Curatorial Statement

Family Gathering is an exhibition of River Berry’s BFA thesis. The word gathering has many connotations, one can gather fabric, supplies, people or thoughts. The selected works are informed by research conducted for River Berry’s BFA thesis discussed in depth in her paper Crafting Identity: Contemporary Craft Arts through Feminist Lenses. Berry’s work focuses on her familial relationships and the greater social issues they are linked to. Addressing subjects like addiction, mental health, and sexism through her use of quilting, collage, and printmaking. The imagery found in Berry’s work includes her family, hometown, domesticity, and the domestic space. Berry’s work also comments on gender roles through her subversive use of traditional crafts like quilting and embroidery. The act of stitching and quilting in these works reflects the love and effort given to each work. Berry aims to create a dynamic portrait of her family and in turn herself that intertwines her studio art and art historical practices. Examining the ways in which craft is related to community and family. In these works, Berry uses found objects and materials some of which were previously used by other local, women artists such as Sue Cavanaugh and Dorothy Gill-Barnes. The shared use of these materials gives Berry’s work a deeper meaning in which she is carrying on the legacy of these artists through her art practice. 

This exhibition is an installation of fiber works by River Berry created between 2021 and 2022. Quilted portraits of Berry's mother, grandparents, uncle as well as herself reflect the intimate toll addiction and health issues take on families. Items are collaged or sewn onto the portraits to inform the viewer about the relationship at hand. In Untitled (uncle e) Berry has added polymer clay pills and religious icons to the portrait of her uncle to address his ongoing battle with cancer. Much of the work in this exhibition focuses on the artist's relationship with her mother. Portraits of the artist's mother and herself include cigarette butts to allude to the lasting effect the relationship has had on the artist herself.

When you enter the space it resembles a bedroom with a queen-size mattress in the middle of the floor. Other soft forms surround the viewer both on the walls and floor. Untitled (sweet teeth) and other works about the artist's mother are placed closest to the mattress to emphasize the importance of this relationship to the artist. 

Special thank you to Julie Abijanac, Kathy McGhee and the CCAD art history faculty for introducing me to so many wonderful artists and fostering my love for art history and craft. One of these artists, Sue Cavanaugh, I am incredibly grateful to have gotten to know Sue as well as reuse materials from her installations in this installation. I would also like to thank my family as well for being a constant source of love and inspiration, especially my grandmother, who taught me to sew and quilt. Thank you.