Fabric artist Nancy Shaw Cramer may have closed her Vineyard Haven gallery, but she has hardly disappeared from the Island’s art scene. She will hold the first of a series of Summer Showcases on Tuesday, June 30, from 11 am to 4 pm. The showcases will give her the opportunity to present her latest work in a low-key, casual setting.
“I thought I would be weaving rugs all winter,” Ms. Shaw Cramer said during an interview with The Times last weekend. “I got hooked on sewing, and I just didn’t stop.” On display will be 17 of her signature pillows and a series of 50 wrap coats, jackets, and tunics, as well as several of her rugs, including the one she completed this winter. Ms. Shaw Cramer describes the clothing she has made as singular editions rather than wearable art. “There are rarely more two or three of a kind,” she explains.
Closing her gallery, a Main Street, Vineyard Haven, mainstay, proved physically exhausting. From the time she closed her gallery in November, she worked on gallery details straight through January. “I needed something peaceful,” she says. “Something interesting but not overly challenging. I grew up sewing, so it’s very easy for me. lt was just a lot of fun. I’m just going to see where it takes me.” Ms. Shaw Cramer’s background is in interior design, and her sewing projects have been all about design for her.
Because of limited parking, the Shaw Cramer Showcase is not officially open to the public, but the artist welcomes those interested to visit her website, shawcramer.com, to view the new collection, or to email her at shawcramer@gmail.com for directions to her West Tisbury home, where the first showcase will be held.
