Friday, October 23, 2009

Pacific International Quilt Festival XVIII – Wall Quilts

DSC02777 Quilt 3005 Camellias in my Garden by Janis Arredondo 
Quilt #3005 Camellias in my Garden, 35” x 28” 
Janis Arredondo 
Roseville, CA  

For my next-to-last post about the Pacific International Quilt Festival of 2009, I will show you some of the spectacular entries in the wall quilt category.  

Janis Arredondo did not get an award for this quilt, but she gets a blue ribbon in my book. I love the composition of this quilt and the exquisite botanical detail of the flowers and their foliage. My mother observed that the edges of the fabrics were not turned under thus giving a very flat finish. Since there is so much machine embroidery and the fabric was cut so close to the stitching, there is no danger of raveling. My mother very excitedly declared that she was going to do the same thing on her quilts. She always had difficulty with turning the fabric under without it pooching out in places, especially around the curved edges.  


DSC02778 Quilt 3005 Camellias in my Garden by Janis Arredondo 
Quilt #3005 Camellias in my Garden, 35” x 28” 
Janis Arredondo 
Roseville, CA  

As sewing machine technology improves, it opens the door to more creativity than ever. Tanya Brown froze a summer moment of “Brian at 10 Months” using unbelievable machine embroidery skills and Tsukineko ink. 

DSC02661 Quilt 3017 Brian at 10 Months by Tanya Brown cropped 
Quilt #3017 “Brian at 10 Months” 28.5” x 29” 
Sunnyvale, CA  

Christine Woodhouse would win top prize in the humor category, if there was one, with “Guard Duty”:

DSC02753 Quilt 7021 Guard Duty by Christine Woodhouse 
Quilt #7021 “Guard Duty”, 64” x 44” 
Christine Woodhouse 
New Zealand  


In reading the descriptions, I learned that a couple of quilts I chose to photograph were partially created in a workshop in Asilomar. I enjoy the simplicity and clarity of the designs in both these quilts. The first is “Viola” by Helen White, inspired by a Provencal painting:

DSC02664 NorCal quilt Viola by Helen White cropped 
“Viola” 
Helen White 
Ukiah, CA  

And the second, by Dorothy North, was inspired by the tomatoes she planted this spring. She incorporated fragments of the paper seed packets, leftover seeds, garden twine, and leaf prints to create this triptych quilt: 

DSC02667 NorCal quilt Tomato Triptych by Dorothy North 
“Tomato Triptych” 
Dorothy North 
Woodside, CA  

I am often attracted by bolder designs, especially in quilts, but this little wall quilt pulled me in from far away. Thom Atkins had to shift his medium of expression from bronze sculpture to textile arts after suffering injuries to his wrists and thumbs in a traffic accident. He printed Photoshop-manipulated photographs on fabric and reinforced the image with waterproof Sharpie pens. My favorite element of the quilt is illusion of rain created by the shimmery threads of glass beads. I can’t help but think that this quilt is a metaphor of the terrible traffic accident. Though I’m sure the injuries that deprived him of the ability to work with clay were a rainy day in his life, from it a thing of beauty and a new passion emerged.


DSC02731 Quilt - Outside Looking In by Thom Atkins “Outside Looking In”
Thom Atkins 
Santa Cruz, CA  

I was glad my mother pointed out he beautiful doves in the quilt called “The Beauty of Life”. My photo was too fuzzy to make out the last name of this quilter from Australia. The first name is probably Julie.  


DSC02728 Quilt 2591 The Beauty of Life 
Quilt #2591, “The Beauty of Life”


The opalescent seed bead detail on the tail feathers of these turtledoves give the appearance of pixie dust fluttering in the air as they coo about the beauty of life: 


DSC02729 Quilt 2591 The Beauty of Life dove detail 
Quilt #2591, “The Beauty of Life”


The last wall quilt I will feature here is a single square that is the ultimate Dutchbaby quilt. We came upon this little beauty in the “Vintage Revisited” section. “The Little Dutch Girl” by Judy Gula contains vintage fabrics and notions plus tiny ceramic and wooden “klompen” dangling at the bottom.  


DSC02714 Quilt Vintage Revisited The Little Dutch Girl by Judy Gula 
“The Little Dutch Girl”, Vintage Revisited category 
Judy Gula 
Annandale, VA  

You may view all my posts covering this quilt fest here, my 2009 Quilt Fest flickr set here, and last year’s here.

Tuesday, October 20, 2009

Pacific International Quilt Festival XVIII – Innovative Quilts




DSC02663 Quilt 3103 Courage by Geri Patterson-Kutras
Quilt #3103 “Courage”, 36” x 47.5”
Geri Patterson-Kutras, Machine quilting by Trudy Hardy
Morgan Hill, CA

Last week, my mother and I went to the Pacific International Quilt Festival XVIII at the Santa Clara Convention Center. We agreed that this show was even better than last year’s. Today I will tell you about some of the quilts in the innovative category.

