This summer in East Hampton, Onna House unveils a quietly powerful exhibition that redefines how we see—and feel—fabric. “My Life Has Been a Tapestry,” on view from July 19 through September 1, brings together 12 women artists whose practices in textiles explore the deep, layered stories of identity, inheritance, and invisible labor.
The show’s title is a nod to Carole King’s iconic 1971 song Tapestry, which Onna House founder Lisa Perry remembers listening to on repeat growing up. “I could never have imagined that it would become an anthem for our celebration of women artists at Onna House,” Perry said. “The art is always beautiful and special, but it’s the women’s stories woven through that make each piece complete.”
“The art is always beautiful and special, but it’s the women’s stories woven through that make each piece complete,”
—Lisa Perry
From quilts to weavings, plant-dyed fabrics to sacred repurposed scrolls, “My Life Has Been a Tapestry” treats fiber not as medium but message. Long dismissed as “craft,” textile work is often relegated to the domestic or decorative. But Onna House challenges that hierarchy.
A House Where Threads Tell Stories
Lisa Perry, photo by Sabrina Steck, courtesy of Onna House.
At once a gallery, residence, and creative refuge, Onna House has quickly become a cultural destination in East Hampton. With its design-forward interiors and mission-driven programming, it centers women artists working at the intersection of art, design, and storytelling.
This new exhibition is no exception. Twelve contemporary artists—Avis Collins Robinson, Candace Hill Montgomery, Cory Emma Siegler, Erica Lynn Huberty, Gaia Pilens, Kayla Powers, Kelly Tapia Chunning, Laurie Lambrecht, Nancy Winarick, Patricia Udell, Sheri Schumacher, Suchi Reddy, and Suzanne Tick—offer works that span generations, geographies, and intentions. Each artist in the show uses fiber as a language of resilience and remembrance.
Textiles are often rooted in ritual. They are passed down, reused, repurposed, and mended. And so too are the stories in the show. Robinson’s striking fabric compositions honor the hidden histories of Black American life. Siegler’s spontaneous quilts pulse with wit and vulnerability. Kayla Powers sources local plants to dye her cloth, giving her work a direct, living connection to place and ecology.
Honoring Avis Collins Robinson’s Legacy
Photo by Sabrina Steck, courtesy of Onna House.
A standout of the show is a deeply personal tribute to Avis Collins Robinson (1953–2023), whose first New York exhibition comes posthumously. A groundbreaking environmentalist, educator, and philanthropist, Robinson turned to painting and fabric art full-time later in life. Her quilts and textiles vibrate with painterly expression—free-form color fields, fragmented figures, and bold abstractions that speak to the ongoing realities of race, gender, and oppression.
From Sacred Scrolls to Botanical Dyes
Photo by Sabrina Steck, courtesy of Onna House.
Photo by Sabrina Steck, courtesy of Onna House.
The show moves gracefully across themes both personal and spiritual. Textile designer Suzanne Tick contributes meditative pieces woven from damaged Torahs—sacred scrolls that, according to tradition, are buried when no longer whole. Tick resurrects them through her practice, reinterpreting ritual into new forms of beauty and conversation.
Elsewhere, Kayla Powers works with botanicals and foraged dyes, reconnecting art to the land and sustainability. Cory Emma Siegler’s colorful improvisations suggest a different kind of ecology—one where memory, scrap, and spontaneity form a patchwork of joy and reflection.
More Than a Show—A Celebration
Photo by Sabrina Steck, courtesy of Onna House.
Photo by Sabrina Steck, courtesy of Onna House.
Onna House continues to deepen its commitment to women’s voices in the arts. Through exhibitions like “Tapestry,” it builds not just a platform, but a space of care.
In East Hampton’s light-filled rooms, “My Life Has Been a Tapestry” is more than a show. It’s a gathering of stories—spun, stitched, and shared. A place where art and craft, tradition and rebellion, are woven into one. The exhibition is on view at Onna House in East Hampton, NY through September 1, 2025.
About Onna House
Photo by Sabrina Steck, courtesy of Onna House.
Housed in a Japanese modernist 1960s residence in the center of East Hampton, Onna House is a sanctuary filled with art, furniture, and objects by women artists and designers exclusively. With a dual mission to support and create visibility for these artists and provide a gallery space to display their work, founder Lisa Perry combines her passions under one roof to carefully curate the private home and studio. Onna House acts as a space for women artists to engage and collaborate and for collectors to discover new work. —via Onna House
About Lisa Perry
Lisa Perry is a designer, collector, curator and the founder of Onna House. Lisa’s studies of fashion and textiles led to her collecting vintage couture clothing from the late 1960s, eventually starting her own lifestyle brand to reflect the spirit of that time. A highlight of Lisa’s design work has been creating limited-edition collections in collaboration with artists or foundations (such as Roy Lichtenstein and Robert Indiana), reflecting years of personal collecting across modernism, pop and minimalism. Lisa’s love of home and interior design has also been a long time passion, highlighted in Lisa Perry Homes, published by Assouline. Lisa is also a lifelong advocate for women’s rights with decades of support for women’s organizations. This advocacy has come full circle with the creation of Onna House. —via Onna House
Photo by Sabrina Steck, courtesy of Onna House.
