Pictured is "Germination in Green," felted wool, three
dimensional embroidery, petri dish by Suzanne Boissy.

Small-scale textile art will be the subject of an exhibition at the Kent State University School of Art Downtown Gallery, located at 141 E. Main St. in Kent. The Miniature Textile Exhibition, organized through the MFAEN (Midwest Fiber Artist Educators Network), will run Oct. 1-31 at the gallery, with an opening reception on Oct. 1 from 5-7 p.m. Both the gallery and the reception are free and open to the public.

The Miniature Textile Exhibition was coordinated by Janice Lessman-Moss, textile art professor at Kent State and co-founder of the MFAEN.

“The format of miniature textiles measuring no more than 10 inches by 10 inches by 10 inches seemed like a good way to maximize participation,” Lessman-Moss says. “The gallery is able to accommodate numerous pieces of such an intimate scale.”

In addition to Lessman-Moss, other featured artists include Kent State graduate students Asmaa Aljohani, Trey Gehring, Jasmine Kornel, Sarah McMahon, Mike Nold and Charity Thomas. Also represented are faculty from Augustana College, Berea College, Central Michigan University, the Cranbrook Academy of Art, Earlham College, Eastern Michigan University, Indiana University, Michigan State University, Southern Illinois University, School of the Art Institute of Chicago, the University of Kansas, the University of Missouri and the University of Wisconsin.

Downtown Gallery hours are Monday-Wednesday, 9:30 a.m.-6 p.m.; Thursday 9:30 a.m.-8 p.m.; Friday 9:30 a.m.-7 p.m.; Saturday 10 a.m.-4 p.m.; and Sunday noon-5 p.m.

About the MFAEN

MFAEN was founded in 2011 by Lessman-Moss (Kent State University) and Rowland Ricketts (Indiana University). The group brings together professional fiber, textile and material studies educators throughout the Midwest to discuss research and pedagogy, and provides a forum for maintaining the vitality, criticality and visibility of the field.

For more information, contact Anderson Turner, director of galleries, at haturner@kent.edu or 330-672-1369.