Wednesday, 27 November 2013

Houston IQF, Gyleen X. Fitzgerald old quilts and new ones.

On a whim I decided to go to a lecture by Gyleen X. Fitzgerald.  A friend of mine is becoming a collector of old quilts and hoping to do some lectures in the future and I thought Gyleen might be some inspiration to share with Rita.
 What a motivational engaging speaker is she!  She told tales of getting "stuff" from a fellow church member and how this "stuff" along with some other "stuff" made her a collector of old quilt block, quilt tops and patterns.  Below is one of the collections of blocks she bought.  Some were as much as 1" bigger than the smallest one.  She share with us the techniques she used to fool your eye into believing they were all the same size.
 She also re-did the block in contemporary fabrics.
 Across the back were some other works by her.
 Some more of her work.
 Back to the quilt show I came across this lovely basket quilt by Janet Stone called Letter Carriers.

 I particularly liked the sheep pulling the basket cart of letters.
 At home I often photograph the flowers along the quay and pink rhododendrons and bees are often seen.  This Rhododendron by Cherri Hampton reminds me of my walks.
 Notice the delicate shading she used for the bee and it's wing.

 Visit to a Coneflower by Susan Jackan was another favourite, ironic that they were side by side on display.
 This bee is hard at work.  I like the echo quilting in the grey fabric.

 "...Tan Callando" ("At Last Beholding") by Cecilia Koppmann.
 The fabric sticks seem to fall gently to the pile below.

 Hana-bi (Flowers In The Night Sky0 by Yoshiko Kobayashi depicting fireworks exploding in a night sky.  I like how she varied the black on blacks throughout the quilt.
 A nice use of sheers to simulate the smoke streams left by the fireworks.

 Windmills-Now and Then by Vicki Conley.  I like how she used the windmill block in the background of this piece in different scales.
 A closer look at the lovely tone on tone blues.

 Night Owl by Sharon Hightower, last year I did a hoochy mama owl exchange and this guy called my name to say hoot!
 Love those almost cross-eyes.

 Avian Architecture-Myself as a Bowerbird by Judith Roderick.
 The lovely details and embellishments with buttons and yarns is gorgeous.

 Who, Me? by Ruth Powers, last year she won an award for one of her pieces, this guy is too cute.
 Great fabric choices!

 Three gulls on a sea wall by Jean Spring.  Living on the west coast I see a lot of sea gulls flying about.
 The texture of the wall is lovely, and I like how she used the hexagons sporadically.
 One looks to be landing as another readies for take off.

 Pelican Express by Phyllis Cullen.  On my first trip to Houston I went down to Galveston afterwards and watched these magnificent birds playing in the surf and fishing.
 Great colours and attitude.

 Wind by Masanobu Miyama was the Superior Threads Master Award for Thread Artistry. She had the threads looking like wind blowing across the dog's hair.

 
 Panic in the Pond by Anna Faustino utilized woven strips of fabric, fusing, painting and couched threads, machine quilted.
 The goldfish reacting to the ducks arrival.
 Peering in for a closer look.
 Lovely waterlilies.

 Moonglow Anemone 2 by Carla Stehr.  Last year her Moonglow Anemone 1 was lovely as is this second one.
 This original piece is breath taking in person, she uses sheer organza for the anemones.
 Ancient Echoes by Jan Reed.  I love this piece.
 Beautiful details.
Did you notice the face behind?

Such a peaceful setting minus our colourful friend.