Arts + Literature Laboratory presents Reframe… When Things Break, a solo exhibition featuring the work of Heidi Parkes, on view Tuesday, April 28 through Saturday, June 20, 2026.
This exhibition was organized by the community curation project, LAB^4. A reception for all LAB^4 exhibitions will be held on Thursday, May 8, 2026 from 5:00pm to 9:00pm.
Join us again for a closing reception on Friday, June 20, 2026 from 5:00pm to 7:00pm.
Intermingling intuition and strategy, Parkes' diary quilts don't tell a linear story, but instead are a tool for reframing the past, envisioning the future, and documenting daily minutiae. They are inner dialogue made visible. Quilting is the microcosm in which she practices new ways of being—slowing down, cultivating new habits, reducing wastefulness—goals are set, and she stitches the things that she longs for, wants to be, and reminisces about. This strengthens neural pathways for caring, noticing, and loving the hard-to-love.
Reframe… When Things Break
Before Heidi Parkes was born in Chicago, IL in 1982, her grandmother organized a collaborative family quilt to commemorate her birth. Now based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin her quilting and mending celebrate the hand, and her works explore the themes of diary, daily minutiae, manifesting, and cognitive reframing. Often using specific textiles, like an heirloom tablecloth, bed sheet, or cloth tea bag, Heidi adds subtle meaning and material memory from the start. Engaging in the worlds of art, quilts, mending, and social media, Heidi is an advocate for the domestic realms, slow stitching, and mindfulness. Find her on Instagram and YouTube. She has exhibited across the USA, in France, and in South Korea, and is a 2005 graduate from The School of the Art Institute of Chicago.
PLAN YOUR VISIT
Arts + Literature Laboratory is located at 111 S. Livingston Street #100, Madison, Wisconsin, 53703.
Our galleries are open Tuesday through Friday 10am-5pm and Saturday noon to 5pm, and other programs take place throughout the week. Please check the events calendar and education section for details.