TCQC quilt by Rebecca Rohkaste 08-23-09

This quilt is another auction purchase. In even numbered years East Bay Heritage Quilters [guild] holds their quilt show [Voices in the Cloth] and silent auction of quilts made by members at the Oakland [CA] Convention Center. They have some very well-known quilt makers in their membership and some who aren't well-known who do fabulous work. I think the members of this guild offer the most original design and color work of any guild show I have attended. Great stuff and I try to go to every show. It is always in January, so watch for it in January 2010.WRONG! NO, next year the dates will be APRIL 10~11. I'm sure there will be some info on EBHQ.com soon.

You can check out the quilts shown in Jan 2008 at: http://www.ebhq.org/vic2008_1.shtml

"A Lunar Season" Rebecca Rohrkaste 1999 35"W x12"L

I have long admired Rebecca's quilts - they are always different and frequently use unusual color choices. This quilt is a small version of at least one large quilt with the same design. This one has hand dyes, shibori, commercial hand dye "look-alikes, commercial prints, batiks, a lovely mustardy brown woven ikat (above, left) and more exceptional fabric choices.

I love the inclusion of this fabric with a violet ground, pinky red flowers and black foliage. Only a very color confident artist would throw that one in the mix! The quilting appears to be done using #8 perle cotton thread. It is very even w/top and bottom threads in equal tension. Not an easy thing to do with a very thick thread.

Each block is composed of sixteen different fabrics - eight for the background and eight for the "moon".

Rebecca's colorful quilt "Big Red" was juried into Quilt National 2001

(http://www.dairybarn.org/quilt/index.php?section=226&page=277

She has taught quilt classes in the past at New Pieces Quilt Store in Berkeley, but I don't see her listed currently as one of their teachers. I would jump at the chance to take one of her classes. I do not find a website for her. But since I posted this page several people have sent e-mail and phone contacts for her. Thanks to all.

Quilt from TCQC 05-17-09

This week's quilt is one that I purchased at the East Bay Heritage Quilters auction which is held in conjunction with their quilt show at the Oakland Convention Center in even numbered years. They always have very nice quilts, some made by 'world class' quilt makers. I had seen Ellen's work in Visions year after year and this small quilt spoke to me. It is a 'one-block' quilt - sixteen 7-3/4" blocks. Instead of using commercial fabric, Ellen has silk screened layers of pattern on the background fabrics. For some reason these maze like designs are difficult to photograph, so I am showing some details below.

"C-Block #6" Ellen Oppenheimer 1997 31"W x 31"L

I don't know which color is the background - I think the medium blue - but you can see the layers where the polka-dots disappear around their edges.

In these two blocks it appears that the polka-dots may have been the final silk screen used.

Here it is clear that the polka-dots were screened before the light blue.

Ellen won the Quilts Japan Prize at Visions 1997 and later went to Japan to teach and study, which is part of the prize. She describes her process in the Visions catalog for 2002, if you would care to read about it.

Thank you for all the good wishes that my health problem isn't serious. I'll have the test(s) this week sometime and will give an "organ recital" when I have something to share.

Nancy Brown quilts 04-12-08

Nancy Brown is a Bay Area quilt maker who creates fabulous hand-appliqued, hand-quilted works, usually depicting animals. I have admired her pieces at Pacific International Quilt Festival every year and also at East Bay Heritage Quilters QShows. Today Mary and I went to EBHQ, held at the Oakland Convention Center and saw three of Nancy's quilts displayed.

"Elegy" (28"W x 23"L) is based on a photo of a tiger named Tatianna.

"Rocky" (15"W x 12"L) This sweet little tabby was part of the silent auction.

"Henry" (13.5"W x 18"L), also part of the silent auction, is named after the "Laugh-In" character Henry who appeared onstage with a flower and a poem. "Henry" will come to live in the Thomas Contemporary Quilt Collection. Hurrah, there is finally a Nancy Brown quilt in the Collection!