Comings and Goings

Contributed by Esther Murphy

"The world always seems brighter when you’ve just made something that wasn’t there before." —Neil Gaiman

For many of us on the Tour, these winter months are the time to try something new – a new technique, perhaps an idea we’ve been nurturing and just needed some quiet time to bring to life.  This is the time, before the rush of summer shows begin, when quiet reflection or perhaps a connection that encourages us to take a leap, gives birth to something new.

Each year we also say farewell to a few of our long time members. Some will be taking a temporary break. Others are changing focus and moving on.  The Tour keeps changing but the focus remains on welcoming visitors into our studios and sharing our creative processes. 

The winter months are also the time when we receive new applicants, complete the jurying process, and welcome new members to the tour. You’ll hear much more about our new members in the coming months, but this month I would like to introduce Textile Artist Melanie Brownsmith and welcome her to the tour.

Melanie has deep roots in Jefferson County, She is a member of a family with 3 generations living here and a graduate of Shepherd University, with a Batchelor of Fine Arts in photography.  She’s active in the local arts community.

She often uses her photographs as the basis for her colorful textile compositions.  She lights up as she speaks about her processes, the joy of working with her hands and exploring new techniques to incorporate into her work.  She uses yarn, paint, weaving, piecing, and embroidery to create her compositions, which might be a sculpture or a dramatic wall hanging.  She speaks of the sewing tradition she inherited from her mother and grandmother, which inspired her to turn to textiles. Yet, she enjoys finding ways to use modern technology in her processes.  She describes some of the new ways she plans to incorporate photography into a future project and I can see the creative juices giving birth to something new.

We look forward to seeing you during our summer show and the fall tour. You’ll find old friends with new work – and meet new members whose work contributes to our vision of a brighter world.