THE CUT & SEW SHOW

A Shelter Cultivation Project in partnership with April Cornell

We gave unfinished chore coats to some of the most exciting independent artists and designers working today and invited them to reimagine them through their own creative practices. This is what happened.

The Cut & Sew Show is a collaborative exhibition bringing together a remarkable group of artists, designers, and makers to explore what happens when a shared object becomes a starting point for individual creative expression.

Opening Reception
Thursday, September 3rd, 2026 | 6–9 PM
Karma Bird House
Burlington, Vermont

Each artist began with the same unfinished chore coat and was given complete freedom to approach it through their own creative practice. The result is a collection of one-of-a-kind works spanning art, fashion, design, textiles, printmaking, embroidery, and more.

At the heart of the project is Burlington designer April Cornell, whose decades-long creative practice has been shaped by travel, textiles, color, and relationships with makers around the world. Her longstanding connections to skilled garment makers in India made the creation of these coats possible and provide an important foundation for the exhibition.

From that shared starting point, each artist has taken the coat somewhere entirely their own. The works reveal how differently a single object can be interpreted when viewed through different creative languages.

The Cut & Sew Show is ultimately a celebration of making, collaboration, and creative possibility. It considers what happens when a garment becomes a platform for artistic expression.

The Cut & Sew Show
September 4 – December 1, 2026
Karma Bird House
Burlington, Vermont