Pacific Northwest Quilt and Fiber Arts 2026 Exhibitions
Sitting high on a hill overlooking La Conner and the Swinomish Channel, the historic Gaches Mansion is a Tudor-style Victorian mansion built in 1891. The home was built for the family of George Gaches, who, along with his brother James, arrived in La Conner about 1869 and established the successful J & G Gaches Mercantile.
Over the years the mansion has also been Skagit Counties first hospital, home of the Vaughn family, co-owners of the town’s grocery store, who lived there until 1927, before selling to another owner and in 1940 it was turned into the Castle Apartments. A fire in 1973 caused so much damage there was talk of tearing it down, but a group of volunteers formed the La Conner Landmarks group and restoration brought it back to its former glory.
Since 1981 the Gaches Mansion has been home to arts in many forms, including the Museum of NW Art before it moved to First Street.
In 1997 the La Conner Quilt Museum was founded, and the current Pacific Northwest Quilt and Fiber Arts Museum’s mission is to present exhibitions and educational programs in all fiber arts that enrich and inspire, honor cultural traditions, and celebrate the creative spirit. Their collection holds over 300 quilts, historical North American coverlets, modern and contemporary needle and fiber arts, as well as historic garments and wearable art pieces that exemplify tradition or reflect exceptional or unique artistic trends, designs, or techniques.
2026 Exhibitions
Beneath the Boughs
Terri Shinn
May 13-July 26, 2026
Trees have become a source of never-ending fascination and inspiration. Besides their wonderful textures and diverse colors, they embody amazing lines and shapes. This new series of vessels explores the textures, colors, and lines in the bark of trees from around the world.
Shinn's 3-dimensional fiber art vessels celebrate the textures and colors of trees. Using hand-dyed fabrics and a combination of hand and machine stitching, Shinn's detailed and tactile works honor nature through textiles.
Pieces for a Piece
Curated by Youngmin Lee and Miran Lee
June 3-August 23, 2026
Participating Artist: April EJ Oh, Caitlin Parker, Dong Kyu Kim, Miran L. Lee, Yoko Kubota, and Youngmin Lee
Pieces for a Piece brings together six artists whose work is inspired by bojagi and jogakbo, the traditional Korean patchwork cloth made by stitching together small remnants of fabric. Historically used as wrapping cloths, jogakbo transformed discarded fragments into objects of quiet beauty—balancing practicality with a refined sense of composition and care.
Working across different cultural backgrounds and artistic practices, the artists reinterpret the language of patchwork in distinct ways—through memory, migration, landscape, ecology, consumer culture, and the experience of home. Their works reveal how fragments, when patiently assembled, can hold traces of time, labor, and lived experience. As fragments gather into a piece, these works invite us to consider how making—slowly, patiently, by hand—continues to shape the ways we live.
Dorothy Bird: A Retrospective
June 17 - September 13, 2026 3rd Floor Galleries
Celebrate the lifelong career of Pacific Northwest fiber artist Dorothy Bird. Featuring multimedia sculpture, wearable art, innovative knit wear and more. Find inspiration in Dorothy's adventurous life, trailblazing independence, and commitment to keeping creativity at the center.
Artist Reception on Saturday, July 11th from 2-close. Free admission and refreshments!
Feltscapes
By Flóra Carlile-Kovács
July 29 - October 11, 2026
Carlile-Kovács combines layers of wool, silk fibers, and fabrics to create stunning fiber art pieces, both sculptural and painterly. Blending colors, textures, and forms, Carlile-Kovács brings the ancient textile technique of felting into a contemporary context.
Artist Reception on Saturday, August 15th from 2-close. Free admission and refreshments!
International Quilt & Fiber Arts Festival, La Conner, WA
September 25, 26, 27 2026
Mark your calendars for IQFAF, taking place in our home community, the historic town of La Conner, WA. Expect a diverse representation of excellence in all forms of fiber art, as well as high-quality vendors, artist lectures, and fiber art demonstrations.
Plan your visit to the Pacific Northwest Quilt and Fiber Arts Museum in La Conner!
