Artists unroll a view of scrolls

The exhibit will display paintings, sculptures, installations, and fiber art by 19 local artists, who address the notion of both scrolls and fiber. Stage insisted on keeping the theme unrestricted for the sake of creativity.

"We wanted to leave a lot of room for the artists to play and be imaginative. That always makes for a more interesting result," she said. "We provided them with two common points of reference. That's it. From there, people could go in any direction they wanted."

The images reveal a remarkable range -- from an interpretation as literal as a scroll depicting Kerouac's travels from the East Coast to the West to one as abstract as referring to the scroll of a violin.

"This is what I was hoping for," Stage said. "I'm very pleased with the enthusiastic response from the artists. There's a tremendous variety of work. They just ran with it.

"Some artists responded more to the idea of using text in their scrolls, while others found the vertical and horizontal elements more interesting. I enjoy using fabric instead of paint to create imagery. The tactile aspects of fiber make for a very versatile medium."

The collection includes a 20-foot spherical scroll that hangs from wall to wall, a human figure knitted together with wire in the shape of a Lowell mill girl , and a re-creation of a sacred scroll exploring the language of cheesy pick up lines.

"The work extends from the very classic idea of a scroll to something really loose," said Maxine Farkas, the show's curator. "Some directly refer to Kerouac's work, some don't. People really pushed themselves outside their comfort zone. It's so interesting to throw an idea out and watch it come back after percolating."