Project details
The design for this permanent installation at the St. Louis Airport is based on a cotton and wool coverlet from circa 1850’s Nodaway County, Missouri. This early style of Jacquard woven coverlet is in the collection of the Saint Louis Art Museum and is believed to have been woven by Joseph Gilmore, a Scottish weaver, and belonged to Betsey Cory Terhune, of Nodaway County. The museum’s description states that the coverlet‘s center field consists of tightly packed rows of alternating flower-filled rectangular medallions, creating a grid-like format. This is typical of the mid 19th century coverlets, and reflects geometric formatting also common in carpeting of the time. The coverlet passed down through the Terhune family and was donated in 2003 to the Saint Louis Art Museum. I have focused on one small area of the coverlet, painting an abstracted and aggrandized interpretation of the woven textures and colors. My desire is to bring a contemporary awareness of the textile traditions of Missouri, translated into glass, within the context of the airport.
The glass painting was manufactured with Franz Mayer Company of Munich, Germany, in 2011.
