Contemporary Textiles Exhibition, Free Weaving Workshop Set for St. George Art Tour
TENANTS HARBOR — Granite Gallery will showcase the work of five fiber artists during the St. George Peninsula Art Tour with “Contemporary Textiles,” an exhibition featuring Morris David Dorenfeld, Sarah Hotchkiss, Maggie Moran, Arlene Morris and Bobbie Tilkens-Fisher.
An opening reception will be held Friday, Sept. 11, from 3 to 5 p.m., followed by the exhibition Saturday, Sept. 12, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. at Granite Gallery, 68 Main St., Tenants Harbor. The events are free and open to the public.
The exhibition takes place during the St. George Peninsula Art Tour, the annual multi-day cultural event hosted by the St. George Business Alliance that opens local studios, galleries and other unique venues to visitors throughout the peninsula.
A highlight of Saturday’s program will be a free tapestry weaving workshop led by Bobbie Tilkens-Fisher from 10 a.m. to 1 p.m. Participants will create a small woven wall hanging while learning the fundamentals of tapestry weaving. Instruction will cover loom basics, fiber selection, weaving tools, warping a loom, stitches and knots, removing a finished piece from the loom, and finishing techniques.
No previous weaving experience is necessary, and all materials will be provided. Space is limited to eight participants, and advance registration is required by emailing bobbie@athomemodern.com.
Fiber artist Sarah Hotchkiss will also offer a loom demonstration during Saturday’s exhibition, giving Art Tour visitors an opportunity to see the weaving process firsthand.
The exhibition is sponsored by the Morris David Dorenfeld Foundation, a Port Clyde-based foundation dedicated to preserving and promoting the artistic legacy of Maine tapestry artist Morris David Dorenfeld through fiber arts education, exhibitions and the placement of his work in museum and private collections.
2026 Exhibitions
The Morris David Dorenfeld Foundation is pleased to announce that Morrie's work will be featured in Morris David Dorenfeld, Color is King, a solo exhibition at the Maine Jewish Museum in Portland, Maine from January 8 through February 26, 2026.
In addition, Morrie's work can be seen this summer at Elizabeth Moss Galleries, Falmouth, Maine and Granite Gallery, Tenants Harbor, Maine.
Dorenfeld, who died in 2023 at age 85, studied painting before turning to tapestry weaving after discovering an old barn loom shortly before moving to Maine in 1978. He spent more than four decades working in the medium, creating boldly colored abstract tapestries that he described as “paintings in fiber.”
“Morrie believed deeply that fiber art should continue to be explored, taught and shared,” said Ron Crusan, president of the Morris David Dorenfeld Foundation. “Bringing his work together with contemporary textile artists—and then inviting people to sit at a loom and experience weaving for themselves—is a wonderful way to carry that legacy forward. We hope people come not only to see the exhibition, but to discover the creativity and possibilities within fiber art.”
The Foundation works to further Dorenfeld’s artistic legacy through education in the fiber arts, exhibitions of his work and placement of his art in public and private museum collections.
GALLERY REPRESENTATION
2024 - present Elizabeth Moss Galleries, Falmouth & Portland, Maine
2024-2025 Turtle Gallery, Deer Isle, Maine
2009-2024 Caldbeck Gallery, Rockland, Maine
1998-2005 Stable Gallery, Damariscotta, Maine
1987-2001 ICON Gallery, Brunswick, Maine
1999-2000 Patina Gallery, Santa Fe, New Mexico
1996 Robins/Hyder Gallery, Santa Fe, New Mexico
1988-1993 Galeria Mesa, Mesa, Arizona