Press Release February 17, 2010

Dressmaking Art of Nilda Velez at Vineland Public Library

A collection of figure sketches honoring the poetics of dressmaking is on display at Vineland Public Library, 1058 E. Landis Avenue, during March. The work was created by Nilda Velez and is on exhibit in the Doris Tripp Room. A reception to meet the artist takes places on Sunday, March 14 from 2:00 – 4:00 p.m. Refreshments will be served.

Velez was born in Utuado, Puerto Rico and has lived in Vineland since the age of 13. She earned a degree in Comparative Literature from Rutgers University and a Masters degree in Student Personnel Services from Rowan University. Velez is a Guidance Counselor at Dr. William Mennies School. Velez has had an interest in reading and writing poetry for many years. She sees her latest art work as an expression of that same interest but in a more visual medium. Artist statement: “The first sketches that inspired this collection surfaced unexpectedly on a wide ruled notebook paper; the way one doodles out of tension perhaps, between being in the ordinary moment and being in the mythical or poetic state of mind. The sketches are, for me, fragments of memory, pieces of my life that fall onto the blankness of paper. The sketches are the memories of the many dresses my mother sewed for me and the joy that came to me as I received those dresses.”

The display is available during regular library hours: M– T (9-9), Friday & Saturday (9-5), Sundays (October to March) 1-5. All areas of the library are handicap accessible. Call the library at 794-4244 for more information.