NACOGDOCHES, TEXAS - As part of its monthly film series, the Stephen F. Austin State University School of Art and Friends of the Visual Arts will present a free, one-night screening of "Stitched" at 7 p.m. Friday, June 1, at The Cole Art Center @ The Old Opera House, 329 E. Main St.
In the 72-minute documentary, directors Jenalia Moreno and Tom Gandy follow three art quilters as they prepare for and compete in the nation's largest quilt show, Houston's International Quilt Festival.
Each of the three featured quilters has created some controversy within the quilting world. Caryl Bryer Fallert was the first to win a major prize in Paducah, Ky., for a machine-stitched quilt; Hollis Chatelain received Best of Show in Houston with a painted quilt; and Randall Cook ventured far from the traditional by depicting the male body on his quilts.
According to the film's website, the documentary "reveals a story of friendship, passion and art. It also highlights the divide between traditional and art quilters."
"Stitched" received the Audience Choice award at the Rivers Edge International Film Festival and the East Lansing Film Festival, and it was nominated for Best Cinematography in a Documentary at the Charlotte Film Festival. The list of museums that have screened the 2011 documentary include Museum of Fine Arts, Houston; Museum of Fine Arts, Boston; Newark Museum; and American Textile History Museum in Lowell, Ma.
To learn more about the film and/or the featured quilters, please go to www.stitchedfilm.com.
The Nacogdoches screening is sponsored in part by The French Knot Quilt Shop, David Kulhavy, and Craig and Michelle Smith.
For more information, please call (936) 468-1131.