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Chandler show celebrates quilts’ story magic
BY SRIANTHI PERERA Arizonan Contributor
Linda McCurry’s art quilt depicts adversity.
Years ago, her Gilbert home caught �ire around the chimney; the �ire burnt downstairs near the �ireplace and upstairs through the master bedroom. Her koi �ish died in her pond due to �ire�ighters putting a �lame retardant in it. In �laming red, orange, brown and yellow, she traces the story in her quilt titled “From the Ashes.”
“There was a lot of restoration to do,” McCurry said. “You could say from the ashes we rose and came back as strong as we could.”
Stories such as this are what exhibit curator and judge Ellen M. Blalock sought when she was invited to assemble the City of Chandler’s annual art quilt show. Art Quilts XXVI: Stitching Stories, featurIn her story quilt titled “Seeking Center/ Finding Balance,” Shelly White creates a visual snapshot of her goal of “calm” as she navigates competing concerns, an overload of information and confusion. The layered colors of nature, repetitive patterns and topographic lines help chart a path to peace, order, and beauty,” she
said. (Courtesy of Shelly White.) ing 64 story quilts made by 53 artists from across the country, runs through Jan. 8 at Vision Gallery and CCA Gallery.
A resident of Syracuse, New York, Blalock is passionate about story quilts.
“I know that quilters work and artists work in all kinds of different ways and I wanted to be inclusive of a lot of people’s voices because not everybody does �igurative work,” she noted.
“What is also important to me is the story behind the quilt and not just a story the quilt is telling. Somebody may be having the story of why they made the quilt and or it could even be the process,” she added.
Blalock herself is a narrative artist documentarian who works in photography, video, drawing and �iber. Most of her creations come in series form, such as the 32-piece Family Quilt Project; Not Crazy, which looks at mental illness in the African American community; and the one on feminism.
In addition to creating picturesque fabric art, Chandler artist-novelist Laurie Fagen often portrays causes important to her. For this show, Fagen chose to highlight a photograph her brother, a nurse practitioner, sent of himself: gowned, gloved and masked for work in the COVID ward.
“I don’t typically manipulate photos in Photoshop for my �iber art, but this one I speci�ically did because it was the year of the pandemic, he was frazzled and the world was frazzled,” she said. “So, I changed the colors, I left threads attached to it, I just made it as frazzled as possible.” Fagen, who also authors crime �iction novels and creates polymer clay jewelry, imparts texture and dimension to her work. Her recent line of �iber art involves
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Chandler, EV ring in New Year with music
BY SARAH HABER
Arizonan Contributor
The Chandler Center for the Arts will be saying farewell to 2021 with a special New Year’s Eve show featuring four powerhouse vocalists and a 10-piece orchestra presenting the hits of Broadway shows.
With Musical Director JR McAlexander, vocals will be provided by Jamie Parnell, Kristen Drathman, Kaitlynn Kleinman Bluth And Jordan Bluth.
They will be performing the big bold music of Andrew Lloyd Webber and Rodgers & Hammerstein, as well as songs from “Mamma Mia!,” “Jersey Boys,” Carole King’s “Beautiful” and more.
There will be a champagne toast and party favors as well as a photo booth for
taking photos, printing them on the fabric and thread painting with a few miles of thread.
“I embellish the art quilt with thread, give it texture and dimension. That’s my basic technique that I’ve been doing recently. Oftentimes they’re embellished with other things – charms, yarn, ribbon, surface designs, foiling techniques and adding paint,” she said.
“I love the tactile feel of the fabric and being able to take any fabric and work with them is always just something that’s very satisfying to me,” she said, adding “everything from the design to the creation to the actual manipulation of the fabric, I enjoy the whole process.”
AnnemarieComes of Mesa works in a similar process to weave photography to fabric.
Her quilt titled “Branching Out” is a cyanotype of one of her photographs.
“My image was printed in my dark room in black and white, then turned into a large-scale transparency which was exposed overtop of chemically coated fabric,” she said. “Our Arizona sun was then Left: Annemarie Comes of Mesa created her art quilt “Branching Out” by “weaving” into fabric a cyanotype of a photograph of tree trunks. (Courtesy of Annemarie Comes) Center: Laurie Fagen of Chandler created “Frazzled,” a story quilt portraying her nurse practitioner brother outfitted to work in the COVID ward. (Courtesy of Laurie Fagen) Right: Linda McCurry’s “From the Ashes” depicts a story about her Gilbert home catching on fire. (Courtesy of Linda McCurry)
used to transfer the image onto the fabric.”
