Local fiber artist Sandra Gordon, who was instrumental in bringing the “Bedtime Stitches” exhibit to HCSCC, displays one of her own dimensional embroidery pieces. (Photo/Nancy Hanson.)

Nancy Edmonds Hanson

When nationally known fiber artist Salley Mavor enrolled in art school, she assumed her love of fabric, needles and thread would be replaced by brushes, paints and other two-dimensional art media.

She was wrong. Instead, the Cape Cod artist uses the tools of embroidery to create unique three-dimensional illustrations, introducing children to art with clever stitches, bits of felt, beads with evocative faces and a range of found materials – wire, twigs, chenille pipe cleaners, tiny squares of cloth.

Sandra Gordon introduced local lovers of needles, thread and fabric to Mavor’s art at the opening of the Historical and Cultural Society of Clay County’s new exhibition of her work. Titled “Bedtime Stitches,” the exhibit features dimensional embroidered illustrations from her latest children’s book, “My Bed – Enchanting Ways to Fall Asleep Around the World.”

Gordon, a retired MSUM professor of education, discovered Mavor’s beys-relief needle art through her own passion for embroidery and the needle arts. An avid fan, she has written journal articles about her.

She quoted Mavor on her love of her chosen medium: “Manipulating materials in my hands was so much more satisfying than rendering with a pencil or brush. Instead of trying to keep in step using traditional mediums, I discovered that with stitching, I could dance the fandango! I found that my hands would direct me in a compelling way and I could communicate ideas more clearly.”

Two local fabric artists, Virginia Dambach and Debbie Richman, plan to offer demonstrations of Mavor’s dimensional embroidery techniques and process of creating her wee people. The free sessions are planned from 2 to 4 pm. on two Sundays – Oct. 23 and Nov. 20 – and from 11 am. to 1 pm. Saturday, Dec. 1. For more on Sally Savor and her art, go to www.weefolkstudio.com.