It’s a busy season and much of our energy and time are taken up this month with the holidays, family, special friends, and the celebration of Christmas and Hanukkah. So this is a good time to share a few more photos of quilts from the 2011 Houston Quilt Festival.  No doubt, the actual quilts are more beautiful in real life than what you see in my informal snapshots. The colors shown may not be true to the quilt, but I think the quilts still look great. Enjoy!

Autumn Splendor by Noriko Endo from Tokyo, Japan

If you have been in the quilt scene for a few years, then you will be well aware of Noriko Endo’s glorious naturescapes. They are filled with exquisite textures, subtle colorings, and enticing imagery.  Autumn Splendor fills the bill. It is amazing. Standing in front of this quilt brings you into the scene. The realism is extraordinary.  This particular quilt really speaks to me, as it’s a scene reminiscent of many years of woodland walks. This original design is created with cotton, tulle, and luminescent fibers. If you would like to create your own woodland scenes filled with textures, or if you just want to be inspired by Noriko’s beautiful creations, consider purchasing her book Confetti Naturescapes.

Crested Barber by Barbara McKie

I had written in my notes that this little guy was created by Terri Gavin, as part of her John Jay winter park series, but  then I realized Terri’s quilt looks quite different. So after a plea to viewers asking if they knew who created this delightful quilt, several people provided me with the answwer.  Barbara McKie is the artist who created this wonderful work of art. She did a fabulous job with this bird’s detailing and coloring. He is such a bright contrast compared to the toned hues of the stone he is standing on and the background. What an amazing bird he is!

Now I love this little bird, but the first things that come to my mind because I am thinking winter is this:  Why is this glorious bird sitting on a cold stone in the middle of winter when he should be lounging leisurely somewhere in the south?  Did he not get the message as to when his flock was departing? Is he a perky individualist that thinks he can persevere through any situation and doesn’t realize what New York winters are like? Was he too lackadaisical to fly south? So many questions…..and no answers. All I can say is that I am shivering for him. (Of course, now that I know he wasn’t sitting on a rock at the John Jay Park, I can hope he is lounging in a bit warmer weather.)

Notice that this bird is looking right at you, the viewer. This is a very important detail when creating an artwork that features a bird or an animal. Eye contact is necessary  for there to be a strong visual connection between bird and viewer. This little guy is such a charmer!  Barbara McKie has many other amazing works of art on her website, so if this little bird pulls at your heartstrings, check out her website..

Rare Birds by Rachel Wetzler from St. Charles, Illinois

Speaking of birds, I couldn’t help pausing to enjoy this wonderful quilt. It’s made by Rachel Wetzler who is one of my favorite quilt artists. She is so versatile and talented.  Not only does she do whimsy so well, but she creates stunning traditional and contemporary quilts too. BTW, Rachel has a blog that you will enjoy visiting:  A Bit of Yellow.

Each of these birds represents a quilt personality within Rachel’s  quilting group. Denise Havlan, a quilt artist who is inspired by Native American art, is found sitting atop the totem pole. Rachel, a lover of both yellow and sewing, is that cute little yellow bird balancing on her favorite pair of scissors. Then Annette Hendricks, a painter who loves purple, is the purple bird on top of the paint brush and palette.  Beth Gilbert, nurse extraordinaire, talented contemporary quilt artist, and hostess with the most-est is ready for company with a pot of tea in hand, her purring cat, and her house warm and welcoming (Beth’s hospitality is noteworthy—I know, as I’ve stayed with Beth and her husband and it was wonderful). Ann Fahl, a lover of flowers and cats, is the bird with her kitty close at hand on top of a beautiful flower.  The last bird represents the energetic Robbi Eklow, a talented quilter who is always ready to share  yet one more story.  What a clever quilt this is, celebrating friends. It’s a fun, beautifully executed quilt.

This original design uses fused applique, foundation piecing, painting, colored pencils, and machine quilting. Commerical and hand-dyed fabrics, WonderUnder Fusible, Hobbs Heirloom Premium 80/20 batting, fabric markers, pencils and paints were all used in this quilt.

Fall ‘n Star by Jan Mathews and Brandy Rice from Houston, Texas

Jan Mathews and Brandy Rice created this gorgeous quilt using Judy and Brad Niemeyer’s pattern Hawaiian Star.  It was difficult to take a full picture of this quilt, so I have included a closeup (below). I think this was one of the most beautiful traditional quilts exhibited in the show. The colors are softly muted and the workmanship is exquisite. The quilt was made with paper foundation and micro machine quilting. Batik fabrics, silk and wool batting, and silk thread were used in this quilt.  This is a beautiful interpretation of  the Hawaiian Star pattern.

