After 5: Quilting Bee

But chances are, if you’re a baby boomer, the images you conjure when you hear the word quilt are quite different from the artwork associated with the opulent tombs of ancient Egyptian rulers.

Most of us think about our grandmas or the spinster aunt who won prizes at the county fair for her patchwork masterpieces.

In 19th century America, quilting bees were all the rage and women (who still couldn’t vote or go into a saloon, mind you) relished the idea of getting out of the house for an afternoon to gossip, gab and put together a communally crafted quilt or two.

And now there are people like Pam RuBert.

The works of this artist/quilter seem as far removed from King Tut as they do from Aunt Trudy’s sewing circle.

RuBert’s “The Perils of PaMdora” exhibition – on display through Jan. 30 at Drury University’s Pool Art Center Gallery – redefines quilting using bold colors and a strong sense of dry whimsy.

RuBert says she’s been drawing cartoons for as long as she can remember, and the central character in this exhibition – the semi-autobiographical PaMdora – brings to mind illustrated icons like Lynda Barry’s Marlys or (a somewhat skewed) Cathy Guisewite’s Cathy.

“The quilts are a medium, just like watercolor is a medium,” RuBert says of her modern expression of the ancient craft. “I approach it more from an art background. I’ve learned some things from other people, but it’s not like I grew up making quilts. I wanted to be able to work real big, and in big, bright colors. And I like to make (the art) approachable.”

The exhibit is eminently “approachable.”

There are 13 large quilts and three smaller ones. Many of the quilts have a short explanation written alongside. While the number of quilts displayed is relatively small, the viewer has no trouble getting to know, and sympathizing with, the heroine, PaMdora.

A series of quilts called “Yoga 101” will bring a smile to anyone who has tried to master an asana. PaMdora’s poses are aptly named “The Corkscrew,” “The Crab Dip” and “The Banana Split.”

The piece entitled “The Singing Telegram” depicts a time when the artist “had a job delivering singing telegrams in costume. Once I jumped out of a red-white-and-blue cake and sang ‘Yankee Doodle Dandy’ at a surprise party for an Iranian who had just gotten his U.S. citizenship,” the description says.

“Towers of Babble” seems to bemoan the ubiquitous use of cell phones in this modern world. It also features such Springfield landmarks as the Shrine Mosque, McDaniel Furs, Gailey’s and the Mudhouse.

One quilt breaks the pattern. PaMdora is nowhere to be found in “Metropolis.” The big-city streetscape is similar in look and feel to Vincent van Gogh’s masterpiece, “The Starry Night.”

Event Details

What: Springfield artist Pam RuBert’s “The Perils of PaMdora”

When: through Jan. 20

Where: Pool Art Center Gallery, 940 N. Clay; (417) 873-7263

Hours: 8 a.m.–5 p.m. Monday through Friday

Cost: None; donations are welcome

Behind the Scenes

To further enhance the exhibit, RuBert has fashioned a scaled-down mock-up of an artist’s studio she calls “PaMdora’s Pink and Blue Quilt Studio.”

It’s a bit of static performance art, if you will. It consists of a large sketch the artist refers to as an “Infinite Drawing,” as well as an eclectic collection of spools of threads, buttons, antique dominoes, a pedestal lavatory, an ironing board, a sewing machine and an old medicine cabinet stocked with Mr. Bubble, Pepto-Bismol and a product called Kabaya Hello Kitty.

Artist’s Credentials

Pam RuBert’s work has been featured at Quilt National 2006, Art Quilts at the Sedgwick, Husqvarna Viking Exhibition’s “Art Takes Shape,” Pacific International Quilt Festival, the Springfield Art Museum and Pennsylvania National Quilt Extravaganza.

Did You Know?

• Pam RuBert and her sculptor husband, Russ, work from their studio at 1841 E. Bergman in Springfield, (417) 862-3760. Longtime Springfieldians will remember this building as the former Hallam’s Peanut Butter factory.

• Russ RuBert’s neon sculptures were shown in May at the Momentum Exhibition at Grounds for Sculpture, a 35-acre sculpture park and museum in New Jersey. A photo of RuBert’s Positronic Neon was published in The New York Times.

• Russ RuBert will receive Missouri’s highest award for an individual artist Feb. 7 in the Capitol Rotunda in Jefferson City. The Missouri Arts Council chose RuBert for the 2007 Missouri Arts Award for individual artist.[[In-content Ad]]