Tyson, Gibbs Relate 'Summer News'

"Cat at Her Mirror," an applique quilt by Mary Laura Gibbs (above) and a painting by Barbara Tyson depicting swans on Spring Lake (below) will be available for viewing at the LSC Gallery from July 18 to Aug. 6.

The "Summer News" art exhibit in the Lowman Student Center Gallery, from July 18 to Aug. 7, will feature themes of the season, from peaceful swans to tomatoes to baseball.

Artists Barbara Tyson and Mary Laura Gibbs will display paintings and quilts from their collection of work that have never shown before.

An SHSU English professor from 1972-2001, Barbara Tyson had promised herself more time to focus on art in her retirement.

"There have been a couple of times I have asked myself, 'do you regret not becoming an artist' and choosing to be an English teacher," she said, but Tyson enjoyed interacting with her students so much and she was able to blend her love of art and literature by introducing art into the topics being discussed.

Now she participates in workshops and shows to keep that promise to herself. She is a member of Huntsville Cooperative of Working Artists and recently won first prize at the Lone Star Art Guild Convention for her painting of a sunset and clouds over the Huntsville Wal-Mart.

This show will include oil paintings of two landscapes featuring cows and one of the swans that landed on Spring Lake at the back yard of her home.

Tyson said she sometimes paints from memory, sometimes photographs, but always subjects that are close to her heart, especially big skies and Texas landscapes.

Mary Laura Gibbs began quilting eight years ago but says she used to sew clothing and do cross-stitch before quilting took over.

"There are many people who think that quilts are bed coverings, and there are many people who think that quilts are made of old scraps of fabric. Neither of these things are true any more. My quilts are referred to as 'art quilts,'" she said, because they are mostly used as wall hangings and are too small to sleep under.

Her quilts are sewn by machine, though other artists use many methods of "piecing," which is putting the pieces together. This is followed by attaching the batting and backing, or making the "sandwich." She also uses appliqué, precisely-cut pieces of fabric that are hand sewn onto a quilt, for more detailed work such as the quilt featuring her cat or Astros pitcher Andy Pettite.

"He just has the most wonderful face in baseball," she said.

The largest Gibbs piece in the show, "The Slow Pacific Swell (Antarctica)," was inspired by a three-week cruise to Antarctica.

"I had read some books and was fascinated by the history of exploration there. When I travel, I usually go to Europe for the museums and cathedrals. I wanted to do something different, and I was fascinated by the idea of an entire continent with no people on it," Gibbs said.

She enjoyed observing the whales, dolphins, and seals during the trip, but was unexpectedly struck by the beautiful shades of blue. Her quilt contains blues from teal to midnight, and many other colors.

"There are more penguins than you can possibly imagine. The smell is beyond description," Gibbs said.
Penguins are very territorial and tend to mark in the same place. They eat a lot of krill, Gibbs added, which means the rocks of Antarctica are spattered with pink.

"There is some pink in the quilt, and I don't tell people why," Gibbs said.

In the summer, the Lowman Student Center Gallery is open from 7 a.m. to 9 p.m. Mondays through Thursdays, 7 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Fridays, 1-5 p.m. on Saturdays and closed Sundays. The "Summer News" reception will be held July 20 from 4-6 p.m. in the gallery.

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SHSU Media Contact: Kelly Garrison
July 14, 2006
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