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Maui
Time Weekly Issue 10.32 / Arts & Entertainment:
"Microcosmic Paradise" -
The photographic quilts of Kiersten
A. Stein By Sabrina Coryell |
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When is a quilt not a quilt,
yet still a quilt? When it's a photograph composed of color saturated
microcosmic images of birds of paradise, pink ginger flowers and vivid
green aloe like the aptly titled "Nature's
Quilt" by fine artist and photographer, Kiersten A. Stein, one
of the featured artists at the Quan Gallery in Lahaina.
The cooperative gallery, sandwiched between Hard Rock Cafe and Ruth's
Chris Steak House, is an oasis of difference within the sea of celebrity
and tourist-driven art galleries on Lahaina's crowded Front Street.
Among those attending last Friday's reception for Stein - a multi-cultural,
multi-generational mix of residents, recent arrivals and those hoping
to become residents, that included an intuitive healer from Arizona, a
newly married Russian photographer, a couple of seniors from Kihei and
a nine-year-old and her mother from Kula - the
collective consensus was that this was what those who love art and Maui
have been craving.
Founded by Carolyn Quan, fine art photographer and
four-time gold record winner for her creative achievements in the music
industry, the gallery represents six talented local artists, all working
in different mediums and styles.
Which, in a patchwork way, brings us back to Stein's photo mosaics and
quilts composed of images from the natural world, as well as words and
phrases. For these, too, can be a collaborative effort.
Stein custom-quilts to represent the customer's
dreams and desires in a variety of formats. So
far the largest commissioned quilt measures 32 inches by 40 inchesÑtwice
the size of her pieces on exhibit at the Quan Gallery. Custom collaborations
using images from Stein's library of flowers and fauna begin at $750 for
a 16-inch by 24-inch quilt.
Clients can ask Stein to photograph a particular flower or plant and incorporate
that into the other images, at an hourly rate. Or they can draw upon her
experience as a portrait photographer to create
a piece commemorating a special occasion such as a wedding anniversary,
graduation or birth.
Stein prints the finished quilt on a variety of
surfaces, including tile, textile and premium archival canvas.
The latter produces a contemporary look that doesn't need framing.
Stein says that she is "the artist," but that she is "also
the facilitator to the client's vision".
"Sharing gives me a feeling of connectedness,"
she says.
It may also be a part of the fabric from her own family's quilt.
"My father was a generous
man," Stein says. "He didn't teach me everything he thought
I needed to know, he taught me everything he knew."
The oldest of five children, Stein says one of the rituals of her childhood
was patchwork quilting twice a week with her Nana.
"When I photograph, I want to become the atom moving through space
and time," she says.
"I like to go below the surface. Yet I'm
not interested in being invasive. Respecting
the natural state of what I'm photographing is important to me. I'm extremely
shy. So, in a way, I can use the camera to hide behind yet still experience
great intimacy. I want my pieces to effect those who see them on an emotional
and sensory level to mean something and bring something positive to those
who witness them."
Newer pieces especially, such as "Gecko"
and "Needles
and Thread" are hypnotic. Departing from the vivid patchwork
style of the tropical pieces, which are filled with beehive and pink ginger
flowers, birds of paradise, king protea, and a variety of aloe, these
use desert hues and repeated images. The finished effect is reminiscent
of tapestry, reminding me of an intricate Balinese or Tibetan textile.
What I like about these quilts is that they integrate the personal
and the political, the local and global and especially the need for connection,
intimacy, truth and beauty in everyday life. Stein's artist statement
card sums it up this way: "It's
in the still that we can experience the extraordinary."
Stein's current exhibition continues through Spring
at the Quan Gallery, 900 Front St. Stein can by contacted through
the gallery, or at her other gig, "Unions
in Paradise," where she plans intimate and exceptional events,
weddings, and other meaningful celebrations. MTW
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