"Yearning
To Be Free: Life, Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness"
Art
Quilts by Penny Sisto
Sponsored
by National City
July
20-September 15, 2007
Opening
Reception Friday July 20, 6-8 pm
Click
here to download full color mailer
Schedule
of Events
"Arrival"
|
The
Carnegie Center for Art and History in New Albany,
Indiana is pleased to announce the opening of
a new exhibit, "Yearning to Be Free: Life,
Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness," featuring
art quilts by fiber artist Penny Sisto. The exhibit
will be on display July 20 through September 15.
This most recent series of quilts by Penny Sisto
features the faces and symbols of America’s
immigrant families. She has captured their spirit
as people–fearful and hopeful, lonesome and
lonely, proud and industrious–as only she
can. The expression on their faces and in their
eyes that Sisto creates gives viewers a glimpse
into the many facets of the immigrant experience,
perhaps since she was an immigrant herself many
years ago. "Yearning to Be Free: Life, Liberty
and the Pursuit of Happiness" is generously
sponsored by National City.
Artist
Penny Sisto was born in the Orkney Islands off
the northern tip of Scotland. She began learning
how to sew at age 3, taught by her grandmother.
As an adult, Sisto worked for the British Ministry
of Overseas Development, using her skills as
a midwife to aid health clinics for the Masai,
LuBukusu and Kikuyu tribes of East Africa. Her
time in Africa inspired her to combine the quilting,
embroidery and appliqué techniques she
learned from her grandmother with the beading
and collage methods of her African friends,
resulting in the distinctive style seen in her
work today. Sisto’s work has been exhibited
in New York as well as Edinburgh, Scotland and
Nairobi, Kenya, and her pieces can be found
in the collections of Texas Oil, Gettysburg
College, Spalding University, and the Thomas
Merton International Studies Center, among others.
|
In
October 2007, her Slavery Series quilts will travel
to England along with the Carnegie Center’s multimedia
Underground Railroad program to be exhibited at the
Royal Armouries in Leeds and the Bewdley Museum to
commemorate the bicentennial of the abolition of the
slave trade in the U.K. She currently resides in Floyds
Knobs, Indiana. Visit www.pennysisto.com
for more information on this remarkable artist.
There
will be an opening reception for this exhibit on Friday,
July 20, from 6-8 pm. Visitors can enjoy refreshments,
the sounds of the Jamey Aebersold Jazz Quartet, and
a chance to meet the artist. Sponsored by the Carnegie
Center, Inc., this event is free and open to the public.
Additional works by Penny Sisto will be on display
at The Gallery on Pearl (222 Pearl Street) until 9
pm.
"No
Irish Need Apply" |
"Zayde
and Me" |
Schedule
of Events
The
Carnegie Center is partnering with a number of organizations
to present this exhibit as a multicultural experience.
The following events are free and open to the public.
Please call 812-944-7336 to register for those events
with reservations required or suggested. Events will
be held at the Carnegie Center unless otherwise noted.
Friday,
July 20
6-8 pm, Opening Reception featuring live music from
the Jamey Aebersold Jazz Quartet (sponsored by
the Carnegie Center, Inc.)
Tuesday,
July 31
7-8:30 pm, Cross Cultural Conversation: Despite cultural
differences, we share common connections. Explore
these with us through the sharing of experiences and
dialogue. Reservations required. Limit of 20 people.
Saturday,
Aug. 4
5-9 pm, Visit the Casa Latina Festival, 200 block
of Woodbine, Louisville, KY.
Saturday,
Aug. 11
10 am-12 pm, Family Fun Workshop: Carnegie Center
Education Director Laura Wilkins will lead families
in an ethnic craft activity. Reservations suggested.
Tuesday,
Aug. 7
6-8:30 pm, Gallery Talk with artist Penny Sisto followed
by a community panel discussion on immigration.
Refreshments will be served. Reservations required.
Saturday,
Aug. 11
4-8 pm, Visit World on the Square, downtown Corydon,
IN.
Saturday
Aug. 18
World of Flavor BBQ and Music Fest, downtown New Albany
(hosted by Develop New Albany). Time and location
to be announced.
Saturday,
Aug. 25
1-4 pm, National City Financial Literacy Program,
Carnegie Center Lower Level Meeting Room.
Friday,
Aug. 31
Saturday, Sept. 1, Visit World Fest, Louisville Waterfront.
Saturday,
Sept. 8
10 am-12 pm, Family Fun Workshop, NA-FC Public Library
Children’s Dept. Carnegie Center Education
Director Laura Wilkins will lead families in an ethnic
craft activity. Reservations suggested.
Saturday
Sept. 15
6:30-11 pm, Visit Fiesta Latina, St. Mary’s Church,
8th and Spring Streets, New Albany.
Annual festival of food, music, crafts and fun!
