Bellevue Arts Museum to show basket collection

Published 2:59 pm Friday, November 14, 2008

With their passion for collecting contemporary craft and their openness to new forms and ideas, Sara and David Lieberman have assembled one of the most extensive collections of contemporary baskets in the nation over the past four decades.

This winter they share the best of their collection — over 70 works selected from over 150 pieces — at Bellevue Arts Museum from Dec. 17, 2008 through March 22, 2009.

The works in this exhibition utilize a range of materials and techniques from traditional organic to commercial, and often surprising media like fish skins, porcupine quills and grocery bags. Featured artists in Intertwined include some of the major figures in contemporary basket making: Ed Rossbach, Katherine Westphal, Sally Black, Kiyomi Iwata, Kazuaki Honma, Dorothy Gill Barnes, Carol Eckert, John McQueen, Elsie Holiday, Ferne Jacobs, Norma Minkowitz, John Garrett and many more. Northwest artists include Lanny Bergner (Bellingham), Charissa Brock (Portland), Jill Nordfors Clark (Tacoma), Jan Hopkins (Everett), Fran Reed (Anchorage) and Lisa Telford (Everett).

Arizona art collectors, the Liebermans have brought together one of the best collections of contemporary baskets in the country, museum officials say. In the beginning, they collected baskets for their “function and appeal” and their grounding in ancient traditions. Later, their selections included new works that were more about “expression and communication” than function.

“Intertwined is a visual feast,” says Heather S. Lineberry, co-curator of the exhibition. “The exhibition and its accompanying catalog … provide an international look at contemporary basket-making and its current level of innovation and experimentation.”