The Cincinnati Arts Association’s Alice F. and Harris K. Weston Art Gallery in the Aronoff Center for the Arts debuts its 2007-08 exhibition season with three new exhibitions related to the exploration of fiber: Ecstasy and Odyssey: Site-Specific Installations by Robert McConaughy; Pushing Buttons: Art Quilts by Jane Burch Cochran; and Sewing Stories: Fabric Collages by Ellen Scott.

Robert McConaughy, "Ecstasy and Odyssey," installation view, 2007

Thurs., Sept. 27 at 7 p.m.

Education Workshop: Sat., Oct. 27 at 10 a.m.

Ecstasy and Odyssey: Site-Specific Installations by Robert McConaughy is generously sponsored by Dinsmore & Shohl, LLP.

Jane Burch Cochran (Rabbit Hash, KY) produces richly embellished art quilts that combine buttons, beads, patchwork and recycled fabric pushed to a nearly obsessive state. For Pushing Buttons, Cochran will feature a selection of new and recent works that addresses themes of race, the environment and the human psyche.

A renowned quilt maker with a distinguished career spanning more than twenty-five years, Cochran has shown her quilts in numerous regional, national and international exhibitions. A small selection of her extensive exhibition history includes such venues as Carl Solway Gallery, Linda Schwartz Gallery (both Cincinnati, OH); Dairy Barn Cultural Center (Athens, OH); Kentucky Museum of Art and Craft (Louisville, KY); Everson Museum of Art (Syracuse, NY); Dutch Textile Museum (Tilburg, The Netherlands); and the Museum of Art and Design (Helsinki, Finland). Her work is featured in museum, corporate and private collections that include Delta Airlines (Atlanta, GA); George R. Stroemple Collection (Lake Oswego, OR); University of Kentucky Art Museum (Lexington, KY); Federal Reserve Bank (Cincinnati, OH); Fidelity Investments (Covington, KY); Cincinnati Bell (Cincinnati, OH); and E.W. Scripps Co. (Cincinnati, OH). In 2004, she was awarded a major site-specific commission from the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center in Cincinnati. She has been the recipient of the Southern Arts Federation / NEA Fellowship (1993); Al Smith Artist Fellowship (Kentucky Visual Art Awards 1993); and a Summerfair, Inc. Individual Artist Award in 1993. Her work has been featured prominently in print including books, exhibition catalogues and periodicals.

Jane Burch Cochran, "Shroud for a Colorful Soul," 2005, fabric, embellishments and paint, 45 x 66 inches

Thurs., Sept. 20 at 7 p.m.

Education Workshop: Sat., Sept. 29 at 10 a.m.

Pushing Buttons: Art Quilts by Jane Burch Cochran is generously sponsored by The LaBoiteaux Family Foundation.

Ellen Scott (Cincinnati, OH / Santa Fe, NM) creatively pieces together colorful and tactile fabric constructions embellished with thread work to examine everyday aspects of her life. In a new series of fabric collages, Scott pushes into the 3-D realm by using shadow boxes to create theatrical vignettes. In Sewing Stories, Scott creatively combines intricate embroidery, collage and decorative metal relief work on an intimate scale to frame snapshots of her world.

Ellen Scott earned a bachelor of arts in art history from Boston University (Boston, MA) in 1984 and a master of fine arts in painting from Academy of Art College (San Francisco, CA) in 1986. Her work has been featured in solo exhibitions at the Suzanna Terrill Gallery (Cincinnati, OH); Carnegie Visual and Performing Arts Center (Covington, KY); Enjoy the Arts Gallery (Cincinnati, OH); Annie Bolling Gallery at M. Willis Interiors (Cincinnati, OH); Southern Ohio Museum (Portsmouth, OH); Portland School of Arts and Crafts (Portland, OR); and Sandbox Gallery of Art (San Francisco, CA).

Ellen Scott in her studio, Santa Fe

Thurs., Sept. 20 at 7 p.m.

Sewing Stories: Fabric Collages by Ellen Scott is generously sponsored by Helen & Brian Heekin.