The exhibit, "Embroidery, Batik and Tie-Dye: Textiles Crafts of Southwestern China," explores how these intensely colorful textiles are created and will feature several examples from the private collection of the show's curator, CSUN librarian Angela Lew.

"Our goal with this exhibit is to help people understand that China, like this country, is made up of many different types of people," Lew said. "And like in this country, there are so many different types of craft and ways of expressing individual cultures."

Lew said the exhibit features the work mainly of Miao and Bai people in a mostly poor and mountainous region of southwestern China.

"They don't have the luxury to study at an art academy and be real artists. They express themselves in different ways. These textiles are their art," she said.

The Miao are known for their colorfully embroidered garments and intricately graphed batik cloth. The Bai are celebrated for their elaborately patterned tie-dyed cloth and clothing.

A reception to celebrate the opening of the exhibit will be held Thursday, April 24, at 6 p.m. and will feature a lecture by Lew and a performance by Chinese musician Shi Jiahuan.

The exhibit is located in the Exhibition Gallery in the west wing of the second floor of the Oviatt Library. The library is in the center of the campus at 18111 Nordhoff St. in Northridge. For more information about the exhibit, call the library at (818) 677-2638.