“As an Arizona-based photographer, I try to capture special moments in time – a lot of sunsets – so others can enjoy the beauty, as well,” she added.
After isolating for much of the past months due to the pandemic, Comes relishes the freedom to create art.
“It was wonderful to revisit fabrics/ quilting and the cyanotype process in the past year. It’s so wonderful to allow others to enjoy my image in a quilted form once again,” she said.
Details: visiongallery.org/event/artquilts-xxvi-stitching-stories/
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complimentary photos and a special souvenir from the evening for all attendees.
JR McAlexander is the owner, executive producer and genius behind local stage company Showtune Productions. A 25year veteran of the professional theatre, he has overseen the music direction of more than 375 productions throughout the United States and Canada, including numerous national touring Broadway companies.
Chandler Center for the Arts Showtime Series also features productions created by Showtune Productions and JR McAlexander. Chandler Center for the Arts, 250 N. Arizona Ave., Chandler, 8 p.m. Dec. 31, Tickets $26 to $46, chandlercenter.org
Straight No Chaser singer Jasper Smith predicts the group’s a cappella New Year’s Eve performance at the Mesa Arts Center will be extraordinary.
“This is the last show in our tour, so we are going to pull out all of the stops,” Smith said. Founded at Indiana University, Straight No Chaser has spent the year on its “Back in the High Life Tour,” pushing the deluxe edition of the album “Social Christmasing,” which features “Celebrate Me Home” with Kenny Loggins and “Christmas Show.”
The newest member of Straight No Chaser, Smith describes the shows as “having a little bit of something for everyone. There are all kinds of genres from ’40s, ’50s all the way to Dua Lipa.”
The performances are just as special for Straight No Chaser as they are for fans. In mid-November, a Texas audience member shouted, “I missed you!”
“(The concerts) speak to the connection we have with the fans,” he said.
Mesa Arts Center, 1 E. Main St., Mesa, 8 p.m., tickets start at $90, mesaartscenter.com
Straight No Chaser is among several entertainers ushering in the New Year around the Valley. Here are other ways to celebrate the end of 2021 and what’s to come in 2022.
Linger Longer Lounge
Uptown Phoenix’s Linger Longer Lounge is offering a block party-style evening with two performance areas featuring Meet the Sun, Citrus Clouds and Bee Bohannon. DJs include Layton, Jules Quimby and Jake Stellarwell. The evening will end with a complimentary champagne toast at midnight. 6522 N. 16th St., Suite 6, Phoenix, 8 p.m., $24 before December 14, $35 between December 15 and December 31, lingerlongerlounge.com
Phoenix Symphony New Year’s Special with Leslie Odom Jr.
Tony and Grammy Award winner, Leslie Odom Jr., lends his pipes to the Phoenix Symphony. Best known for his role as Aaron Burr in “Hamilton,” he will blend classics, pops and surprises to keep attendees glued to their seats.
Symphony Hall, 75 N. Second St., Phoenix, 7:30 p.m., tickets start at $44, phoenixsymphony.org
Sublime with Rome
Reggae rockers Sublime with Rome hits the Marquee stage for two nights, including December 31, to ring in 2022. Special guests include Phoenix’s Katastro and The Irie on December 30, and Katastro and Spray Allen on December 31.
Marquee Theatre, 730 N. Mill Ave., Tempe, 8:30 p.m., tickets start at $50, luckymanonline.com
Decadence Arizona
Relentless Beats and Global Dance present Decadence Arizona, also for two nights, December 30 and December 31. The epic lineup is Alesso, Alison Wonderland, BIJOU, Chris Lake, DJ Snake, Gem & Tauri, Kaskade, Madeon (DJ set), Martin Ikin, Nora En Pure, Purple Disco Machine and Seven Lions on Dec. 30; Alan Walker, Destructo, Diesel aka Shaquille O’Neal, Dillon Francis, Excision, Fisher, Gordo, Lost Kings, Loud Luxury, Marshmello, Sonny Fodera and TV Boo on NYE.
Rawhide Western Town & Event Center, 5700 W. North Loop Road, Chandler, 5 p.m., tickets start at $200, relentlessbeats.com
Comedian Peter Fogel brings his one-man show to the Herberger Theater Center from December 29 to January 30, including New Year’s Eve. On stage, Fogel shares crazy holiday memories while bringing to life a multitude of hilariously eccentric characters.
Herberger Theater Center, 222 E. Monroe St., Phoenix, 8 p.m., tickets start at $69.50, herbergertheater.org
