley Piecemakers since the guild originated back in 2014.
The piece was a culmination of 65 volunteers’ hard work, travelling all over Canada — as far east as New Brunswick — before it was completed a mere three years after it was started. People came from all over the region to get a closer look said Meunier, adding that, “all of them were stunned by its beauty, because of the craftsmanship in it.”
The panels on the David Thompson quilt were definitely a team effort, she says. “the other panel was very significant because it was also a partnership with each other to the Akisqnuk First Nation and the Shuswap.”
The guild is comprised of approximately 30 people, both local to the Columbia Valley and part-time visitors. Members all have varied levels of experience from 40-years to absolute beginner.
Meunier hopes to gain a proper display home for the David Thompson quilt in the future so its beauty can be preserved, available for the whole community to enjoy.
