By Olivia Cobiskey of Sauk Valley Newspapers
800-798-4085, ext. 535

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DIXON - Shirley Guay didn't know the quilters of Gee's Bend, Ala., until one day when she happened on a book.

"Every page I turned, every quilt I saw, I was blown away," Guay said Friday. "I did this as a tribute to these women."

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Like so many other women in the Deep South, the African American women in this remote town recycled, reused and repurposed out of necessity, said Guay, standing in front of the four quilted panels she created for the "I Am Woman" exhibit at The Next Picture Show.

The exhibit includes artwork depicting women or objects related to women.

Isolated geographically, the women of Gee's Bend learned to make quilts from old suits, dresses and scrap material. Born out of necessity, quilting soon became a way for the women to express themselves artistically and individually, Guay said. The quilts were more than a vehicle for warmth - each one became a work of art.

To honor the women, Guay dyed cotton fabric with tea bags and used watercolor pencils to draw portraits of four of the women in the book. Their shiny black eyes stare out from quilted backgrounds; the creases around their eyes speak of the hours bent over swatches of cloth, sewing.

It was a challenging piece, said Guay, 65, who had never quilted before.

"I was just so moved. I'm not a quilter, I wish I could do what they do," she said. "I just felt I had to do something in honor of them."

This is the second year the gallery has held an all-women's show. This year, it received twice as many entries, said Bonnie Kime, its executive director. More than 30 artists from North Carolina, Chicago and the Sauk Valley submitted four pieces each; 76 were accepted.

"It gives the women a chance to shine," said Jayne Rose, a local artist and owner of the Colonial Rose Inn in Grand Detour. "Women have a different perspective on life. We listen differently, we see differently, we interact differently."

That's exactly what Port Byron artist Treva Haney tried to do.

"I wanted to show a more masculine side of women. I wanted to show that women can be strong and still be beautiful," said Haney, standing in front of a photograph of Iraq war veteran Spc. Jennifer Hillman, titled "G.I. Jen," and another called "Don't Call Me Sir." The second piece was named by Haney's partner, Cathleen Haney, who is wearing her Moline police officer's uniform in the photograph.

"She gets called sir a lot," Treva Haney said.

"It's the short hair," Cathleen Haney added, then laughed. "Once I start talking, they realize I'm a woman."

Their 3-year-old daughter, Olivia, inspired Treva Haney's love of photography. "I wanted to preserve the baby photos, and it just kind of snowballed from there," she said.

Debb Munson also was inspired by a family member - her husband, Rick, a local photographer. Debb Munson had two photographs, "Summer Perfection" and "Perfection," in the show Friday. She also exhibited a set of turquoise and sterling silver jewelry she designed, called "Southwest Splendor."

"I told her she'd better be careful or I'm going to start taking up jewelry-making and compete with her," her husband said.