Close-up view of Fall ‘n Star by Jan Mathews and Brandy Rice

Sunlit Circles by Ann Petersen from Aurora, Colorado

Since I love blue-violet, I am always attracted to quilts using the complements blue-violet and golden-yellow. Hence, I naturally gravitated toward Sunlit Circles.  The stars are beautifully done and it was fun to see the variety of mariners’ compasses displayed in this quilt. I really enjoyed Ann’s color and value play. Ann stated that this design represents sunlight peeking through starry windows. It is paper-pieced and machine pieced.

Weeping Dorothea by Ann Harwell from Wendell, North Carolina

Ann Harwell’s Weeping Dorothea is a quilt honoring a 100-year old weeping cherry tree at the Dorothea Dix Hospital, which was founded in 1856. This was the first hospital in North Carolina dedicated to the treatment of mental illness.  This tree sits on a hill overlooking downtown Raleigh.  The hospital is currently being decommissioned, but Weeping Dorothea is alive and filled with a century of a multitude of life’s secrets. Weeping Dorothea was machine pieced and quilted.

Of Cabbage and Kings by Norma Schlager from Danbury, Connecticut

I was entralled when I saw Of Cabbages and Kings in the Houston IQA. It is stunning. Also, I was very delighted to see this was an original design created by Norma Schlager, a very talented quilt artist. In fact, two of her quilts, Fiesta and Blue Ginkgoes, are featured in my design book Adventures in Design.

Here’s Norma’s cabbage story:  I went to an Emily Dickensen  exhibit at the NY Botanical Gardens and took a picture of a cabbage in her vegetable garden.  When I got home and saw it on my computer monitor, I knew it had to be a quilt.  I toyed with the idea of doing it in applique with my hand dyes, but for some reason I thought I would try painting it.  I took my photo to a copy shop and had it enlarged. Then I traced the outlines onto PFD fabric with a Sharpie and just painted away, using acrylic paints out of the tube, thinned with a little water.  After the paint dried, the traced lines were still visible and I free-motion satin-stitched over them with several different shades of Sulky rayon thread.

Norma’s first cabbage quilt was juried into the New England Quilt Museum where it sold. Because Norma was so happy with the results of that quilt, she made another. This second one is the one exhibited at the IQA show.  These  were the first whole-cloth painted quilts that Norma has done.  Great job, Norma!

Artichokes in Bloom by Andrea Brokenshire from Round Rock, Texas.

A show-stopper for me was Artichokes in Bloom by Andrea Brokenshire. This quilt is simply amazing. It was inspired by artichokes growing in a friend’s garden (Nina—beautiful artichokes!).  Andrea used hand-painted silk, raw-edge applique, a confetti-style background, thread painting, and machine quilting. Her materials include 100% cotton fabrics, silk charmeuse, batiks, cotton batting, and rayon, polyester, and cotton threads. This quilt is so realistic, you feel as if you could reach in and touch the blossoms and petals. I have heard that the quilters from Round Rock are a wonderfully talented group, and by looking at Andrea’s quilt, I must agree. I LOVE this quilt!

Give Us Your Comments

I hope you loved seeing these quilts. There are such a variety of techniques and materials. It’s amazing how far the quilting world has come in the past forty years in expanding the use and look of a quilt.

Enjoy.  If you have time, let us know which of these quilts inspire you to try a new challenges in 2012.  See you next week.

Happy coloring!

Joen

Text and photography copyright   © Joen Wolfrom

The copyright of the quilts shown in this post remains with those artists who created these works of art.

Joen is a color enthusiast who teaches and lectures on color. She has written three color books: Color Play, Visual Coloring, and The Magical Effects of Color. Her Studio Color Wheel is used to illustrate color concepts in many of these blog posts. She is also the designer of the 3-in-1 Color Tool. Her new book Adventures in Designis now available. Joen’s newest design tool, the Magic Design-Ratio Tool has just been released. All books and products are published by C & T Publishing.

Having been away for much of the last few weeks, behind in everything, and with an exhausted mind and body, I decided my brain is not worthy of thinking clear thoughts this week. This is a perfect time to share a few photos that I took at the Houston IQA show. I wasn’t able to take pictures of all of the quilts that I thought were so impressive, but I did take sevral handfuls. Today I have selected eight to show you. They are not in any particular order. I visited the show during Quilt Market. At that time, no awards had been awarded, so I have not information on any of these quilts being award-winners. However, as far as I am concerned, these are all award-winning quilts as they are a visual feast for our eyes.

