Cerys Hembury
Friends Cheri Richardson and April Rogers work on projects together during the stocking workshop at the Avenir Museum of Design and Merchandising Nov. 8. The workshop was hosted by local artist Julie Rieken and was inspired by her latest exhibition "Deck the Hall: Julie Rieken’s Art Stockings." “I’m here because (Richardson) invited me, and I thought it would be a very good opportunity to make something really fun and use my artistic creativity and spend time with my friends,” Rogers said.
Led by local artist Julie Rieken, Fort Collins residents engaged in a stocking workshop at the Avenir Museum of Design and Merchandising Nov. 8.
The shape of a stocking and the challenge of working within a restricted canvas intrigued Rieken.
“I’m not a Christmas person, but I liked the idea of a restricted canvas because it forced creativity into a space,” Rieken said.
This restriction is what Rieken felt sparked her creative freedom.
“It was harder for me to be creative when I could have thought of any space, but when I had to think about it within a particular shape, it was like freedom for me,” Rieken said.
“Deck the Hall: Julie Rieken’s Art Stockings” is on showcase at the Avenir Museum Gallery until Dec. 20. As for how her work arrived at the museum, Rieken said it wasn’t even her idea to display stockings.
“My friend and college roommate have long encouraged me to do something (with the stockings), and I didn’t know what to do with them. She then decided to reach out to the museum on my behalf, and it kind of just fell into place,” Rieken said.
“Having the opportunity to physically interact with textiles, see them move and see how they work with their lives is really important and powerful when, otherwise, you’d just be looking at the textiles.” -Sarah Lillis, Avenir Museum of Design and Merchandising education programs coordinator
Trust and confidence are what Rieken said she hoped the event’s participants would leave with.
“We sometimes doubt ourselves that we don’t have something to say or the way that we have to say it isn’t good enough, and really, I just want people to think about what makes them feel good,” Rieken said.
To create and share her designs, Rieken leaned on memories, as she said she wanted participants to also consider a personal motivator.
“I hope they think of things that are important to them, a feeling they might have, something they wish to share,” Rieken said. “I believe really strongly in not overthinking creativity.”
Sarah Lillis, the education programs coordinator for the Avenir Museum, helped Rieken lead the workshop.
“This workshop, in particular, provides an opportunity to practice some self-expression in the medium of textiles,” Lillis said. “So it really meets our mission in the access to the experience and opportunity to learn about textiles in general.”
In most museums, touching displayed artwork is discouraged, but the Avenir Museum hosted the workshop in hopes that its guests would have the opportunity to physically interact with textiles.
“Having the opportunity to physically interact with textiles, see them move and see how they work with their lives is really important and powerful when, otherwise, you’d just be looking at the textiles,” Lillis said.
Working hands-on with the textiles is what Lillis said “makes the artwork alive in a way that they aren’t in the galleries.”
A local resident of Fort Collins, Maria Kelley, attended the workshop with a friend who invited her.
“A friend told me about the workshop, and I love to craft,” Kelley said. “I have been working with textiles since I was a child.”
Workshops like this one provide individuals with a break from their day-to-day lives.
“I love spending time on crafts and completely escaping from the daily things,” Kelley said. “It’s just being able to totally design things.”
“It’s super fun to just get involved in the community and be able to discuss and chat while you’re making projects,” Kelley said. “It is kind of learning new designs and gathering new talent.”
Reach Jolynn Montiel at at entertainment@collegian.com or on social media @RMCollegian.