A long-distance collaboration between two artists who pen-pal abstract textiles back and forth.
The Windgate Museum of Art at Hendrix College (WMA) presents “The Wondermakers: Night Fever,” a collaborative embroidery project created by Mindy Sue Meyers and Jenna Freimuth. Rooted in the curiosity of what their collective creativity could yield, this project has evolved into a large body of abstract textile work that explores composition, color, texture, disruption, and wonder.
Meyers (Iron Mountain, MI) and Freimuth (Minneapolis, MN) attended the University of Wisconsin Green Bay at different times, connected on social media, and now mail art back and forth between Michigan and Minnesota. The name The Wondermakers was conceived by the idea of simply wondering what we could make together. Mindy makes embellished, abstract soft sculpture and Jenna draws lush, patterned illustrations. As they navigated how to blend their unique artistic styles into a long-distance collaboration, their dense embroidered pieces started to emerge. With the limitless combination of color and texture possible within their embroideries, they continue to explore creating wonder and curiosity in their work.
“I have watched Meyers and Freimuth develop their bright, ornate, and wonderous pieces over the last number of years,” says curator Christian Cutler, director of the WMA. “I am thrilled to bring this inspirational, collaborative project to the Windgate Museum of Art.”
Their embroideries start with one artist putting down some stitches and then mailing it off to the other person. Nothing is drawn out ahead of time or preplanned. Every embroidery is a response to the other’s mark-making and a metaphysical representation of their two styles colliding. As the layers build and stitches accumulate, a hint of an imaginary world is created within the hoop.
Drop-In Collaborative Event and Artist Talk
On Thursday, February 27, the WMA will welcome to campus artists Mindy Sue Meyers and Jenna Freimuth. Meyers and Freimuth will be on hand in the museum lobby from 12 to 4 p.m. to work one-on-one with museum patrons to create a collaborative, fiber-based art piece for the museum lobby. An artist talk will follow the collaborative event at 4:30 p.m., which will be held in in the Hundley – Shell Theater, next door to the Windgate Museum of Art. Both events are free and open to all.
The WMA is housed on the first floor, north wing, of the Miller Creative Quad, Building 3 on the current Hendrix campus map. Exhibitions and programs at the Windgate Museum of Art at Hendrix College are free and open to all. Regular interior gallery hours are Tuesday through Saturday from noon to 5 p.m. during the fall and spring semesters.
The WMA anticipates announcing more exhibition-related events this semester. To stay up to date on additional program offerings associated with “The Wondermakers: Night Fever,” visit www.windgatemuseum.org/events.
About the Windgate Museum of Art
The Windgate Museum of Art is the art museum located on the campus of Hendrix College. With a vision to be the premier teaching art museum in Arkansas, the Windgate presents outstanding art exhibitions, compelling educational programs, and invigorating social activities for students, faculty, staff, and visitors to campus. Free and open to all, the museum uses hands-on experiences to train students in all facets of museum work, including curatorial research, collection management, educational and social programming, marketing and communications, as well as all aspects of exhibition research, planning, installation, and evaluation. The Windgate Museum of Art is made possible with major support from the Windgate Foundation and the Alice L. Walton Foundation.
About Hendrix College
Founded in 1876, Hendrix College is featured in Colleges That Change Lives: 40 Schools That Will Change the Way You Think About Colleges and celebrated among the country’s leading liberal arts colleges for academic quality, engaged learning opportunities and career preparation, vibrant campus life, and value. The Hendrix College Warriors compete in 21 NCAA Division III sports. Hendrix has been affiliated with the United Methodist Church since 1884. Learn more at www.hendrix.edu.
“… Through engagement that links the classroom with the world, and a commitment to diversity, inclusion, justice, and sustainable living, the Hendrix community inspires students to lead lives of accomplishment, integrity, service, and joy.” —Hendrix College Statement of Purpose