Franki Kohler has an affinity for Ginkgo trees and leaves in all seasons of the year. And so do I. She made this piece for the Alliance for American Quilts online auction in 2008 and I had the winning bid. The Alliance is an important organization preserving, protecting, and presenting American quilts, covering the entire range of their history. To my mind one of the most important things AAQ does is preserve the oral history of quiltmakers, from the world famous to the ladies in your quilt group. These interviews are available on the AAQ website. They also have a program named "The Boxes Under the Bed" designed to preserve examples of quilt ephemera.
As it happens the 2011 auction starts tomorrow, November 14, and runs for three weeks with a different offering of quilts each week. It is a great place to go holiday shopping for someone you care about, or to add to your own collection of quilts. Check it out at: http://www.allianceforamericanquilts.org/ There are some lovely quilts being offered.
"Ginkgoes II" Franki Kohler 2008 15" X 15"
Fabrics: cotton, organza, tulle. Threads: cotton, rayon, silk. Beads. Machine quilted.
I especially appreciate the use of print fabrics which are transformed by free motion stitching following the veining in real Gingko leaves - that lovely radiating fan from the stem to the leaf edge.
Notice her use of a variegated thread to give a touch of fall color. Also the earth, sky, tree bark, leaf colored beads creating a formal framing. I made this image a little darker to show the textured background fabric - very subtle. It makes me think of Doreen Speckman's advice on choosing fabrics, "Are you glad it is there? Do you miss it when you take it away?" I would miss the texture if it weren't there, it adds a lot to this piece.
A plain back, but a great textured fabric that allows the quilting lines to be seen. I like that Franki let the hand stitching on the beads show - sort of the mark of her hand.
A plain printed label - I have added the size because it is helpful when I am arranging quilts. I do wish artists would put a contact on the label - e-mail, address, whatever. These days it is a lot easier to find an artist through one of the important quilt organizations, but it is nice to just flip to the label for a contact. http://frankikohler.com/
2 comments:
what a beautiful piece this is. Small but stunning. I'm always in awe of people who take the time to make beaded details like these. Not a lot of beads but just enough to highlight the objects.
Glad you're back at the machine Del. I like the blue kitty very much.
What fun to see my quilting friend Franki featured. She has mastered the ginko. Each time she presents it she has something to study and appreciate. Did you know she is the Featured Artist at Asilomar next June, Session V?
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