First a few photo comments:  These pictures are very informal and taken with my little point ‘n shoot Nikon camera. You will see signs, pipes, barrier ribbons, and other items in some pictures. I apologize, as there was no choice in the matter. If I wanted the picture of the quilt, sometimes extras went along with it. Also, some quilts were impossible to view straight on, so they are skewed a bit. My apologies. No doubt, the actual quilts will be more beautiful in real life than what you see here in my snapshots, but I think you’d like seeing these quilts regardless of the quality of photo. The colors shown may not be true to the quilt, but I think the quilts still look great. Enjoy!

Again, in no particular order, here are eight exquisite quilts:

Oriental Triptych

This triptych  by Karon Huggler of  Columbia, Missouri is stunning. The color use is dramatic. The curves set an elegant, sophisticated mood. Karon used both hand and machine piecing, applique, and quilting. She included three-dimensional feathering on the cranes. Karon’s original design was inspired by Louisa Smith’s work. At the time of the exhibition, this piece was available for purchase.

Peaceful Sunset at Nara

As the sun sets above Nara, the ancient capital city of Japan, the birds are silhouetted in the vibrant sky. as they return home to their night nesting spots. This beautiful scene is an original design created by Michiyo  Yamamoto from Chicago, Illinois. The analogous coloring is a strong element in this quilt’s beauty. Peaceful Sunset at Nara is hand pieced, embroidered, and hand quilted using silks dyed by Michiyo.

The Lily Bloomed

The Lily Bloomed by Takido Fusako of Japan is one of those works of art that is stunning in its understated beauty. The subtle play with value, the delicate coloring, the use of subtle tones all come together to make this breathtaking in its quietness. This is a quilt that proves that you do not need to fill your design with bold colors to make a dramatic visual statement.  Delicate toned hues provide this quilt’s elegance. This quilt was hand pieced, hand appliqued, and hand embroidered. It also includes trapunto.

Looking West

Daphne Grieg’s striking quilt  Looking West was inspired by a view from Vancouver Island looking west into the sunlit evening. This quilt is created using machine piecing, fused applique, painting, bobbin quilting, thread painting, and decorative stitching.  Daphne used Gloria Loughman’s technique for her scene. This quilt uses tones and a wide value range to create its visual impact. Daphne lives in North Saanich, British Columbia, Canada.

Peony

Using a photo of a peony from her garden, Barbara Persing created an original peony design using ink on cotton fabric.  Additionally, Barbara is a masterful machine quilter, quilted this artwork with cotton thread.  This is an amazing work of art. This artwork is stunning in its fragility. The textural effect is unbelievable.  Barbara lives in Frederick, Pennsylvania.

High Rise

Thelma McGough’s High Rise was inspired by the beautiful contemporary lines in a block of high-rise buildings. Wilma took a photo image of a high-rise’s balconies. She then rotated, repeated, and recolored this imagery. This digitally-altered design was painted on satin and then quilted with invisible polyester thread. This scintillating artwork reverberates with energy, visually echoing line and color with beautiful repetition.  The wide value range of colors emphasizes the design beautifully. Thelma lives in St. Mary’s Bay, Auckland, New Zealand

Cypress Sentinels

The visual impact of Cypress Sentinels is powerful. This image takes your breath away.  Notice brilliant coloring is not present in this design. Instead, its strong visual impact is created through the elements of line, direction, and texture. Although most of the colors revolve around the middle-value range, the light and dark values really help punctuate this design’s strength. This design was created by Mary Ann Hildebrand from Comfort, Texas. She took photos of several cypress trees and made her own original design.

Galactic Daiquiri

Cherie   Gooler’s  Galactic Daiquiri is bright, energetic and filled with dynamic color. The warmth of the colors adds to its liveliness. The use of value creates beautiful visual impact. This design was inspired by circles and the traditional design Drunkard’s Path. Cherie is from Santa Rosa, California.

I hope you enjoyed seeing these beautiful quilts. Look at each one closely analyze the color choices and notice how the artist used her selected colors. There should be at least one quilt that you will really be drawn to and perhaps one that is not your cup of tea. Try to figure out why each of these is so. Jot down anything of significance you learn about yourself from looking at this quilts.  See you next week.

Happy coloring!

Joen

Text and photography copyright   © Joen Wolfrom

The copyright of the quilts shown in this post remains with those artists who created these works of art.

Joen is a color enthusiast who teaches and lectures on color. She has written three color books: Color Play, Visual Coloring, and The Magical Effects of Color. Her Studio Color Wheel is used to illustrate color concepts in many of these blog posts. She is also the designer of the 3-in-1 Color Tool. Her new book Adventures in Designis now available. Joen’s newest design tool, the Magic Design-Ratio Tool has just been released. All books and products are published by C & T Publishing.

