The Freedom Sisters Roadshow: Creating Purpose in Upcycled Functional Art
From The Dalles Art Center:
By Sally Johnson
The Dalles, Oregon (May 28, 2024) – The fourth exhibit of 2024 at The Dalles Art Center (TDAC) is “Don’t Throw It Away, Baby! Up-cycled Function Art by Barbara Kilkenny, Abigail Kaehler, Denise Jiminez, and Jan Byrkit.” Fondly known as the Freedom Sisters Road Show, these four artists have been friends and artistic peers for decades through multiple life stages including marriage, raising children, and the operations of family life.
Artist Jan Byrkit noted, “We are the Freedom Sisters Road Show. We are a group of four women who decided to tap into our creativity and explore different areas of our art and talent. On this journey, we also realized we have a lot of stuff that the children do not want or need so we found an avenue to purge and upcycle our items that have been long heirloom treasures in our household. Along the way, we are having a blast enjoying our sisterhood. All of us have a uniqueness that we share with each other and it has helped us grow. We believe in whatever brings us joy inspires us to explore that.”
The Environmental Protection Agency estimates that Americans throw out more than 12 million tons of furniture each year. These discarded items create mountains of solid waste that have grown 450% since 1960. The increase in fast and cheap furniture available from multiple online retailers contributes to this issue. The Freedom Sisters Road Show imagines a world more familiar to people of older generations where items were kept, repaired, and refurbished to last. The Freedom Sisters Road Show joins a long lineage of artisans and craftspeople who saw the value of functional items and used their creative skills to give these items new lives.
The Freedom Sisters Road Show journey began when the artists were eager to purge their houses and discovered they had quality items and well-used older furniture pieces that they realized could have a second life. The women took a class in chalk painting and started displaying their newly upcycled furniture and other items at Antique and Oddities in Bingen, Washington. The rest is history.
“We have weekly meetings where we rearrange our booth and discuss our next upcycling projects. We talk about classes we could explore to learn a new approach or share examples of work we have found to inspire ideas. Our weekly meetings always end in a lovely lunch and basking in our energy together,” said Denise Jiminez.
Ed Thomas, TDAC Board Treasurer adds, “The Dalles Art Center is the perfect place to host this incredible exhibit of local talent and craft. People in The Dalles as well as across the region will want to see this work and be inspired to repurpose their household items. There is a strong community of artisans, artists, and craftspeople in this area, and this exhibit celebrates our culture. I am also looking forward to wines from Mt. Hood Winery at the May 30 opening party and the live music!”
The Freedom Sisters Road Show’s shared approach to collaboration is, “We do everything with ease and grace!”
About The Artists
Abigail Kaehler comes from a long line of spiritual journeys from yoga master teacher to massage therapist, to Reiki master, to life coaching. Her roots are in Corpus Christi, Texas and she journeyed to Europe where she traveled and lived for many years. From the age of 19, she has studied many forms of art, always interested in different mediums, which has resulted in a continuous education of art in one way or another. If classes were not available, she would be self-taught to feed her artistry. Her love shows in everything she does with drawing, painting, knitting, mosaic art, stain glass, and chalk painting. She has an exceptional eye for the balance of how things go together, and it shows in her art.
Barbara Kilkenny, a native Oregonian was born and raised in Dallas, Oregon. After her retirement from owning a spa business, she was reminded by a friend of her artistic talent. This idea to create art and share it led to her passion for chalk painting and repurposing vintage furniture. Having an eye for detail has led to another artistic endeavor, fashioning beautiful designs on antique bottles. A door in Barbara’s imagination swung open when she started making handmade journals, each one a labor of love to give to family and friends using vintage paper, cards, lace, and other old-world items. Barbara also worked as a florist for many years and is inspired by nature and the outdoors.
Denise Jiminez comes from the corporate world in Silicon Valley, California where she grew up in Milpitas. She discovered later in her years that you can do anything artistically if you try. She went to Hood River looking for all that she left behind in the Bay area. Mountains, rivers, and oceans are not too far away, and let’s not forget the wineries. After a class in stained glass, she realized you just must take a class to learn. Then a trip to France to paint outside in plein-air fashion and her mind was blown away. After discovering chalk painting furniture, throwing something out because it is old really hurts.
Jan Byrkit Bickford is an entrepreneur still working in her own clothing business called BYRKIT Wear with her whimsical artistry. She is also a native Oregonian growing up in Roseburg. Jan is always creating new designs for her clothing business. People are always amazed when she comes up with ideas they would have never thought of. During the COVID-19 pandemic, she went down the rabbit hole learning how to upcycle furniture. When she is not sleeping, she is creating. She is always coming up with new ideas and always pushing humanity to be better.
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