Margaret Beach, an Exhibit of Narrative Quilts, Opening Reception

The Art Upstairs Gallery at the presents the work of Margaret Beach in "Stories Told and Retold", an exhibit of narrative quilts from January 17, 2012 through March 6, 2012. An artists' reception will take place on Sunday, January 22 from 3 to 5 p.m. The reception is free and open to the public.

Margaret Beach's narrative quilt carries on a unique American tradition of quilt making by women but with a new contemporary, personal touch. Margaret is self-taught and thus brings a fresh, uninhibited approach to her artistic voice.  In the past, quilts were a communal effort created by women using available fabrics and classic design patterns.  But Beach takes this endeavor onto a higher artistic and creative plane.  Her quilts are visual icons to genre paintings, works that tell a story or depict scenes of everyday activities.  Her roots are literary and draw on memorable authors like Henry David Thoreau, Shakespeare and James Thurber, incorporating their inspirational words into her "canvasses".