Fun Friday

I was looking forward to getting out of the studio with a couple of the Quiltinis to visit the quilt exhibit at The Wayne Art Center, which is about 15 minutes from my house. This is a juried exhibit that is one of the premier quilt exhibits in the country. Anyone that still has the notion that quilts are made by Grandmas to be slept under, will be surprised. These quilts are works of art and definitely worth the trip.

Some years there is usually one quilt that we will say WTF? This year is was a 3-D full size oil drum type barrel created by a woman who usually makes the most gorgeous quilts. I did have several favorites and always love the hand stitching. One of my favorites was a quilt by Kathleen Loomis. She will be a speaker at my quilt guild, Calico Cutters, this October.

Unfortunately, no photos are allowed of the quilts. Thus always annoys me, because it us not to preserve the quilts. This ban on photography is purely mercenary. They want you to buy their catalog. Someone should enlighten them that sharing is a good thing and more people will come to see the quilts in person when they get a sneak oeek. Anyway, I'll get off my soapbox. Here's the link where you can see some of the quilts. www. Artquiltelements.org. The exhibit runs through April 30 and is worth the trip.

BUT, there was an exhibit of Teen Art in the public areas from local schools. I am often amazed by the talent.

This piece was behind the information desk.

 

This is what it looked like when you get a closer look.

Ca

Can you see the bits that make up this piece? How about closer?

And the expressive eyes?

 

The artist

 

 

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Art Quilt Elements

A visit to the Wayne Art Center to see some wonderful quilts that you would never put on your bed. It's a local art center located in a suburb of Philadelphia and has become the centerpiece of FiberPhilly. The quilts are beautifully displayed in 2 galleries.

I apologize for not knowing all of the artists' names.

Kathy York

This really caught my eye. I couldn't take my eyes off of it.

 

Close Up

 

 

Diane Savona

Hollis Chatelaine. Made from jeans. For those of us that know her art, it was a bit of a shock.

Kristin La Flamme

There was a direct view if this quilt from the doorway as you entered the room. It was eye catching. It grew on me and it became one of my favorites.

Betty Busby. "Dendrites"

Close up.

 

 

 

 

Close Up

Marianne Burr

Close Up.

One of the overall trends was the amount of hand stitching. It was not the hand quilting of the past. It was bold and big and had a purpose other than to hold the 3 layers together. I love hand stitching and I really think it connects the quilter with the art.

 

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Art Quilt Elements

The Wayne Art Center located in Wayne, PA is home to  a wonderful biennial art quilt show.  I am so fortunate that it is a 15 minute drive from my house.  The name of the show is Art Quilt Elements and it draws entries from the top quilt artists from all over the world.  The show is divided between 2 galleries and you just hold your breath as you enter each one with the anticipation of what you are going to see.

The show did not disappoint.  Many of the works were cutting edge and exciting.  Two trends were the use of sheers and hand stitching.  Hand stitching may appear to be an oxymoron used in the same sentence as art quilts, but the integration was seamless. They did not look like your grandmother's traditional quilts.

There were some pieces that did not seem to merit being in such a prestigious show.  But there are always questions about the judging process and how quilts are chosen.  One in particular was sooooo very questionable.  You must come to the show to see for yourself.

No photography was allowed in either of the galleries.  But if you head to The Textile Blog, by John Hopper, you will get to see some photos that he had permission to show and an overview of the show.  Art Quilt Elements will be there until May19th.

 AND, if you love to walk, there is a rail trail, The Radnor Trail that you can hop on from the parking lot of the Art Center to take a beautiful 4 mile spring walk and digest  the future of the art quilt.