The Mississippi Valley Textile Museum’s highly anticipated Fibrefest is returning for its 17th annual event on September 8th & 9th, 2012 at the Mississippi Valley Textile Museum (MVTM), the North Lanark Agricultural Hall (Ag. Hall), the Almonte Old Town Hall (AOTH), North Larark Regional Museum, and the Mill of Kintail. At these locations we will be featuring everything from fibre art vendors and demonstrations to fibre art exhibits—a full two-day festival of the fibre arts! Five exciting sites for one admission fee!
The cost to enter Fibrefest is $5 per day. The locations present vendors of fibre arts supplies and finished goods, and throughout Fibrefest, local guilds will be on hand to demonstrate the arts of knitting, lacemaking, smocking, weaving, spinning, quilting, penny rugs, button collecting and more!
Featured Artist: Judy Miller – Textile Artist
Ms. Miller is often inspired by travels she has been privileged enough to take. Whether the subject is nature’s beauty or the combination of natural and architectural elements, Ms. Miller hopes her viewers can imagine themselves in the scene and enjoy the view. Ms. Miller strives to produce pieces with a strong emphasis on colour and texture.
The mixture of threads and fabric is comparable to the mixing of colour on a painter’s palette. Ms. Miller combines fabric-painting techniques and free-motion machine embroidery to produce works rich in colour and texture. She often starts with a sketch from a photograph. She paints the composition on cotton using fabric paint, watercolour pencils, or ink. She then uses threads to provide colour and detail, giving the pictures depth and richness.
Featured Group exhibit: TREES by: Threadworks
Threadworks is a special project of the Ontario Network of Needleworkers'(ONN) 1,000+ members. It showcases exceptional and creative needlework by artists from across Canada. Wellington County Museum and Archives (WCMA) in Fergus, Ontario is proud to host, sponsor, and support the inaugural exhibition, and acts as the organizing venue.
Threadworks is a juried exhibition that is mounted every three years and travels across Ontario to many museums and galleries.
In 2010, the interpretive theme was "Trees." Practitioners of the needle arts were invited to submit up to 3 pieces (the actual work, not photographs). All pieces had to be substantially worked with a threaded hand- or machine-needle and be of original design. The maximum size was set at 36" x 45" (although diptychs and triptychs are acceptable). Of the 230+ pieces of work received for the year (2010), 61 were chosen for circulation around Ontario for the following three years.
Featured Events: the Tweed Ride and Doors Open Mississippi Mills.
The Tweed Ride Almonte
The bicycle is big in Almonte, almost as big as its heritage as Canada’s premier textile town. Join us for a gently paced “weave” through town. Wear tweed, or choose the stylish outfit of a bygone time. Plus fours, bowties, cravats, Harris tweeds, vintage wear, are all perfectly tailored to this tour. And a bike of any fashion will fit right in.
If the cut of your cloth makes you “The Most Dapper Chap” or “The Most Dashing Dame”, a posh prize is in store.
Our guided routes this year will feature a leisurely ride through town, starting at the Almonte fair
ground grandstand, and passing a number of Doors Open locations. The countryside loop will pass through Blakeney and past the Mill of Kintail (11) and the Auld Kirk (12). Tweed Rides are happening around the Globe in support of good causes. The charity supported by Almonte’s ride is “Bicycles for Haiti”. Do consider a donation on the day of this “ride with style”.
Join us Saturday, September 8 at 12:30 p.m. Don’t spin your wheels, register by September 6.
For Details & Registration visit tweedridealmonte.ca or email tweedridealmonte@gmail.com
Doors Open Mississippi Mills & Carleton Place
Doors Open is a celebration of our community heritage and an opportunity for you to visit many of the historic and architecturally significant sites in Carleton Place, Almonte and area.This year we are “opening the doors” to churches, inns, a clock tower and even a waste water treatment plant. So why not join us “on the Mississippi”. Admission is free (excepting Fibrefest sites). Whether you are interested in history, architecture or textile crafts we have something of interest for everyone.
The Friends of the Mississippi Valley Textile Museum will be providing tea room services featuring homemade goodies, beverages and sandwiches all available at a reasonable price.
Admission to Fibrefest is $5.00, which includes access to all sites. Fibrefest runs on Saturday September 8 from 10AM – 5PM and Sunday September 9 from 10AM – 4PM at the Mississippi Valley Textile Museum, the North Lanark Agricultural Hall, the Almonte Old Town Hall, the North Larark Historical Museum and the Mill of Kintail, just 45 minutes west of downtown Ottawa. The North Lanark Agricultural Hall is located at the Almonte fair grounds, the Almonte Old Town Hall is located at 14 Bridge St, the North Lanark Regional Museum is located at 647 River Road the Mill of Kintail is located at 2854 Con. 8, RR 1 and the Mississippi Valley Textile Museum is located at 3 Rosamond Street East in Almonte. For more information contact the museum at 613-256-3754 x7 or info@mvtm.ca
For more information on Fibrefest or photos of past events please contact Michael Rikley-Lancaster, Curator at 613-256-3754 x7 or info@mvtm.ca
