Dynamic weaving exhibit to open at Black Mountain Center for the Arts

Anne Storie Willson brings designs to the Upper Gallery

Jessica Klarp
Guest contributor
The Valley Echo
September 3, 2021

Anne Storie Willson’s Open Weave Designs exhibit in the Upper Gallery of the Black Mountain Center for the Arts, opening Sept. 4, will feature unique displays of random weaving. Photo courtesy of BMCA

A unique exhibit exploring a dynamic use of organic materials will open in the Upper Gallery of the Black Mountain Center for the Arts, from 4:30 - 6 p.m., Saturday, Sept. 4.

The work of artist Anne Storie Willson will be on display through Friday, Sept. 24. The Upper Gallery is free and open to the public Monday through Friday 10 a.m. - 5 p.m.

Willson hails from Wilmington and grew up playing in the woods and marshes along the coast. Her medium is woven forms created with reeds and other organic materials reflecting her love of the natural world and “wild spaces.” The woven forms create dresses, nests, vessels and other shapes found in nature; her work has been on display through group and solo exhibitions throughout the region.

“Our goal in choosing regional artist’s for the Upper Gallery is to focus on quality and diversity,” BMCA Executive Director Lori Cozzi said. “Anne’s work is so dynamic and intriguing that our committee was unanimous in the decision to share her nuanced sculptures with our guests.”

A cocoon design, woven together out of organic materials, represents one of many pieces by Anne Storie Willson featured in the Open Weave Designs exhibit in the Upper Gallery of the Black Mountain Center for the Arts. Photo courtesy of BMCA

The technique employed by Willson to achieve her shapes is called random weave, a process she learned through a MassArts workshop in Bennington, Vermont in 2009. In 2016, she returned to N.C., and has since focused her efforts on creating art.

Originally a potter, Willson devoted much of her career to arts administration and worked in the nonprofit sector for over twenty-seven years, leading visual arts organizations in North Carolina and Tennessee while maintaining a side art practice.

“My hope with this exhibition’” said Willson, “is that people will experience presence and spaciousness in form, both in an outside form and in themselves.”

The Open Weave Design exhibit is an opportunity to see the work of this unique artist. The Black Mountain Center for the Arts is located at 225 West State Street. For more information call 828-669-0930 or visit blackmountainarts.org.