Thursday, November 11, 2010

A Subjective Selection of Quilts from Houston 2010

On my third trip walking through the exhibit at Festival, I took pictures of some of the quilts that really grabbed me. It's a pretty eclectic mix. I'll post them so you can see....Click on the pictures to make them bigger.

Legendary Ladies & Fabulous Fans
Barbara Warner

Legendary Ladies, detail

Barbara cut out this lace feather and used it as a motif....great, isn't that? Neat that the cross stitch was pieced in there, too.

Om Ma
Teresa May

I love how she covered this with a mantra. Here is her artist's statement about that:

A very beautiful sentiment....


Cabbage Patch
Sandra Werlich

Cabbage Patch, detail

As a vegetable grower, I found this quilt irresistible.

The White Garden
Akiko Kawata

ItalicSpring
Eun Ryoung Choi

A Symphony of Love
Kiyoko Ishihara

Icing on the Cake
Linda Roy

Icing on the Cake, detail

I wish my photography was better...sorry, folks! What I want to show here is how Linda embroidered over some of her quilting lines with perle cotton. I've never seen this done before and I really like it.

Orphan Blossoms
Timna Tarr

Fashion in Motion
Diane M. Dempsey

The Girls of Tyrone Farm
Beth Miller

As a former dairy farmer, I can really appreciate the way Beth captured these Jersey Girls. Their dehorning job wasn't so good though... ;-)

After the Rain
Dianne Firth

Paisley Peacock
Pat Holly

This was a major award winner, for Machine Artistry. I like how Pat used trim for the binding and that embroidered rick rack in an inner border. I saw her in a vendor's booth buying some jacquard ribbon, too...nice to see those elements in a mainstream show quilt.

Paisley Peacock, detail

She definitely has achieved mastery of her machine!

Kirara's Walking Road in the Wood
Ayako Kawakami

This was in the "Made by Hand" category, which was entirely filled by Japanese women. Their utter commitment to their craft felt like a blow to the chest to me.

Kirara's Walking Road in the Wood, detail


Glory of Ancient Remains
Hiroka Goda

Glory of Ancient Remains, detail

This is also in the Made by Hand category.


For a look at all the winners, click here.

My overall take on this year's competitive show was that there was less emphasis on art quilts and more on tradition and excellent craftsmanship. And I must confess this was a welcome change for me.

My next post will show some of the antique quilts I snapped photos of in the vendor's area, or details of them. They are the ones that rock my world these days...not a function of my age, I hope!!









14 comments :

Possibilities, Etc. said...

These are totally stunning! Thanks for sharing - I'd never be able to tear myself away and go home.

Kristin L said...

I liked Ohm Ma too, and I've been a longtime fan of Diane Firth's simplicity.

Kay said...

These are wonderful, and refreshing somehow. Thank you for sharing them.

shirley said...

Yes thabnk you for sharing these pictures of the wonderful quilts. You must have been in quilt heaven.

Lisa Boni said...

Fabulous! Those last two are especially stunning! Thanks so much for sharing these with us!

Judy S. said...

Thanks for sharing these beauties, Allie, and congrats on your ribbon!

Marty52 said...

I love the made by hand quilts... definitely alot of dedication! Thanks so much for your take on the show... you must have had a grand time!

Connie Eyberg Originals said...

Thanks for sharing! It's so inspirational to see all of these. Quilting has come a long way. The creativity that goes into them is very impressive! Connie

Debra Dixon said...

The article in the Houston Chronicle the weekend of the show also stated that the show was much more traditional than past years (and I think more friendly because of it).

Barbara C said...

What remarkable quilts. Thanks for sharing your impressions of the show.

Margaret said...

Hi Allie! Thanks for sharing your Houston Experience...all those magnificent quilts -- and yours is no exception. Congratulations on your ribbon! (In the photo you're looking a tad weary, though...It's a pretty overwhelming experience, isn't it?) Hugs!

Elizabeth said...

Amazing work !! Love to see it all but I must get there in person one of these years!!!

NickiLee said...

WOW! What a show! Thank you so much for sharing all these fabulous quilts and CONGRATULATIONS on your win! One of these years I'll time my visits to Houston at the right time.

Anonymous said...

Allie, thank you so much for taking a picture of Legendary Ladies. The only photo I have was taken at dusk, on a porch with a blue ceiling, in Olympia, WA the night before I had to mail it to make the deadline. Needless to say I saved your pictures. The lace in the close-up is from a godet my great aunt saved. Think it's silk. The rose is from a give-away kit that came with some of the first issues of the British needlework magazine about 1981. We lived in London then. Barbara from MO