A Quick Studio Update + Kathy Loomis Art Quilt Class

First, a studio update....the floor was put down this past week. I'm really happy with it. It looks nice, has a little cushion, and should be easy to clean. My son-in-law who will be doing the finishing work has gone back to work full time (and is actually working some overtime now). It looks like the studio might not be finished till after the first of the year. Oh well...I'm thinking I will love it whenever it gets finished. Here is the latest picture.I had the opportunity, along with a couple of my friends, to take an art quilt class (offered through LAFTA--Louisville Area Fiber and Textile Artists--for its members) with Kathy Loomis this past weekend in Louisville at the Fiber Arts Studio of U of L. I learned a lot in the class (even though I didn't get nearly enough finished on my piece). The class was only a four-hour class with some time spent discussing and critiquing. Here is Kathy...
She brought all the fabric we would need to begin an art quilt of our own design. She told us we could work from a sketch or from intuitive stitching (sewing and seeing where it takes us). The sketches were very small--about 2" square. We had our choice of any of the fabrics she brought.

I drew this little sketch. It is the pictoral version of a reoccurring dream I've had for quite some time. When (and if) I get it finished, I'll explain more about the meaning behind the quilt.

From this sketch, Kathy helped me find a way to execute the design. All of the quilt will be pieced except for the circles (which will be hand appliqued). When I got home, I drew out the design to size (larger than my beginning in this class) and figured out how I will piece it together. Now, all I have to do is find time to work on it.
My friends, Robin and Jane, also worked on quilts of their own. Robin was the overachiever in the class. She was the only one who had a finished quilt top by the end of class!
Other members in the class were busy working on their pieces in the class.I'd like to thank Kathy for generously giving her time (and fabric) for this class.

Retreat Show & Tell and a Short Quilting Studio Update

Show and Tell was a big hit at the retreat last weekend. I thought you might enjoy seeing some of the projects the ladies were working on. I wasn't quick enough with my camera, so I didn't get a picture of everything. I also didn't think ahead enough to get everyone's name or the name of their project; I apologize. I'll try to do better next time. I would like to share the pictures I did get, though. There were quilted projects of every size and kind.

These first quilts are called Hawaiian Star quilts. They were made after taking a class taught by Lora Nale. Each quilt was made with the same pattern, but the colors and color placement made each quilt look unique.

This quilt was made by a purple lover (or for a purple lover).Diana Dearing showed this black, white, and red quilt.This quilt was made from scraps from some of the "ugly" fabric included in grab bags at the retreat last year. It was made by Mary Jane Parvey.This quilt was made by Diana Prechtel. It is totally hand quilted.This is a Dear Jane quilt. What an accomplishment!This is a bit of an English Paper piecing project.This is a Valentine's Day quilt.It was lots of fun to see what everyone was working on. Show and Tell is always a big highlight of the retreat.

Now...an update on my quilting studio. The flooring people came yesterday and are working again today. The flooring is going down! I'm hoping it won't be too long until the rest of the work is finished; however, my son-in-law who is doing the work has been called back to work full time. Finishing may be slow going.

Weekend Retreat

This past weekend I attended a three-day quilting retreat put on by Lora Nale. We had a great time and got a lot of talking, quilting, and eating done. The food table was decorated for Halloween. We were treated with goodies such as candy, cookies, nuts, mints, and carmel corn.The sewing room was set up with an entire table per person--no sharing. As you can see, we certainly needed the room. We also had the opportunity to purchase items from The Village Mercantile (Boonville, IN). Check out the wall display and quilting wares on the table--what a nice variety of items. Most everyone found an item or two they just "had" to have. If you didn't know, quilters can be a "dangerous" bunch if threatened. There was some talk about a beau treating one of our quilting friends right or else! Lookout for women wielding rotary cutters! (I told these "ladies" that they needed to look a little more "fierce" to scare anyone!)
Show and Tell was a big highlight of the retreat. I'll post pics of that in my next installment.

In Search of Art in Santa Fe

I spent the day today in Santa Fe going to art museums. I really wanted to see some fiber art, but didn't really find any in the museums I found. My friend, Dana, said I should call these last few days "Beth's Great Adventure." I've been on "dirt" roads and in bumper-to-bumper traffic going 75-80 mph--now, that was a little scary! Thankfully, I have a GPS to keep me on track. The hardest thing I had to do today was find where I had parked the car in Santa Fe.


First, I went to "Museum Hill." I asked about fiber art displays but none were available. I ended up going to the Museum of International Folk Art. I love the Folk Art Museum in New York, so I was thinking this was something I would really like.....I was wrong! One entire wing was closed (no reduction in the price of admittance). There was an exhibit of Indonesian Shadow Puppet Art. I can appreciate the work involved in making one of these, but it just isn't my "cup of tea." I moved on to the Girard Wing of the museum which houses a collection of over 100,000 objects in scenes recalling villages, markets and festivals. I'm thinking this Girard fellow was on the verge of being a "hoarder." I can't imagine housing all this stuff before it was given to the museum.