The first innovative quilt that gripped me was the beach scene Geri Patterson-Kutras created using acrylic paints.

DSC02666 Quilt 3103 Courage by Geri Patterson-Kutras detail
Quilt #3103 “Courage”, 36” x 47.5”
Geri Patterson-Kutras, Machine quilting by Trudy Hardy
Morgan Hill, CA


My mother and I both loved Nancy S. Brown’s original design named “EIEIO”. Each animal showed such personality as they poked their heads out of the barn windows.


DSC02679 Quilt 1013 EIEIO by Nancy S Brown cropped
Quilt #1013 “EIEIO”, 46” x 49.5”
Nancy S. Brown
Oakland, CA

The spiral-printed cotton fabric was a great choice for the sheep’s coat:

DSC02680 Quilt 1013 EIEIO by Nancy S Brown
Quilt #1013 “EIEIO” detail, 46” x 49.5”
Nancy S. Brown
Oakland, CA

I would not have noticed the larger pattern on Leigh Cabell’s cathedral windows quilt if I hadn’t overheard someone talking about it. You may have to step across the room to see the image.

DSC02687 Quilt 1015 Ribbitt by Leigh Cabell

Quilt #1015 “Ribbitt”, 90” x 106”
Leigh Cabell
Denver, CO

Here’s a close-up of this hand-pieced and hand-appliquéd wonder:

DSC02681 Quilt 1015 Ribbitt by Leigh Cabell
Quilt #1015 “Ribbitt” detail, 90” x 106”
Leigh Cabell
Denver, CO

Kathy McNeil’s “Heron Happiness” is aptly named:

DSC02701 Quilt 1086 Heron Happiness by Kathy McNeil
Quilt #1086 “Heron Happiness”, 57” x 53”
Kathy McNeil
Tulalip, WA

The details of the fluffy breast feathers were impressive…

DSC02702 Quilt 1086 Heron Happiness by Kathy McNeil heron detail
Quilt #1086 “Heron Happiness”, 57” x 53”
Kathy McNeil
Tulalip, WA

…and I liked how she folded down the tips of the cat tail leaves:

DSC02703 Quilt 1086 Heron Happiness by Kathy McNeil reed detail
Quilt #1086 “Heron Happiness”, 57” x 53”
Kathy McNeil
Tulalip, WA

Jean Renli Jurgenson created a very interesting perspective of a “Hong Kong Taxi” as seen from her daughter’s apartment:

DSC02695 Quilt 1069 Hong Kong Taxi by Jean Renli Jurgenson
Quilt #1069 “Hong Kong Taxi”, 60” x 41.5”
Jean Renli Jurgenson
Walnut Creek, CA

I wanted to step right into Rachel Wetzler’s inviting kitchen in “Fragrant Memories” and help myself to that strawberry cake:

DSC02742 Quilt 1059 Fragrant Memories by Rachel Wetzler
Quilt #1059 “Fragrant Memoriesi”, 51” x 60”
Rachel Wetzler
St. Charles, IL

My mother loved Chicko Baba’s interpretation of a shopping center…

DSC02739 Quilt 6003 Shopping Center by Chicko Baba.
Quilt #6003 “Shopping Center”, 73” x 52”
Chicko Baba
Japan
…especially this sweet sales lady:

DSC02741 Quilt 6003 Shopping Center by Chicko Baba detail
Quilt #6003 detail “Shopping Center”, 73” x 52”
Chicko Baba
Japan

Ann E. Rauen’s “Into the Woods” work of art also merited close inspection:

DSC02718 Quilt 2098 Into the Woods by Ann E Rauen
Quilt #2098 “Into the Woods”, 89” x 65”
Ann E. Rauen
Santa Cruz, CA

The details on this calendar quilt were mindboggling – each square was a field of crazy-quilt patches featuring a highly-detailed tree and surprising little creatures.

DSC02716 Quilt 2098 Into the Woods by Ann E Rauen
Quilt #2098 “Into the Woods”, 89” x 65”
Ann E. Rauen
Santa Cruz, CA

There are many, many more innovative quilts that you can see on my Flickr set and here is a fantastic slide show by quiltbaby (no relation to me or tangobaby) here.

To see the winners of the 2009 World Quilt Festival, also produced by the Mancuso brothers, click here:

There’s a controversy brewing about one quilt I posted on Flickr. To participate in the discussion, click here.

Sunday, October 18, 2009

Pacific International Quilt Festival XVIII – Traditional Quilts

DSC02755 Quilt 1502 Inspiration Draws from Nature's Art by Patricia Delaney
Quilt #1502: “Inspiration Draws from Nature’s Art” 80” x 80”
Abington, MA.
World Quilt Competition: Best Machine Workmanship – Traditional.

