Dianne Firth quilt from TCQC 10-11-09

"Red Wave" Dianne Firth 2005 44"W x 57"L (111.8cm X 144.8cm)

Cotton, polyester batting, torn-strip appliqued, machine quilting.

In the QN catalog she states: "The inspiration for this quilt came from the bulbous form and sinuous orange-red markings of a fresh supply of galangal (Alpinia galanga), a spicy vegetable root, closely related to ginger and turmeric. The quilt is also a memory of warm weather and summer holidays."

I purchased this quilt at the Quilt National 2007 opening in Athens, Ohio, and then it toured the country with the rest of the Quilt National works. Although it is difficult waiting for two years, I know that if a quilt appeals to me the only way I can add it to the Collection is to "strike while the iron is hot", as the saying goes! I'm thinking of posting a series of 'the quilts that got away' to show those that I did not decide soon enough or speak up quickly enough!

Dianne's work has always appealed to me when I have seen it in exhibits, books or magazines. There is something about the way she refines and pares down the extraneous parts of an image and leaves the clear 'bones' of it in her quilts. Other than that, I suppose one of the attractions of this quilt is the color - I do enjoy bright clear colors.

The dark stripes are actually brown, but my camera cannot take the accurate color, nor could I adjust it enough with my editing program.

It is easier to see the quilting lines on the back of the quilt.

The instructions for washing the quilt are on the labels - one on each of the four pieces.

Dianne lives in Turner, Canberra, Australia, where her work includes teaching landscape design, history and theory as head of the Landscape Architecture Department at the University of Canberra Australia. You can see more of her work at these websites: http://tactilequilts.com/ and http://www.ozquiltnetwork.org.au/dianne-firth.html

If you look at the work of the other quilters who belong to the tACTile group you will see quilts by Beth Miller whose "Kimberley Sunset" was the featured quilt on 09-28-09. [The ACT in capital letters stands for Australia Capital Territory - similar to our District of Columbia]

2007 - People @ Quilt Nat'l '07 05-23-09

This is another look back at Quilt National 2007 and some of the people I saw there. I've always thought that conferences are ultimately about the people who attend and mingle. I met so many very nice people either making or interested in art quilts, but these are the pictures that are 'presentable'. One thing I learned in '07 is how important it is to take pictures of the artists with their quilts.

I didn't see the dairy barn when it was a dairy barn and I admit I have never been in such a place before. Now it is a wonderful, expansive space to hang quilts, they made a great choice. I include this picture to show how it looks with quilts hanging. Left to Right: the red quilt in the center is "Red Wave", "Robo Sapien: Agent 1" by Kathy Weaver, "Are We Safer Now?" by Judith Plotner.

Friends from Coronado, CA., Kathleen McCabe and her husband. Kathleen has a quilt in Quilt National '09 which I looked forward to seeing at the opening this year - maybe I will have a chance to see it in one of the traveling sections. in the next two years. The quilt on the right is "Dun Aengus Stone Fort" by Denise Labadie - 63"W x 71"L. On the far left is "Brush" by Mary Beth Frezon - 48"W x 28"L.

Karey Bresenhan and Kathleen Dawson at the welcoming table.

"Repose" with artist Melanie Testa 52"W x 41"L

Discussion in front of "Surround Sound" - 50"W x 38"L x 8"D by Regina Benson are
____________, Regina Benson, Pat Hawkins, _____________


Mary Ann Tipple artist with "Our Dads at War" 36"W x 37"L

2007 Quilt Nat'l Opening 05-22-09

Since I had to cancel my road trip to Kansas and Ohio and won't be at the opening of Quilt National, I thought I would look back at 2007 and remember that great trip. That year I discovered that the night before the opening there is a special evening for supporters of The Dairy Barn, Quilt National and also collectors of note. So, by the time of the opening a number were already sold. It is a bit off-putting that if one buys a quilt they won't have it in their hands for several years as the exhibit goes touring across the country - in three sections. The two quilts that I purchased in May 2007 arrived on April 30, 2009 (the week I came home from my Empty Spools 2009 session with Pamela Allen). Talk about a high! All that creative input from the class, topped by two fabulous quilts I own, but hadn't seen for two years. I couldn't wait to get them up on the walls.

"Red Wave" Dianne Firth - 2005 - Turner, Canberra, Australia

Cotton fabric, polyester batting, torn-strip appliqued, machine quilted.

No apparent website or blog.

This quilt is four separate pieces (which are conveniently marked 1 through 4 on the backs. It was inspired by a spicy vegetable root named galangal, closely related to ginger and turmeric.

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I didn't buy this next quilt, I didn't have the funds, even if I hadn't bought the other two! But I think it is spectacular and it is two sided, so I suppose it could be considered two quilts.

"Peach, Pear, Plum" w/artist Elizabeth Brimelow - 2006 - Macclesfield, Cheshire, UK

55"W x 60"L

Silk whole-cloth double-sided quilt; hand and machine stitched, direct and reverse applique, fused, slashed, knotted.

I wasn't able in engage Elizabeth in a lengthy conversation about her techniques, but as I recall the little diagonal lines on the colorful side are slits, while those on the B&W side are hand stitches. There are two tree shapes that are aligned diagonally on each side. This is just the kind of quilt that fascinates me - the more one looks the more one sees.

I appreciate Elizabeth's statement, it seems so apt for her work. "Landscape is where I live, what I look at, what I draw, and what I stitch. My subject is marks made on the land by planting, plowing, and harvesting. Through my hands I have a story to tell, and this connects me to other times, places and cultures." http://www.quiltart.org.uk/elizabethbrimelo.html

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"Structured Chaos #14" with the artist Beth Carney - Yonkers, NY - 2006

64"W x 53"L Cotton fabric; gradation and low-immersion dyed, machine pieced and quilted.

http://www.bethcarneystudio.com/gallery.htm

If you have seen this quilt in the Quilt National 2007 book, you have almost seen a completely different quilt - the color in the book is waaay off. The problem has to do with the pigments used, they are different for dyeing, printing and photographing. We used to use Ecktachome film for blue-violet objects because the color was more true. I imagine that if the picture above was printed in a book the blue-violet would come out red-violet, as in the book. Guess the moral would be that if you make a quilt in these colors, don't expect it to print in true color!
Beth was charming and so excited that her quilt sold so quickly, but perhaps not as excited as her friends who seemed almost delirious. If I were ever to be in her position I would hope my friends would be as supportive. It was an exciting weekend.

The quilt is very closely machine quilted with vertical lines which have just enough variation to create a texture and movement on the back of the quilt. The hand dyed fabric on both sides adds much to my enjoyment of this piece.