Macon Cove Campus
5983 Macon Cove
Memphis, TN 38134-7693

Union Avenue Campus
737 Union Avenue
Memphis, TN 38103-3322

Fayette Center

Gill Center

Millington Center

Southeast Center

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901/333-STCC * www.southwest.tn.edu

DATE: March 11, 2002
CONTACT: Calvin Burns, (901) 333-5338 or Marilyn Duncan, (901) 333-4247

Evolution of Contemporary Baskets as an Art Form will be Displayed at Southwest; Show will feature faculty member, Patti Lechman

The Fine Arts, Languages and Literature Department at Southwest Tennessee Community College (Southwest) will present a special art show, Evolution of Contemporary Baskets as an Art Form. This cultural outreach initiative is set for 10:30 - 11:30 a.m., Wednesday, March 27, at Southwest's Union Avenue Campus, 737 Union Avenue, in Conference Room 100, of the Jess H. Parrish Library/Administration Building. The exhibit will feature the works of Patti Lechman, an award winning instructor, in the Fine Arts, Languages and Literature Department. It is free and open to the public.

Lechman has won several awards as a fiber artist. She is one of a mere handful of artists consistently faithful to the basket making revival established in the 1960's by Ed Rossbach. In fact, she is referred to by some art critics as being one of the Grandams of this medium.

In 1998, Lechman had her work, Mithunam Knotted Nylon with Glass Beads accepted as part of the permanent collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York. Well-respected by her colleagues and fellow artists, Lechman is often described as being compassionate and having a commitment to excellence both in her fiber art creations and teaching duties.

Southwest Tennessee Community College is the largest community college in the state of Tennessee. Southwest is a comprehensive, multicultural, public, open-access college whose mission is to anticipate and respond to the educational needs of students, employers, and communities of Shelby and Fayette counties and the surrounding Mid-South region.

For more information about the Evolution of Contemporary Baskets as an Art Form showing, call Southwest at (901) 333-5156.

Southwest Tennessee Community College is a Tennessee Board of Regents institution.