SOMArts Cultural Center

Reception Thursday, June 18 from 6:30 to 9 pm

With musical performance by Conspiracy of Beards

A vibrant show of ultramodern fiber art, influenced by pop, lowbrow and graffiti art, reflecting the urban experience. Taking quilts out of a rural context and bringing them into present-day city environments, these visually rich and intensely tactile works serve as an anthropological record of urban life, from San Francisco's Chinatown and Mission districts to neighborhoods in Chicago and New York City. Constructed from a collage of urban imagery, the quilts pay homage to select cities by capturing the shifting landscape at a particular moment in time. Iconic signs, temporary graffiti, and distinct architectural elements are pieced together in vibrant dupioni silk and deep black cotton.

Drawing on her background as a comix illustrator and graphic designer and her undergraduate and graduate education in fiber arts, Ahlstrom reinterprets the graffiti, signs, and architectural details she finds in her urban surroundings. To Amy, process is just as important as the finished product.