Allison Manch

Allison Manch received 2009 GAP Award funding to go towards a new series of textile pieces that explore ideas of westward expansion and Manifest Destiny. This series will include embroidered images from her parent’s move to the West Coast as well as embroidered fabric maps and hand dyed and embellished vintage quilts. She will also reproduce iconic railroad construction images, early landscape photography from the 1860’s, and popular imagery of western culture all with hand embroidery and found textiles. The working title for this series is “Gimme Shelter”. GAP Award funds will be used to purchase an opaque projector, a light table, and to help finance framing and production costs.

Allison received 2006 GAP Award funding to purchase materials and defray living expenses while the artist completes a new body of work. Her interest in language (its use and misuse) has inspired her to document through portraiture, sound installation, and embroidery moments that the artist articulates as “possessing brilliant, unexpected potential.” Allison will embroider entire dictionary pages onto towels, sheets, and cotton handkerchiefs. The artist intends for the embroidered pages to serve as illuminated manuscripts for those challenged by words and their usage.