HALLOWELL

“Fabric As Meditation”, an exhibition displaying vibrant and intricate quilt art by Barbara Crowley and Holly Dominie opens with a reception from 5-7 p.m. tonight at the Harlow Gallery in Hallowell. The reception will be followed by a gallery talk by the artists from 7-8 p.m.

Barbara Crowley and Holly Dominie describe their work and process as a reflection of past and present.

“The human body at the cellular level has a resonance with its past and present moments. We look for its reflections in our work and wellbeing. We spend countless hours staring at design walls, creating and re-creating images from the universe of fabrics that constitute our palettes. Usually alone, sometimes together, with different aesthetic visions, we slow down, pay attention to what brings calmness and meaning to our lives from the patterns of fabric shaped by color, juxtapositions, and light.”

Holly Dominie

Holly Dominie of

Maine is a land use planner who “goes to the other side,” so to speak, to give her right brain room to breathe. She pursues fabric art out of a love for contemplating color, light, and composition and spending time with friend Barbara Crowley.

She began painting in oils and taking drawing, design and painting classes at the University of Maine at Augusta. She found her passion and medium, however, the day she learned to “paint” with fabric.

Her collage portraits contain hundreds of pieces of fabric, edges glue-fused and quilted overall by machine. Her landscapes employ a variety of techniques including machine and hand piecing, fusing, and confetti under netting.

Her work has been juried into Art Quilt Portfolio: People and Portraits edited by Martha Sielman; Color Wheel of Emotions, which displayed in shows across the country in 2013-14; Schweinfurth Memorial Art Center’s Quilts = Art = Quilts Show in Auburn, New York. Her pieces have won juried awards in the Road to California Show, and Maine and Vermont Annual Quilt Shows. Two have been commissioned.

Barbara Crowley

“While I have sewn all my life and have an early quilt, still in process, made from scraps left over from my ‘hippie’ peasant shirts, it was in the middle of my life that I learned about design walls and the sheer pleasure of playing with color. While I quilt purely for the creative enjoyment and as an antidote to a busy and full worklife, it is color that draws me in. My quilts are re-created on the wall over and over again, so that what began a year ago, now has not a single piece or color in the same place. Sharing the creative process with Holly over the last 20 years has brought rich and colorful dimensions to a sweet and abiding friendship,” Crawley said.

The Harlow Gallery is located at 160 Water St., Hallowell. For more information about the exhibit and opening, call 622-3813.

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