3rd Annual FABRICATIONS: The Art of Quilting Show

Along with two other Fiberexplorations members (Deb and Erika), I was thrilled to learn that one of my quilts was accepted into the juried Fabrications: The Art of Quilting show in Bend, Ore.  This Friday evening, March 7, is the artists' reception  from 5-7 pm, coinciding with Bend's First Friday activities. This show is sponsored by the Sisters Outdoor Quilt Show (SOQS).

Here are the quilts that are in the show:

Erika's "Industrial Nature"

"Industrial Nature," detail.

"Passion Flower" by Deb.

Deb's "The Voice"

"Blue Note" by Joanna

"Blue Note" detail

There will be complimentary wine and refreshments at the reception, so please stop by if you're able.  Otherwise, you can catch the show through the end of March.  The venue is Franklin Crossing, on the corner of Bond & Franklin in downtown Bend.

Sisters Outdoor Quilt Show 2013

I thoroughly enjoyed this year's quilt show in Sisters.  The weather was perfect (not as hot as it usually is) and all the quilts I wanted to see were close together, within 2-3 blocks of where I was staying.  Where was that?  Just two blocks from the Stitchin' Post!  My son's girlfriend, Brandi, offered her apartment, so my daughter and I stayed there for two nights.  The 2nd night, Brandi went out of town to visit a friend, and since she needed someone to bunny-sit her rabbit, E.B., we were able to do that for her.  But I digress . . .

I met Fiberexplorations friends Torrie and Deb on Sat. morning and we started the show with a special exhibit from the Portland book and quilt group, Cover to Cover.  Their theme this year was from the book The Invention of Hugo Cabret.  Here are three of those quilts:

"Connectivity" by Dianne Kane, Camas WA.

I'm glad I caught Dianne's quilt in the morning with the sun coming through it.  Isn't that beautiful?
And the next one features circular motifs attached together with real gears.
[9/16/13 UPDATE:  Thanks to Dianne Kane for providing more info on these three quilts!]

"Suspended in Time" by Dianne Kane, Camas WA.

And one of my favorite quilts from the show . . .

by Judith Phelps, Battle Ground WA

You may have missed why the above quilt is so spectacular.  Go back and click on it a few times to enlarge it.  Do you see it now?  All of the scenes are ENTIRELY thread-painted!  No markers, pens, pencils, paints, dyes, etc. were used, not even on the shading.  It's done entirely with threads ranging from white, plus many shades of gray, to black.  Simply amazing!

Next, in the outdoor courtyard/deli of Clearwater Gallery, we saw quilts made by students of Jean Wells, using her improvisational style of quiltmaking, inlcuding pieces from two Fiberexplorations' members:

"Under the Canopy of Autumn" by Deb Sorem.

and this one by Erika Close (title to be added).

At that time of the morning, a layer of shadows fell across these quilts from the trellis above.  When I returned later in the afternoon to re-photograph them,  the sun was behind the fence they were hung on, putting them in complete shade.  Oh well, just IMAGINE that their colors were more vibrant!  For example, here's a detail shot of Erika's taken in the morning, in a section where the trellis shadow didn't fall:

Detail of Erika's quilt.

On the other side of Clearwater Gallery, just after we ran into Erika, we found our Fiberexplorations' challenge quilt. 

Fiberexplorations "Painted Canvas" challenge quilt (with morning shadows!)

The four of us posed  for a photo, not realizing that we stood in the same order as our quilts, all four of which just happened to be in the middle row!

L to R: Torrie, Joanna (me), and Erika, Deb

The quilt show organizers thoughtfully arranged another quilt by Deb to hang next to our group's challenge quilt.  As Deb explained previously, "I took my granddaughters' names and worked them into kaleidoscopes. The traditional Grandmother's Flower Garden pattern was a favorite of mine, and my mother made one for me as a wedding present.  I repeated the shape of the hexagons in this contemporary version."

"Grandmother's Secret Flower Garden" by Deb Sorem.

To see it in more detail, click on this link for the Dec. 2, 2012 post about this quilt.

