'Jean Ray Laury: Getting it All Together' opens Friday at quilt museum

            The International Quilt Study Center and Museum at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln will present the exhibition, "Jean Ray Laury: Getting it All Together," from March 2 through Sept. 2. The exhibition celebrates the late artist's full and productive life and her more than half century of creative output in quilts, as well as other media including wood, paper and other materials.

            More than 40 quilts, along with numerous other artworks, sketchbooks, and personal archival material, were recently donated by Laury before her death in 2011. Iowa born, she became an inspiration worldwide through her teaching, quilting and writing. Beginning in the 1960s, Laury created provocative images from a feminist viewpoint in her quilted, felted and screen-printed textiles, inspiring other artists to likewise adopt a political stance in their work. She participated in the revitalization of American craft and profoundly influenced contemporary quiltmaking, particularly the California studio art quilt movement.

            Through her more than 30 books, years of monthly columns in Quilter's Newsletter Magazine, and decades of teaching, Laury reached a vast audience. In her writings and teaching, she encouraged originality in design, rather than imitation of a particular idea or pattern. Laury believed it was important for women to carve out time in their lives for creativity, and the exhibition's title is based on her 1977 book, "The Creative Woman's Getting-It-All-Together (at Home) Handbook" (Van Nostrand Reinhold). Her message is still relevant and provides today's women with suggestions on how they can "get it all together."

            Guest curator Nancy Bavor, a recent graduate of the quilt studies program in the UNL Department of Textiles, Clothing and Design, has organized the exhibition to show the breadth and depth of Laury's influence as an artist, teacher, writer, humorist, feminist, mother and wife. The quilts tell only part of the story and are accompanied by works done by Laury in different mediums. Displays of some of Laury's personal sketchbooks, a diary, and copies of her books from the University Library Archives complete the picture of a woman who had "it all together."

            Programming associated with this exhibition includes:

• Friday, March 2, 5:30 p.m. -- Public lecture, Ellen Rushman, quilt studies graduate student, "Modern Quilting: DIY (Do-it-Yourself) Discourse." A reception sponsored by the Lincoln Quilters Guild will follow. Admission to the museum is free from 4:30-7 p.m. on this Friday.
• Tuesday, March 27, noon -- Tuesday Talk, Christine Humphrey, quilt studies M.A. graduate, "Reclaiming the Past: Craft, Activism, Femininity, and Feminism."
• Saturday, March 31, 12:30-3:30 p.m., and Sunday, April 1, 1:30-4:30 p.m. -- Workshops: "Let's Create!" monoprint and dyeing surface design for adults; register at 402-472-6549.
• Saturday, April 21, 11 a.m. and 1 p.m. -- Gallery talks, guest curator Nancy Bavor.
• Sunday, April 22, 2 p.m. -- Public lecture, Bavor, "Jean Ray Laury: Threads of Feminism."

            The International Quilt Study Center and Museum is the home of a world-class collection of quilted objects from more than 30 countries and spanning four centuries. The museum is open 10 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. Tuesdays through Saturdays and 1 to 4:30 p.m. Sundays; closed Mondays and major holidays. Docent-led tours begin at 11 a.m. Wednesdays and and 1 p.m. Saturdays. Reserved guided tours for groups of 10 or more are available during public hours. Please schedule at least four weeks in advance. Call 402-472-6579 or email the center. Admission is $6 for adults (over 18); $3 for non-UNL students with ID and children; $12 for families (up to two adults with their children and grandchildren); free for children under 4, museum members, and UNL faculty, staff and students with ID. For more information, call 402-472-6459 or visit www.quiltstudy.org. The International Quilt Study Center is an academic program of the Department of Textiles, Clothing and Design in the UNL College of Education and Human Sciences.

Writer: Maureen Ose