The Fabric Workshop and Museum (FWM) is pleased to present Selections from the Permanent Collection II, the second in a series of exhibitions featuring a broad range of significant works produced in collaboration with FWM through its renowned Artists-in-Residence program. Works by internationally recognized artists including Leonardo Drew, Jim Hodges, Virgil Marti, Ernesto Neto, Kiki Smith and more will be on view in two parts. FWM will feature the first part of the exhibition from June 18 through September 17, 2005, and the second part from October 8 through November 5, 2005.

	Jim Hodges in collaboration with The Fabric Workshop and Museum, Philadelphia. You (detail), 1997. Silk flowers and thread. 216 x 192 inches. Photo: Will Brown.

Works featured in the exhibition include Leonardo Drew's Number 84 (2002), an installation of white paper casts of commonplace objects the artist collected from thrift stores, junkyards and off the street; Jim Hodges's You (1997), a delicate, lace-like sculptural veil of silk flowers; Virgil Marti's wallpaper from Oscar Wilde (1995), which adorned the walls of the Eastern State Penitentiary, Philadelphia to commemorate the hundredth anniversary of the writer's imprisonment in England; and J. Morgan Puett and Mark Dion's Ideal Nurses' Uniform (2003), a uniform devised from the feedback of a focus group formed of retired, practicing and student nurses.

Also on view are examples of FWM's artist multiples such as Ernesto Neto's Cabeluda (2003) and Kiki Smith's Singing Siren (2003).

The Fabric Workshop and Museum is the only museum of its kind in the world, and the permanent collections document its unique history of artistic activity with contemporary artists. Numbering over 5,500 objects, the FWM collections trace major movements in the field since 1977, and include significant works by past FWM Artists-in-Residence. This exhibition marks the second in a series of exhibitions—the first took place from March 6 through September 5, 2004—dedicated to FWM's permanent collections and to making the museum's collection more accessible to its audience and the general public. The series demonstrates the integral connection between the Workshop and the Museum, and FWM's contribution to contemporary art.

Kiki Smith in collaboration with Donald Rubenstein and The Fabric Workshop and Museum, Philadelphia. Singing Siren, 2003. Cast plastic, motion sensor, sound device and audio. 10 1/2 x 4 x 5 inches. Edition 4 of 200 (Singing Sirens are available for sale through Museum Shop). Photo: Aaron Igler.

In addition to completed works of art, FWM collects and maintains an archive of documentation and process materials related to the Artists-in-Residence projects. The photographic, video, and process materials—some of which will also be on view—are available for research, and provide a valuable window into the conceptual and technical development of contemporary artworks.

The Fabric Workshop and Museum is the only contemporary art museum in the United States devoted to creating new work in fabric and other materials in collaboration with emerging and established artists from around the world. Founded in 1977, The Fabric Workshop and Museum has developed from an ambitious experiment to a renowned institution with a widely recognized residency program, an extensive collection of work by resident artists, in-house and touring exhibitions, and comprehensive educational programming that includes lectures, tours, in-school presentations, and student apprenticeships.

All FWM exhibitions and programs are free and open to the public.
Hours: Mon. - Fri. 10 a.m. to 6 p.m., Sat., 12 noon to 4 p.m.

The programs of The Fabric Workshop and Museum are supported by The Pew Charitable Trusts; The Judith Rothschild Foundation; Pennsylvania Council on the Arts, a state agency; National Endowment for the Arts; Miller-Plummer Foundation; LLWW Foundation; The Andy Warhol Foundation for the Visual Arts; U. S. Institute of Museum and Library Services; Nimoy Foundation; The Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission; Agnes Gund and Daniel Shapiro; Independence Foundation; PNC Foundation; The Philadelphia Cultural Fund; E. Rhodes and Leona B. Carpenter Foundation; Claneil Foundation; Stockton Rush Bartol Foundation; Dolfinger-McMahon Foundation; The Henry Luce Foundation matching gifts program; The Barra Foundation; LEF Foundation; Louis N. Cassett Foundation; Quaker Chemical Foundation; and the Board of Directors and members of The Fabric Workshop and Museum.

For more information, please contact Alex Sadvari, Communications Coordinator, at 215-568-1111 ext. 15, alex@fabricworkshopandmuseum.org. For general information, call 215-568-1111.

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