Thanks for visiting!  Comments are ALWAYS appreciated.

Unveiling the "Painted Canvas (AKA 'Name That Challenge') Challenge"

The Fiberexplorations group met earlier this month and everyone brought their quilts for the Painted Canvas Challenge.  Back in February, we got together and painted a large piece of canvas (cotton duck), which was later cut into a grid (4 across and 3 down). That's 12 sections, one for each member.

The challenge was for each of us to create a quilt, 18" x 24", that used at least 48 square inches of the painted canvas. Later, we'll temporarily stitch these 12 smaller quilts into one large 72" x 72" piece that can be entered into shows as a "group" quilt.

For the unveiling, we arranged our individual quilts on the floor, according to the original grid.  (For example, I had the piece of painted canvas from position #9 on the grid, so my quilt was placed in that position on the floor.)  One person missed the meeting, hence the "hole" in position #4.

The Painted Canvas Challenge

I'm always amazed at the wide range of design styles and the individual ways a challenge is interpreted, and this one was no exception!   In some of the quilts, the painted canvas pieces blend so well into the quilt's design that it requires closer inspection to find them.  We wondered if a viewer could figure out what the challenge was (or find the common theme) if we didn't provide that info.  With that in mind, I suggested that we rename this the "Name That Challenge" Challenge quilt.

Standing above these quilts in the fading light, I tried to photograph them, but wasn't very successful.  This shot of Chris' and Maureen's quilts was the only salvageable one:

On left: Chris's piece.  One right:  Maureen's piece.

Look for the "Name That Challenge" Challenge Quilt at this summer's Sisters Outdoor Quilt Show on Sat., July 13.

Special Exhibit, 2012 Sisters Outdoor Quilt Show

The Sisters Outdoor Quilt Show 2012 . . . the largest 

outdoor quilt show in the world.

Photos of our Fiberexplorations' Fabric Swatch Challenge Special Exhibit:

Crowds gather for an up-close look at our quilts.

by Maureen Erhardt

by Joanna Price

by Erika Close

by Lisa Encabo

by Kathleen Nesvik

by Torrie Gordon

by Chris Deibel

Leaf detail:  hand applique, white cotton velvet, threadpainting

by Deb Sorem

Kathleen amazed us all with her beautifully-executed confetti-style landscape.  Can you believe she's only been sewing for a year or two?  In this piece, it's obvious that she has a background in art, but it also gave her more confidence in her sewing skills -- she said she finally "became friends with her BSR" (Bernina Stitch Regulator).  No wonder Kathleen's smiling like a proud parent; she's definitely earned it!

Kathleen and her masterpiece!

[Thanks to Lisa Encabo for the above photos.]

For the first time in its 37-year history, the show had to close "significantly early" (2:30 pm) because of an approaching thunderstorm.  As soon as the call was made, visitors rushed to help the quilt show volunteers with taking down 1,400 quilts.

Thunder in the distance . . . down came our quilts!

10 min. later . . . torrential rain, and no quilts in sight.

The Three Sisters, after the storm.

Rainstorm moving across the high desert.

Lisa took these final 2 photos while driving 

from Sisters to Bend, after the show. 

I'm so proud of our group!  These quilts all originated from the fabric swatches we created and exchanged earlier this year, based on the color palette of the 2012 Sisters Outdoor Quilt Show poster by Kathy Deggendorfer.  We each started with the same group of 9" fabric swatches and finished with these unique art quilts.  Where to from here?

Deb's "Small Wonder" quilt

Two of our members, Torrie and Deb,  have submitted quilts for the Small Wonders Challenge.  Here's Deb's entry: 

"Sister's Temptations" by Deb Sorem

The Small Wonders Challenge and fundraiser is one of the highlights of the Sisters Outdoor Quilt Show (SOQS).  This is a judged contest (with prizes), and all donated quilts have to be of an original design.  Last year, over 80 entries were received, raising $1,100 for a local charity.

While I don't have a photo of Torrie's entry right now, I'll try to get one, as well as photos of other members' projects.   I just need to keep asking for them!