Oma and I went on our annual pilgrimage to the Pacific International Quilt Festival this week.You can read about our trip to last year’s festival here and see the 2008 quilt competition winners here. This show is the largest and highest quality quilt extravaganza on the West Coast. It features over 800 quilts and works of wearable and textile art, and over 300 merchant booths. If that’s not enough, you can attend any of the 60 or so workshops and lectures offered by world-renowned textile artists.

Here are some examples of the traditional quilts. I spent a lot of time studying Patricia Delaney’s red and white quilt. It certainly is no surprise that she won the ribbon for Best Machine Workmanship in the World Quilt Competition.

DSC02754 Quilt 1502 Inspiration Draws from Nature's Art by Patricia Delaney
Quilt #1502 detail: “Inspiration Draws from Nature’s Art” 80” x 80”
Abington, MA.
World Quilt Competition: Best Machine Workmanship – Traditional.

But it was more than the machine workmanship that set this quilt apart from others, there was something else. Then a fellow admirer pointed out Delaney’s description:
“As my morning walks allow me to escape everyday concerns, so does the time spent at my sewing machine. One of these walks inspired the flowing drawings of woodland ferns. I found each frond to be unique and perfect in its imperfection. The quilting and eight shades of thread reflect this variety. Just as the dappled light is reflected on the forest floor, so, too, the ten red, twenty-five whites and trapunto add shadow and depth to this quilt.”
Imagine twenty-five shades of white and ten shades red fabric plus eight shades of thread! The subtle shift of colors gave this quilt truly an organic feel to it.

Even though Vicki Slawson’s design of this eight-point star and checkerboard border is very intricate, the simple blue and white color scheme keeps the design strong and crisp:

DSC02710 Quilt 2117 I Know Thy Works by Vicki Slawson
Quilt #2117: “I Know Thy Works”
Vicki Slawson
Brentwood, CA

I regret that I can not give proper attribution for this next masterpiece because my photo was too fuzzy to read the tag. Thanks to Robbie Marie (see comment below) for recognizing this quilt! The quilt is called "Majestic Bugs"

DSC02682 Traditional Red Pink and White stars
"Majestic Bugs", 104" x 107", double batting
Irena Bluhm

The workmanship is world class – the surface was painted after all the quilting was complete.  112 bugs have been quilted into the background design. Here you can see a couple:

DSC02684 Traditional Quilt Red Pink and White Stars detail

With use of ethnic fabrics, Linda Hibbert gives a new perspective to the traditional quilt:

DSC02720 Quilt Kaleidostar 3 by Linda Hibbert
“Kaleidostar 3”
Linda Hibbert

To see the superb machine quilting of this quilt, click here.

There’s nothing like a white-on-white quilt to show off someone’s workmanship.

DSC02758 Quilt 1508 Irish Cream by Linda M Roy
Quilt #1508 “Irish Cream”, 84” x 84”
Linda M. Roy
Knoxville, TN
Best Hand Workmanship, Traditional – World Quilt Competition

Sandi Lush used colonial knots and glass seed beads to add interest and texture in her hand-quilted beauty named “Crystal Dreams”

DSC02735 Quilt 9507 Crystal Dreams by Sandi Lush
Quilt #9507 “Crystal Dreams”, 86” x 86”
Sandi Lush
United Kingdom
First Place, Traditional –World Quilt Competition

DSC02736 Quilt 9507 Crystal Dreams by Sandi Lush
Quilt #9507 “Crystal Dreams”, 86” x 86”
Sandi Lush
United Kingdom
First Place, Traditional –World Quilt Competition

Heather Harding’s choice of butter yellow fabric is inspired:

DSC02751 Quilt 7503 Welsh Gold by Heather Harding
Quilt #7503 “Welsh Gold”, 56” x 56”
Heather Harding, New Zealand

It’s not often one sees Moorish designs in a traditional quilt.


DSC02769 Quilt 2010 Gypsy Rosalie by Ronda K Beyer
Ronda K. Beyer
Tualatin, OR
Best Machine Workmanship, Traditional – Pacific International Quilt Competition 2009

The tiny crystal seed beads that Ronda K. Beyer added gave just the right amount of sparkle to this exotic quilt:


DSC02770 Quilt 2010 Gypsy Rosalie by Ronda K Beyer
Quilt #2010 “Gypsy Rosalie”, 64” x 64”
Ronda K. Beyer
Tualatin, OR
Best Machine Workmanship, Traditional – Pacific International Quilt Competition 2009

Margo Hardie's all hand-sewn "Down Under Florabunda" is spectacular. I can spend days birdwatching here.

DSC02727 Quilt 2502 Down Under Florabunda by Margo Hardie
Quilt #2502 "Down Under Florabunda"
Margo Hardie, Australia

There were so many other fantastic traditional quilts. You can see some of them here and here and here. The full Flickr set is here.

Next time I will show you some of the quilts in the innovative category.
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