Are you ready for the International Quilt Festival / Cincinnati? Now if you don’t know which show this is, I will tell you. This is the show that has been in Chicago for the last eight years. This year the festival is moving to Cincinnati, Ohio. They are going to have over 300 vendors as well as wonderful quilts for you to see.

I am very excited about this because I grew up just a stone’s throw away from there, so I know you will have a great time. It is going to be April 8th – 11th at the Duke Energy Convention Center, which is in downtown Cincinnati. The Duke Energy Convention Center has more than 750,000 square feet of meeting, event, and exhibition space!!  There are over 5,000 parking spaces!

I want to tell you about what else you can see and do in Cincinnati. Because of the location you could easily make this a family affair. If it is museums that you like, then you can choose from the History Museum, the Fire Museum, the Children’s Museum or the  Cincinnati Reds Hall of Fame Museum, to name just a few. If you have children with you, then you must see the Cincinnati Zoo and Botanical Garden. If you are a “foodie” like I am, then you must go to Findlay Market. It is an open air market place with the best fresh produce and meats. If that is not your thing, then there are always guided walking tours, and don’t forget the riverboats. And for the night life, forget about it, Grand Victoria Casino!! What I have told you does not even scratch the surface.

I know if you plan on going to Cincinnati, not only will you have a great time looking at all the new gizmos and gadget and the beautiful quilts at Quilt Festival/Cincinatti, but you will see a beautiful city. Now that I don’t live there, it makes me appreciate it that much more. Have a great time. Be safe and have a “Cincinnati Chilly Dog” for me!!!

Congratulations, Camilla. Your appliqué is superb!

Yesterday morning it was time for me to say goodbye to Houston, as I headed for the airport to begin my journey home. We are so happy with our new pattern releases and are pleased that shop owners were excited about our product, new and old. Soon you will find our patterns in your favorite quilting store.  For us, another year of designing begins for talented designers and staff, as we plan for next lineup of exciting new projects for you.  We’ll see many of you again at the 2010 Fall Quilt Market.

The ballroom was filled with high excitement at tonight’s Award Ceremony for the prestigious IQA Quilt Show in Houston, Texas. It was fun to watch the winners’ faces, as they accepted their awards. They came from all over the world, including Canada, U.K., France, Korea, Japan, Australia, New Zealand, and the United States. Japan had several quilt winners. Texas, California, and Illinois had the most U.S. award winners. I can only remember a small number of the winning results.  Even though this list is incomplete, you may find one of your friends or favorite quilters included here as one of tonight’s winners: 

Caryl Bryer Fallert won Best of Show, which brought her a $10,000 award prize. She also won 1^st place in the Digital Imaging category, which was a $1000 prize.  Karen Stone from Dallas, Texas , won a  major award, which earned her a $5000 prize.  Gloria Hansen won an honorable mention and 3^rd place in the Digital Imaging category. The Founders’ Award was a spectacular quilt created by a talented Japanese quilter.  Her award prize was $7500.  Hollis Chattelain won a major $5000 award with her woodland quilt,  Protection, which was in the Naturescapes category. She also won a 1^st place award for her quilt, Exodus. Inge Mardal and Steen Hougs won a 2^nd place prize for their stunning water scene quilt.  

Much-loved Hazel Canny of Houston, Texas won 2^nd place in the Merit Hand quilting category. In this same category, Cathleen Miller from Albuquerque, New Mexico won 1^st place with an exquisite quilt called Inner Beauty. In the Art Whimsical category, a crowd pleaser was the honorable mention quilt The Great Crate Escape by Pauline Salzman from Treasure Island, Florida. Pup Art received 3^rd place in this category. Once Upon a Christmas won 1^st place in this category.

In the Art People, Portraits & Figures category, the winner was a superb quilt of a young girl. This quilt was created by an Australian quilter. Pauline Salzman received an award for Portrait of an Artist. The wonderful quilt Broken Dishes by a quilter from Beaver Creek, Ohio won 2^nd place. This quilter also received an honorable mention for a quilt in the Art Miniature category.

Traditional appliqué quilt winners included a Christmas quilt by a quilter from Mesquite, Texas, as well as a quilt named Heart’s Desire.  In the Art Miniature category, Last Dance by Diane Doran received a 3^rd place.  The 2^nd place winner was from Japan, and the category’s winning quilt was a beautiful flower album quilt by Liz Jones from Leominster, England.

