While there isn’t quite a barn to raise, Visions Art Quilt Gallery has been calling on the community to join in its “barn raising.”
The nonprofit Quilt Visions, which was created in 1985 to celebrate the art of quilting, is in the process of renovating its new space at the former Naval Training Center. And according to Patti Sevier, project co-manager of the gallery build, the organization could not complete the endeavor without help from volunteers and donors.
“This is a whole new adventure for us,” Sevier said. “We’ve always had a large volunteer network that we called on every two years or so “¦ now we’ve been calling on them all the time.”
And the volunteers came through. The barn raising “” or community build “” began in February and will continue through the scheduled grand opening on Saturday, April 14.
Sevier said that while quilts have been around for generations, they have become more art than quilt.
Quilt Visions defines an art quilt as anything made out of fiber or fabric that has three layers and is stitched all the way through. Beyond that, she said, it’s up to the artist.
The final space, which Sevier promises will continuously evolve, is set to include a gift shop, offices, a resource library and a space for workshops, lectures, kid’s activities and demonstrations.
For the past several weeks, Quilt Visions members, friends, family and construction professionals have donated time, money and talent to create the unique gallery.
The volunteers, Sevier estimated, total in the hundreds and comprise a group ranging in age from 14 to 80.
Architect, art quilter and Quilt Visions board member Bob Leathers brought 37 years of experience to the gallery project. Leathers and his family business, Leathers and Associates, boast more than 1,800 custom-designed, community-built projects all over the world, each one “completely organized and built by volunteers.
“It’s all about building community. When you work as a community, you come up with unique solutions,” he said. “In addition, you end up with quality that you wouldn’t get if you did it commercially.”
This gallery promises to be different than any other gallery, said Leathers, who also serves as the chairman of the exhibit committee.
“[It’s] different because it’s built with love and community and a lot of very fine attention “” meaning the people who build it are willing to take the time,” he added. “They’re willing to stick with it and do things that require a great deal of patience, and that would cost a lot of money if you had to pay for it.”
Sevier, a past president of Quilt Visions, said with a laugh that everyone in the group finagled to get volunteers involved.
“Phyllis Newton (current Quilt Visions president) knew a drywall guy, and she convinced him, he convinced friends and so on,” she said.
And so the volunteer base grew.
“It has truly been a total team effort,” she added.
The group has received assistance from professional builders, craftsmen and students. Generous contributors include Dean Marriott of McCormack Construction Company, who donated the time and manpower to frame interior wall partitions. Frazee Paint donated paint; carpenter Dana Cavanaugh contributed time and expertise; and Dixieline San Diego of Sports Arena supplied greatly discounted building materials.
“Members of the Fine Woodworkers Association became fascinated with the project and created a donor wall consisting of 4,500 wood blocks resembling a quiltlike design,” Sevier said, adding that students from a high school in Riverside will engrave the donor names for the wall.
Other contributors include Jesse Foster, a woodworking student from San Diego State University, who is building the reception desk, and architect intern Nicole Deline.
“People have had a good time. It’s been a lot of hard work but a lot of fun,” Sevier said with a smile. “And great friendships have been made.”
Volunteer and original member Jean Lievens of Clairemont, hard at work painting one of the movable quilt display walls, paused for a moment to add, “It really has been a lot of fun. I’m thrilled that we got the space.”
The completion deadline looms with the first exhibit at the new gallery scheduled for Saturday, April 14. It will feature the works of quilt artist Miriam Nathan-Roberts. The opening reception will take place that evening, from 5 to 7 p.m., and the exhibit will run until June 3.
“We encourage everybody to come down, explore the arts or volunteer,” Sevier concluded.
Visions Art Quilt Gallery is located at 2825 Dewey Road, Suite 100, at Liberty Station in Point Loma. For more information, visit www.quiltvisions.org or call (858) 484-5201.