For Hub City Times

MARSHFIELD — A fiber arts exhibit titled “Wabi-Sabi: Finding Beauty in the Imperfect” will be at New Visions Gallery from April 25 through May 31. An opening reception will be held April 24 from 1-3 p.m. The reception is free and open to the public, and complimentary refreshments will be provided.

The Fiber Artists Coalition, whose traveling group exhibits have been shown across the United States, has curated shows such as this since 2008. While the titles, subjects, and curators change, the media stays the same: contemporary fiber arts.

The curator for this exhibit, Pat Bishop, explained “Wabi-Sabi” in the following way:

In these days of a throwaway society, it’s good to make do with what we have, cherishing the memories they hold. ‘Wabi-sabi’ is the Japanese term for finding beauty in the imperfect.

There is beauty in the worn out bench by the garage where you sit on a hot summer day and listen to the grasshoppers chant. That old tree in the back yard isn’t pretty but conveys beauty in its strength and character, from making it through the thunderstorm and only losing a limb or starting to rot with moss and lichens growing on its trunk while the woodpeckers search for insects. Look to the natural aging of leaves from bright chartreuse to crumbled brown skeletal remains to understand the meaning of Wabi-Sabi.

The focus of the artists’ work for this exhibit, ‘Wabi-Sabi: Finding Beauty in the Imperfect,’ gives representation to what satisfies their soul in simple ways. We engage viewers and invite them to reflect and see in their own lives the imperfect yet simple pleasures of present and past and the ever-changing life cycle of the natural world around us.

School and community group tours are available for this exhibit, made possible in part through a grant from the Marshfield Area Community Foundation. Interested parties should contact New Visions Gallery to schedule a date and time.

“Wabi-Sabi: Finding Beauty in the Imperfect” can be viewed Monday-Friday, 9 a.m. – 4 p.m. at New Visions Gallery, located in the main lobby of Marshfield Clinic, 1000 N. Oak Ave. in Marshfield. Admission is free thanks in part to donations from ART PARTNERS. Exhibit space and other support is donated by Marshfield Clinic.