Sheldon profits from a silent auction of rugs by a deceased artist

ONE OF SUZANNE Douglas’ beautiful hooked rugs is on display by interns Vivian Ross, left, and Zora Duquette-Hoffman with Henry Sheldon Museum Executive Director Coco Moseley. Thirty of the late artist’s rugs will be available for silent auction starting Friday, June 21, to benefit the museum. The opening of the auction will coincide with a celebration of the life of Douglas, from 4:30 p.m. to 6 p.m., who served 25 years as a member of the Sheldon staff and died in January. INDEPENDENT PHOTO / ELSIE LYNN PARINI

His presence was “silent” and “firm”. She was an “expert listener” and knew how to “talk to people.” That’s how Coco Moseley, executive director of the Henry Sheldon Museum, described the late Suzanne Douglas, who most recently worked admissions and greeted guests at the downtown Middlebury museum. Douglas died suddenly in January.

With a master’s degree in library science, Douglas began his work at Sheldon in 1999 as a librarian.

“She knew everything about this place,” Moseley said, adding that the museum’s archives date back to the 1700s — much of which is not yet digitized — and that patrons’ ability to access them is thanks to people like Douglas with immense institutional knowledge. “She could connect just as easily with a faculty member here doing specific research as she could with a five-year-old watching trains…She had such a gift for welcoming people.” »

Beyond her duties at the museum, Douglas was also a professional artisan: weaver, quilter, and rug hooker. She sold her work at craft fairs, some in Sheldon’s store, and offered workshops.

“People knew Suzanne was a member of the fiber arts guild and hung rugs,” Moseley said in an interview last week. “But I don’t think people realized the extent of his skills.”

Amy Oxford, another local rug exporter, inventor of the standard tool of the craft (the Oxford Punch Needle) and founder of the Oxford Rug Hooking School, came to the museum to help Moseley evaluate the pieces.

“When I first saw all of Suzanne’s rugs neatly laid out at the Sheldon, I was amazed by how many pieces she had made,” Oxford said. “I had seen some of her rugs but I didn’t know she had done so many! »

Thirty handmade hooked rugs by Douglas are on display at the Sheldon as well as online. These pieces were generously donated to the museum for fundraising. A silent auction will begin on Friday, June 21 at 4:30 p.m. and a celebration of Douglas’ life will take place at the museum until 6 p.m. Bidding will end on Saturday, August 31 at noon. All auctions must take place in person at the museum or by telephone (802-388-2117). Shipping is available.

“The rugs are beautiful works of art,” Moseley said, noting that viewers are allowed to handle the rugs with care. “Yes, you can touch the rugs…they need to be handled with care.”

You’ll want to touch them, I promise. Douglas created some of his own designs and borrowed others; but the coloring is uniquely his own. From bold contrasts to muted pastels, Douglas used premium fibers to bring each rug to life.

“One of the things that strikes me most is her talent as a colorist and you can see that talent evolve as she moves from more traditional color combinations to her own unique palette and sensibilities,” said Oxford, who met him for the first time. Douglas when she came to work at the Oxford rug workshop, Red Clover Rugs, in 1994 and 1995. “You can see the joy she took in creating her work in the excitement of its colors . She loved color and knew how to use it!

“Suzanne made her rugs using several techniques,” Oxford continued. “She did what’s called traditional rug hooking, using a hook-like hook to pull loops of strips of wool fabric through the backing of her rug. She also did punch needle rug hooking, a technique in which you use yarn and a punch needle to punch loops through the backing. She would sometimes cut her loops to create a soft, plush appearance like velvet, and also created loops of different heights, cutting them and sculpting the heights to create three-dimensional shapes…Suzanne was also an expert at making style hooked rugs. oriental (as seen in his exhibition). For this style, she used a punch needle and worked the pattern in straight rows with fine thread. When she finished a row, she would pass a knitting needle along the row inside the loops and cut each loop. It’s a slow and precise technique that requires a lot of patience! At Red Clover Rugs, many people, without this patience, would bring in their oriental rugs unfinished and Suzanne would happily finish them, without judgment. No matter what technique she used, she always had even curls and beautiful stitches. She took pride in her work and it showed.

Sheldon Museum staff voted to purchase a rug in memory of Douglas and his dedication to the institution as well as the craft.

“We chose one that plays with the traditional design of rugs and quilts while bringing in color and themes of flora and fauna,” Moseley explained. “It tells the story of the profession modernized by Suzanne. It’s a good choice for the museum.

Starting bids for auctioned rugs range from $50 to $300, but actual values ​​are much higher. The museum hopes that offers will be generous and will appreciate the incredible quality of these pieces.

“Suzanne will be missed by her friends in the local rug hooking community,” Oxford said. “She generously shared her knowledge and was a source of inspiration to us all. »

To find a gallery with sizes, starting bids and rug condition, visit henrysheldonmuseum.org/hookedrugs or stop by the museum at 1 Park St. in Middlebury, Wednesday through Saturday, 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. .