Exhibit of Quilts

My friend Gracie and I spent a pleasant hour viewing the quilts on exhibition at the Fine Arts building of the local college.  All were made by Denise Stewart, an area quilter. http://www.askaccessible.com/pvqc/instructor.html

The small gallery is an interesting space, light and airy, with architectual 'dividers' which create nooks and alcoves, so that the works on display can be 'discovered' rather than being all visible at once.

The first group of small quilts were made with Asian-themed fabrics--beautiful colors and patterns that are reminiscent of chinoiserie

.

This was a striking piece but too bold for my taste.

The pattern is made up of 'pyramid' shapes with a dark sashing.

Gracie and I both loved this French Braid quilt with its shades of purple in a 'colorwash' effect.

Detail of the chevron piecing and the lovely border fabric in a berry/bramble motif.

This quilt is a variation of the Ohio Star pattern with a pieced sashing that creates a secondary design.

I would find this too vivid for a bed covering--but it draws the eye busily around the

intersections of the pattern.

Close up of Ohio Star detail.

The piece de resistance was an appliqued sampler quilt.

My camera didn't fully capture the dimensional effects. There are pleats in the basket fabric and the flowers are gathered with yo-yo centers.

 

A block at the top of the sampler quilt--I had to hold my camera at an upward slant.



The 'berries' on this wreath are gathered 'yo-yo's.'

Beautiful blooms.

An Ocean Waves quilt. The effect of movement in this piece was so well defined that Gracie declared she felt seasick!  Denise made a miniature in this pattern with the same fabrics--Gracie found that one much less disturbing.

This wall hanging has the radiating effect of a starburst.

When piecing something like this in segments I would have to be very careful with my color layout.

Gracie and I were very drawn to this quiet quilt--bare trees on a snowy ground and three cardinals [the Kentucky state bird!] strategically placed.

Close-up of the machine appliqued cardinal and the machine stippled quilting.

This quilt had a flannel backing in a black and white motif.

Lacy 'doilies' set into the pieced blocks of this classic Valentine.

A Labyrinth.

Gracie and I found this one rather brooding: think cement block structures, dark tunnels and hidey-holes. Again, although this was not a difficult pattern the placement of light and dark materials is key.

An example of fused applique

"We Three Kings."

A smaller Labyrinth design.

The flowers are pieced very simply, although from a distance they appear to have been appliqued.

The border is composed of navy and white triangle squares 'floated' on an outer navy border.

Interestingly, it seemed that no batting had been used in these quilts--perhaps because most were intended as display pieces rather than warm bed covers.

I'm glad that we treated ourselves to this outing and hope that those of you who enjoy quilts or other crafts will be inspired by the photos.