Discover Downtown Gloversville
- Jennifer Donovan
- 3 days ago
- 3 min read
Crafting Community: Join the Conversation at Glove Cities Gallery
In the heart of downtown Gloversville, a quiet revolution is taking shape—one stitch, one canvas, and one conversation at a time. The Glove Cities Arts Alliance (GCAA) has become a vital pulse for our city’s revitalization, turning spaces like the Glove Cities Gallery at 52 Church Street into a hub where art and community intersect. Currently, the gallery is hosting MATERIAL CONVERSATIONS, an exhibition that challenges our perceptions of texture, time, and identity. If you haven’t had a chance to walk through this show yet, there is no better time to visit than Saturday, April 11.
Feature Event: The Artist Talk
Saturday, April 11 | 2:00 PM – 3:00 PM
As part of the exhibition, the gallery is hosting a special event this weekend. On April 11, the GCAA invites you to step behind the scenes. This free event offers a rare opportunity to hear directly from the creators behind the work. Artists Judith Plotner and Dawn Bisio will discuss their individual processes, the inspiration behind their textile-driven pieces, and take questions from the audience.
Whether you are a fellow artist, a local resident, or simply curious about the creative process, this talk offers a deeper look at the labor and philosophy infused into every piece on the walls.
The Artists & Their Work
Dawn Bisio: FACE FORWARD
A highlight of the current exhibition is Bisio’s community art project, FACE FORWARD: The People of Gloversville. This project has been a year in the making, resulting in a series of textile portraits of our very own neighbors.
Each portrait is hand-stitched using salvaged cloth. In an era often defined by “fast” everything—from fashion to communication—Bisio’s process is intentionally slow. It resists disposability, emphasizing the value of care, the importance of truly listening, and the beauty of constructing something meaningful from materials that already exist.
Judith Plotner
Complementing the portraiture is the work of Judith Plotner. Her collection of abstract textile collages explores her lived experience in New York City. By layering printing, paint, stitching, and various surface techniques, Plotner creates complex visual narratives that capture the energy and architecture of urban life.
Her Artist Statement, which can be found at her website, "My current work integrates my life experiences as an artist Incorporating my love of fabric and collage and my training as a painter and printmaker, I have embarked on an explorative journey in this new body of work. The subject matter of my work is deeply internalized. I often use random thoughts and symbols - sometimes interconnected, sometimes seemingly unconnected, and frequently work using a stream of consciousness thought process Text is frequently incorporated as part of the message. Utilizing the surface techniques of monoprint, photo transfer, photocopy, silkscreen, stamping, printing and dye, paint and oil stick, I am blurring the edges of quilt making, painting and print making."
Visit the Gallery
The Glove Cities Arts Alliance continues to prove that art is not just something to be viewed, it is something to be shared. Through the Downtown Revitalization Initiative, spaces like 52 Church Street have been transformed into vibrant cultural assets that belong to all of us.
Glove Cities Gallery
52 Church St, Gloversville, NY 12078
Hours:
• Thursday & Friday: 4:30 PM – 7:00 PM
• Saturday: 11:00 AM – 3:00 PM
Join the artists on Saturday, April 11 at 2:00 PM for an afternoon of art, insight, and community connection.
Stay. Play. Explore. Live.
Discover Downtown Gloversville
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