Small Works Show, Opening May 5

Tiny homes look quaint and fun, but nobody said they are easy to design. Architects must get creative to squeeze in a kitchen, bedroom, bathroom, living room, and some semblance of storage in a maximum of 500 square feet. Creating small art is a lot like that, says Asheville quilter Diane Bielak. “I usually find that working small can be more challenging,” she confirms. “I still need to consider design elements such as balance, scale, color, dimension, and so on, but I have a smaller space to get it all in.” Undeterred by the challenge, Bielak will participate in the Small Works Show at Re.Imagine Gallery & Studios in Fairview this May. According to gallery owner Nan Cole, the exhibition is open to all mediums — from encaustic paintings to metal. However, contributing creatives must limit their work to 10 inches in any direction. Building on more than 30 years of experience in the fiber-arts industry —  including a stint as the owner of a quilt company in Pennsylvania — Bielak has prepared a series of compact contemporary quilts embellished with paper, yarn, foil, beads, and whatever else she could find. The result, says Bielak, is small art that is “favored for filling small spaces” (think a 175-square-foot bungalow on wheels).