if only in my dreams...

This show is dedicated to my dad, who we lost this year.

It’s been a challenging year to say the least. As I have gone back through family photos and memories of my childhood in Appalachia, I found myself reconnecting to a part of myself that had been buried. My siblings, cousins and neighbors would spend hours on end making up elaborate worlds and exploring nature.

Now, as a mother, I wish I could provide this solace and refuge for you all. What a time to embrace our inner child and play in our communities.

These artworks are pieces of imaginary worlds I have created to escape, to connect to my younger self. When the roles of domesticity seem to dominate my daily life, I visit these worlds to remind myself of all my layers.

Let’s escape to our dreams—find comfort in our imaginations.

Melissa Everett is a self-taught quilter, textile artist and caregiver living in Knoxville, TN. She received her BS from the University of Tennessee in Therapeutic Recreation in 2005. The philosophy of play permeates her process and journey as an artist.

Her work is energized by textures, simple lines and shapes created by the human hand, rooted in tradition but continually pushing for freedom – and embracing imperfection. She creates surface pattern designs on natural fibers by utilizing fiber-reactive dyes, textile pigments and the traditions of quilt making. Each dyed, painted or printed textile, a unique piece of art, is often cut and deconstructed to be reconciled into a new work.

Everett’s work has been exhibited in national and local shows including QuiltCon, Houston International Quilt Festival, McGhee Tyson’s Art in the Airport. She has also been published in QuiltFolk and Quilt Now magazines. Melissa was born and raised in the mountains of Waynesville, NC where craft, improvising and resourcefulness were a way of life for mountain folk; these values carry her connection to her ancestors.

Instagram: @mne_textiles

Email: hi@melissaneverett.com