With artworks ranging from tapestry and necklaces to lace-embroidered magnolia leaves, Mobilia Gallery’s “What to Collect Now” has an expansive and exquisite vision of textiles.
Mobilia is an art shop for pieces that double as bespoke gifts, so yes, every piece is for sale in the exhibit. None are quite accessible for the novice collector; each artwork costs at least several thousand dollars.
Yet even window shopping is worthwhile with these beautiful and wide-ranging works, every one a masterful, inventive use of craft.
Joyce J. Scott, a 2016 MacArthur Fellowship recipient, presents a bright blue, collagelike piece with glass beads and peyote stitch in her piece “Blutz.” Scott is known for her sharp social commentary and for borrowing from a range of beading traditions, including West African Yoruba and Native American. “Blutz” is emotionally evocative yet abstract; her depictions of human bodies are expressive, twisting themselves into fantastical positions.
Lia Cook’s woven cotton photographs are stunning – and monumental, each measuring several feet tall. In “Big Boy with Bear,” she takes what looks like an old family photo of a child with his stuffed animal and renders it in striking detail. “Material Digits” is a close-up image of a woman’s face, her hands coming toward her mouth. The level of detail Cook is able to get even in just the folds of fingers is incredible.
Just a five-minute walk from Mobilia, three large mosaic murals are complete at the Tobin Montessori and Darby Vassall Upper Schools and Community Complex, a facility that opened last month. Artists Ekua Holmes, Andromeda Lisle and Amanda Phingbodhipakkiya were chosen to make the murals in an intensive selection process. Mosaika Art & Design fabricated the mosaic pieces, using materials ranging from glass smalti to glazed ceramic tiles and hand-carved elements. Holmes’ mural, “You Belong Here,” is based on one of the artist’s hand-cut collages and shows students playing basketball and soccer, reading and making art. Warm and vibrant, the mural greets the kids as they arrive. In “Tranquility,” Lisle shows a humpback whale and calf swimming side by side – a touching depiction of caregiving, with breathtaking waves that transcend their individual tiles. Saturday’s opening ceremony has passed, but one hopes there will be more opportunities for the public to see these lovely works.
Despite their differences, mosaic and textile feel like apt companions. It’s exhilarating to know that a person planned out or placed each bead, each thread, each piece of glass. They reach a scale and a level of complexity that’s hard to perceive all at once – but that invites you to touch, or to come look closer.
“What to Collect Now” through Oct. 31 at Mobilia Gallery, 358 Huron Ave., Huron Village, Cambridge
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