Quilt Exhibit Begins in September

Art quilter and Reston resident Terry Peckarsky will be exhibiting a selection of quilts from her series “The Quilted Word” from September 3 to October 10. The quilts are the realization of a dream — to “make pictures in fabrics” — that Terry carried “in [her] heart for decades” until one day in 2007, when, at the end of a vocational/calling session she attended, she “blurted out” her answer to the question, “What would you do if money were no object and you couldn’t fail?”

Terry says that at the time, she did not even know there was such a field as “art quilting and lacked some practical skills she’d need to realize her creative ideas. “No matter,” she notes; “my journey began afresh.” (Read more in “Why do I do what I do?”)

Now an accomplished and collectible artist who gets to handle “beautiful fabrics,” Terry says her new-found path in life not only has enabled her to “learn to see with new eyes”; she also has found “a means of communion with God.”

“The Quilted Word” gives artistic expression to Terry’s reflections about and responses to a number of biblical passages or themes, among them intercession, repentance, joy, and worship. Those responses, Terry insists, are just “one person’s”; she does not expect any viewer to respond the same way and in fact actively encourages exhibit goers to not “limit [their] response [by] mirroring mine.”

On Sunday, September 22, from 4:00 to 5:00 PM in the Parish Hall, St. Michael’s will host a reception for and conversation with Terry, who not only will talk about some of the themes represented in the quilts but also answer attendees’ questions about her artistic process, the materials she uses, and her sources of inspiration. To promote discussion, Terry invites all parishioners and their guests or other exhibition visitors to ask themselves, “What is God saying to me through the passage of Scripture represented in the quilt’s image? How do I respond to it? What great themes from God’s Word stir my heart to respond?”

To learn more about Terry’s journey as a creative, see her article “Following Christ by Creating“ in the C.S. Lewis Institute’s quarterly publication Knowing & Doing.

A printed booklet about “The Quilted Word” and several of the quilts will be available for purchase. (For information, check the blue binder on the table near the Parish Hall stairs.)

"Out of Eden"; image courtesy of artist. Copyright © Teresa A. Peckarsky