First, for a non-Missoulan, Montana Art & Framing is a tad hard to find...it is definitely a destination, not something that you would happen to pass by and decide to drop in. Ronan Street runs at an angle, and if you go during a particularly busy time of day when the traffic on the main street is backed up, you can easily miss it. Like we did....and then, when we approached it from the other direction, there was an odd thing about the street sign that we weren't really sure that we were going where we were supposed to.
In addition, the gallery is in a large, warehouse like building which shares space with other small enterprises. When we finally got there, the show was much smaller than I had anticipated, just over a dozen pieces. The gallery space for this particular show was in front, with the side partition hiding the other artists that the gallery represents....at least I think that is what it was, although it may have been another separate show...or two...or three.
We were greeted by the shop pooch, and then the owner came out from the side where he was framing pieces.
Heidi lives in Stevensville, Montana, but grew up in Missoula, which is just about a half an hour northeast of Stevensville, so in essence, this was a hometown show for her. My niece and my sister accompanied me, and since they don't quilt or really know much about fiber art, it was fun to get their feedback.
Of course, like most newcomer's to the fiberworld, they were taken by the colors Heidi used. I often find that that is what pulls someone in at first, then the finer elements begin to intrigue, particularly the textural element. I admit, the palette that Heidi uses is one I tend to use as well, warm rusts, golds, blues, greens, particularly turquoise and warmer shades.
Heidi Zielinski, "Searching for Center", $210.00 |
I enjoy the addition of the hand stitching and the beading. The thin line of piping at the binding edge also adds to the piece.
"Searching for Center," detail. |
Heidi Zielinski, "In a Cool Blue Forest," $400. |
Heidi chose to use a beaded dangle "trim" across the top of the piece. This works...it isn't too obtrusive, yet it gives just a little sparkle which is repeated by the gold printed commercial cotton behind it.
The detail shows the quilting in the upper portion of the piece, nicely machine quilted and I think it is a nice balance to the piece, and contains the leaf panel. Without it, it would flow too much into the upper portion...and fly off the body of the work.
"In a Cool Blue Forest," detail. |
Heidi Zielinski, "A Quiet Place," $280.00 |
We all enjoyed "A Quiet Place." I am not sure if Heidi inked the trees, or printed them, but the simplicity of this piece and the monochromatic color scheme was a nice contrast to the other pieces in the show. Of course, the fact that my brother-in-law, brother, and sister-in-law are all foresters, and my sister is a botanist....and we grew up in the hardwood forests of Michigan, and my niece grew up in western Washington makes us a little tree happy. I also think I was drawn to it because I spent the ride from Deer Lodge to Missoula stitching...bare trees.
"A Quiet Place," detail. |
You can see more of Heidi's work and read more about her on her website, http://www.heidizielinski.com
2 comments:
Good review. I'd have probably given up looking for the gallery ...
Glad you persevered and took excellent photos and I hope the show does well for her.
Thank you! You have no idea how close we came to throwing up our hands and giving in....partly because we had wandered around and I was trying to connect with someone....and it was getting close to closing time!
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