In the Art Pictorial category, Karen Hanken from Medford, Oregon received an honorable mention. Melinda Bula received a 3^rd place. The 2^nd place quilt was Morning Has Broken by Peggy Parrott from Lakewood, Colorado. The 1^st place winner was a stunning quilt by Barbara Shapel from Washougal, Washington.

 In the Group Quilt category, a crowd pleaser was the 3^rd place winner, Boston Fenway Park. The 1^st place winner was Grape Harvest, made by three quilters.  In Innovative Appliqué, Camilla Watson from New Zealand won an Honorable Mention with her quilt Menamorphosis. Kathy Wylie from Ontario, Canada won 1^st prize with Instrument of Praisenote: . In the Art Painted Surface category, honorable mention went to Moon Garden by Judy Coates Perez from Chicago, Illinois.

In the Naturescapes category sponsored by JWD Publishing, the results were a wonderful example of international talent and flavor. Crossing Over by Cookie Warner from Fort Collins, Colorado won 1^st place. Noriko Endo and an Australian quilter won 2^nd and 3^rd places.  An honorable mention was given to a Japanese quilter. I loved all of the quilts awarded prizes in this category. I thought the entire group of quilts was very strong.

Another quilt that won an award was Calamari Time by a quilter from Billings, Montana.  A beautiful quilt by Judy Mathieson won 1^st prize. A darling quilt with a cat trying to find a “mousie” also won a 1^st place. Roby Joy Ecklow won a 2^nd place for Eye Candy in the Art Abstract Large category while Rita Steffenson received a 1^st place award in that category. A Japanese quilter won 3^rd place honors in this category.

Well, I’ve hit the end of my memory of quilters, quilts, and awards tonight. I leave you with the thought that these quilts are truly superb. All should be proud of their accomplishments and creative adventure.  If you can see this IQA show during the following year, do so. You’ll love it.  

(Please note:  I apologize if there are any misspellings or incorrect information listed here.)

Happy Quilting!

I have listed a few of the quilts that I really liked. If I had had a camera with me, or if I could have remembered better, or if I had a bigger piece of paper to scribble on, my list would have been longer. If I have misspelled your name, or your friend’s name or given the incorrect name of a quilt, I apologize. It’s due to not remembering correctly or not being able to read my scribbles. I loved these quilts for a lot of different reasons. Again, I didn’t see the entire show, so if I didn’t mention your name and your quilt, it probably means I didn’t see it. However, if you are one of these people, congrats! If you know one of them, give them a high-five for me. Here’s my incomplete list in the order I remembered seeing them:

Charlotte Hickman from Oklahoma City, Oklahoma for Three Roses;
Pat Rollie from Los Angeles, California for Begonias at Butchart Gardens;
Fenella Davies from Bath, England for Australian Bushfires;
Sylvia Naylor from Cambridge, Ontario, Canada for For the Love of Trees;
Melinda Bula from El Dorado Hills, California for Splendor in the Grass;
Ruth Powers from Carbondale, Kansas for Spring Encounter;
Kathy Kelly from Waco, Texas for the Moda University block quilt;
Karlyn Bue Lohrenz from Billings, Montana for Calamari Time;
Pam Hadfield from Laguna Niguel, California for Goodness, Gracious, Great Balls of Fire…..
Kelly Monroe from Arlington, Texas for A Quark’s Tale
Cindy Henneke from Bresham, Texas for her Broken Star
Cookie Warner from Fort Collins, Colorado for Crossing Over

I have a feeling this is going to happen again this year. I think one of the quilts in the Naturescapes category is so spectacular that it will be upgraded to one of the $5000 award prizes. That would be so exciting for that particular quiltmaker (and for me). Also, it would give another person in the category the opportunity to receive a ribbon, the honor, and prize money. I’ll let you know tonight what happens. I’m SO excited…………………..

This show also includes two other exhibits: The Evolution of Natural Fibers; Vibrations: Color Resonance in Antique Quilts, 1860-1940. Movies and demonstrations are available for viewing.  Best of all admission is free!

Here are the details for the show:

Full-Spectrum: Natural Fibers, Quilts & the Textile Arts
Quilt Exhibit  September 10 – December 5, 2009
Full-Spectrum:  Natural Fibers, Quilts and the Textile Arts 

Binghamton University Art Museum
4400 Vestal Parkway East, Vestal, New York

Tuesday, Wed, Fri, Sat  12 – 4pm;  Thursday  12 – 7 pm
You may listen to the free quilt audio tour with your cell phone.  Jack Braunstein is the curator. For more information, visit http://artmuseum.binghamton.edu.