The National Quilt Museum Explores Color, Surface and Stitch in Pigment, Dye & Thread

New exhibition features 19 works from the Museum’s permanent collection showcasing painting, hand-dyeing and innovative threadwork

PADUCAH , KY, UNITED STATES, September 11, 2026 /EINPresswire.com/ -- Paint, dye and thread become powerful artistic tools in "Pigment, Dye & Thread," a new exhibition at The National Quilt Museum that explores how contemporary quilt artists transform fabric through color, surface and stitch.

Opening September 18, 2026, and continuing through March 2, 2027, the exhibition features 19 works selected from the Museum’s permanent collection. Together, they demonstrate the extraordinary range of techniques artists use to manipulate cloth and create richly layered works of art.
Throughout "Pigment, Dye & Thread," visitors will see dramatically different approaches to creating color, texture and dimension. Pigment and brushwork produce everything from bold lines and expressive movement to delicate washes. Hand-dyed fabrics introduce atmospheric color and depth, while dense stitching and thread painting create intricate detail, texture and visual movement.

The result is an exhibition that encourages visitors to look beyond fabric as simply the foundation of a quilt and consider the surface itself as an essential part of the artist's creative expression.

Three Materials. Countless Possibilities.

The 19 works illustrate how artists can begin with many of the same fundamental materials yet arrive at remarkably different results.

Among the artists represented are Katie Pasquini Masopust, Colleen Wise and Libby Lehman, along with Sue Benner, Ellen Anne Eddy, Pamela Studstill, Hollis Chatelain, Yvonne Porcella, Diedre Adams, Denise Labadie Snell, Esterita Austin, Karen Linduska, Cynthia Morgan, Chris Wolf Edmonds, Valerie C. White, Roberta Williams, Marilyn Badger and Claudia Clark Myers, Erika Carter and Heide Stoll-Weber.

Works on view include "Terraced Landscape" by Hollis Chatelain, "Allegretto" by Katie Pasquini Masopust, "Dusk" by Colleen Wise, "Composition VII" by Diedre Adams, "Forest Fire" by Heide Stoll-Weber, and "Escapade" by Libby Lehman, and more.

“Pigment, Dye & Thread' gives visitors an opportunity to look closely at how artists use materials and techniques to develop their own visual language,” said Rachael Baar, Curator of The National Quilt Museum. “Painting, dyeing and stitching each bring something different to a work. Seeing these pieces together demonstrates just how much experimentation and individual expression are possible within contemporary quiltmaking.”

For visitors who may not consider themselves quilters, the exhibition also offers connections to other forms of visual art. Color, line, composition, texture and mark-making—all elements associated with painting, drawing and other media—take on new possibilities when expressed through cloth and thread.
Pigment, Dye & Thread will be on view at The National Quilt Museum September 18, 2026, through March 2, 2027.

The National Quilt Museum is located at 215 Jefferson Street in downtown Paducah, Kentucky. The Museum is open Monday through Saturday from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. and Sunday from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. Complimentary parking is available onsite. Admission is $15 for adults, $13 for seniors age 62 and older and military, $5 for students, and complimentary for children under 12 with a paying adult and Museum members.

For exhibition information, tickets and trip planning, visit quiltmuseum.org or call 270-442-8856.

About The National Quilt Museum
The National Quilt Museum is America's premier quilt museum, having received National Designation by congressional declaration in 2008. The Museum collects and presents the finest work made by today's quilters in America and worldwide. It provides national-class cultural services to diverse communities, both near and far, through exhibitions, educational programs, support of artists and tourism development. The Museum includes multiple galleries and an onsite gift shop.


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Robin Malpass
The National Quilt Museum
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