Next, I went to the Georgia O'Keeffe museum. Now, that was more like it! They have a great exhibit called "New Mexico and New York: Photographs of Georgia O'Keeffe" which features approximately thirty photographs of Ms. O'Keeffe dating from 1917 through the 1960s. I really enjoyed this exhibit. It will be at the museum till January 10, 2010. I also enjoyed her abstract work on display. I wanted to buy the book Georgia O'Keeffe: Abstraction (Whitney Museum of American Art) by Barbara Haskell, E. Bruce Robertson, Ms. Elizabeth Hutton Turner, and Director Barbara Buhler Lynes that just came out in September of this year, but it was a hardcover and way too expensive and too heavy to take home on the plane. I'll be checking into it on Amazon later.


I had some time left before I had to head back to Albuquerque, so I began to walk. I ended up at the Museum of Contemporary Native Arts. Now, here is where I saw some strange stuff. A pile of crude wooden airplanes piled up in the middle of the floor was the first piece I saw. Next, I came to a mosquito net held off the floor with fish hooks. I went into a room that was empty except for two video monitors. Each was playing a different perception of a scene--two people were running through the snow (supposedly from some unknown intruder of some kind); the man in the scene is killed, and the woman freezes to death (I think.). Another exhibit had a screen showing a woman's naked back as she is on her side. Her back has a HUGE cut running from her right shoulder to her left hip. The cut was stitched shut, and there were strings of red beads hanging from the stitches. Ooooooo--at least I'm broadening my art horizons.

I did take a few photographs to use as inspiration for art quilts while I was out and about today. I'm anxious to get home and download them to the computer to see what I have. If I have any good ones, I'll share them.

On the Trail of Fiber Art

Today, I went back to Madrid, NM, to check out Johnsons of Madrid Galleries of Fine & Fiber Art. Diana & Mel Johnson have been in Madrid since the '70s--the beginning of the ghost town's rebirth as an arts community. I had a chance to talk to both of them--what a treat! Mel was working on a painting as he told me about his work at the Chicago Institute of Art. Diana told me stories of many of the fiber pieces on display. The fiber pieces include clothing, quilted pieces, painted silk, and weaving. In their gallery (a former coal truck repair garage from Madrid's coal-mining heyday) you can find the works of over 50 northern New Mexico fiber artists. I particularly enjoyed the work of Deidre Adams a quilt artist who heavily quilts her fabric first and then paints on this quilted "canvas." You can check out her work on her website. Diana said I should also check out the Tapestry Gallery (also in Madrid), so I did. Don't miss the Johnson's gallery if you are interested in seeing some fine fiber art.

If you are into yarn, you will enjoy a visit to the Tapestry Gallery which features the work of 30 New Mexico fiber artists. Hand-dyed yarn is available for purchase. They have hand-woven chenille clothing--sweaters, shawls, wraps and vests; rag rugs; artist dolls; woven copper pieces; woven tapestries, knitted hats, and poplar wall pockets. I'm not big into the "yarn" thing, but I did enjoy checking out this gallery.

My last stop of the day was at The Quilt Works, Inc. quilt shop in Albuquerque. The ladies at this shop were very nice. There is a good selection of fabrics, samples, notions, and books. The classroom area has some beautiful samples of what can be made in upcoming classes. Be sure to stop in if you are in the Albuquerque area.

I found out today that New Mexico has a Fiber Arts Trail. The governor of New Mexico, Bill Richardson, says, "We want you to experience fiber arts from "sheep to shawl" in New Mexico through these Arts Trails." The Trail consists of the work of more than 200 New Mexico fiber artists at 71 destinations along the trails. I'm not going to have time to check it out this time; but if you get the chance, it would be a great way to spend a vacation!

On Vacation--Looking for Art Quilt Inspiration

I've been visiting Albuquerque, NM, for the last couple of days. We were here for the last days of the Balloon Fiesta, but the festivities were cancelled yesterday because of wind. This morning we could see 12 balloons from our hotel window--beautiful. I'm not sure we would have actually gone in to the launch location anyway. The news last night said there were between 800,000 and 850,000 visitors here to see it. The traffic was backed up on the Interstate for 7 miles.

Yesterday, we drove the Turquoise Trail from Albuquerque to Santa Fe. We passed through the little town of Madrid (where Wild Hogs was filmed). It is a really artsy place--my kind of town. There are lots of little shops, interesting people, good food, and art everywhere. I'm heading back myself (so my husband doesn't have to "suffer" through all the shops). I'm also heading back to Santa Fe so I can "do" the galleries and the Georgia O'Keeffe museum. I'll be checking out Old Town in Albuquerque today.

I am taking some "art quilt inspiration" photos while I'm here. I got some of red chili peppers yesterday along with an interesting sculpture. I'm also going to see if there are any quilt shops in the area. Anybody know of any I should check out while I'm here?