A Wild Kind of Wisdom by Elizabeth Carrington, Acrylic on Canvas
Two Artists Exhibiting at FW Gallery at Woolworth Walk This Month
A dual exhibit titled Elizabeth Porritt Carrington + Brenda McVey will be on display at FW Gallery at Woolworth Walk through January 30 with an opening reception held Friday, January 6, from 4–6 p.m.
Brenda McVey of Moondance Fibers is a longtime hand weaver and recent machine knitter. Award-winning painter and illustrator Elizabeth Porritt Carrington creates a visual biography of her experiences, portraying her own personal mythology of life and its mysteries.
Carrington grew up in the Irish countryside, immersed in music, storytelling, poetry and nature. Soon after receiving her BFA from the Centre for Creativity and the Arts in Galway in 2002, she began working as a studio artist and teacher, eventually founding a learning center where she offered workshops and a community space for art making. She hopes to create a similar space here in Asheville, where she has settled with her husband and children.
“Giving birth to my daughter and standing by those loved ones who have died has given me a critical and lasting sense of the tenderness and vividness of our actuality. My work is an effort not to forget that,” she says. “I no longer search for answers there, but play and meditate upon the sophistication of the questions in those places. Painting in the paradox of the coming and going of life Two Artists Exhibiting at FW Gallery at Woolworth Walk This Month allows, for me, a true connection to the great mysteries.”
Brenda McVey, Handwoven Scarves. Cotton and Rayon
McVey has been interested in and working with the fiber arts for most of her life. Her mother taught her to sew in high school and she can still remember some of the fabrics that she worked with then. Constantly refining her techniques and products, in the last few years she has been experimenting with knitting machines. Using both the weaving loom and the knitting machine, she can employ beautiful yarns to create unique and personal fabrics.
“My inspiration comes from color, texture and fabric structure,” she says. “I enjoy the mechanical aspect of taking yarn and creating interesting fabrics. My handcrafted scarves are made with plant-based fibers and are designed to be both decorative and functional.” By balancing function and aesthetics, McVey hopes to create handcrafted pieces that are artful in design and elegant in function.
Woolworth Walk is located at 25 Haywood Street in Asheville. Gallery hours are Monday through Saturday, 11 A.M. to 6 P.M. and Sunday, 11 A.M. to 5 P.M. Learn more by calling 828.254.9234 or e-mailing elizabetharthouse@gmail.com.
