Innholdsfortegnelse for April/May 2020 i Quilting Arts Magazine

MASTERFUL ARTISTS—FROM PAINTERS TO POTTERS—have always looked to classic forms and subjects for inspiration. Art quilters are no different. Who doesn’t remember seeing a portrait quilt for the very first time and marveling at a human face rendered in fabric and thread? Can you walk by a quilt depicting a landscape with exquisite perspective and not marvel at the shading achieved with hand-dyed cloth or the appearance of rain made with rows of running stitch? Probably not—because you see the quilt with an appreciation for the work as a piece of art. What we do with cloth, others do with clay, stone, pencil, and paint. In this issue, we feature art quilts that interpret subjects often portrayed in paintings—landscapes, portraits, and still lifes—with a contemporary twist. What was the inspiration…

here’s a challenge many art quilters would enjoy: What would you do if you were approached by a fabric company and asked to collaborate on a project—a really cool project—creating artwork in the style of a living artist that would be used for promotional purposes? Would you say yes? That’s exactly the scenario that led to Laurie Russman’s quilts “Twilight” and “Sunset.” You’ll agree, I’m sure, that they are beautiful interpretations in fabric and thread of the artist Grant Haffner’s paintings. These quilts hung in the Windham Fabrics booth at Quilt Market and are being used to promote a new line of fabric based on Haffner’s work. Laurie created the artwork in her usual style, fusing mountains of batiks with Mistyfuse® and designing the actual pattern for the quilts on…

I recently received a call from a local tattoo artist who was looking for someone to create Masonic Lodge-type satin banners for upcoming tattoo conventions for him and a co-worker. Although I’d never done anything like that before, I have an adventurous soul and will typically try anything once. They gave me their conceptual drawings and I quickly realized that the 3’x6’ size that they envisioned was going to be too much for my regular embroidery machine (with a maximum hoop size of 10”x10”). A light bulb went off, and suddenly I had a great reason to add the Grand Format Embroidery module to my line-up! I was able to digitize their drawings, create cut files for the different colors of fabrics and the GFE appliquéd them beautifully! The GFE…

To celebrate new beginnings and fresh starts, Quilting Daily—the parent brand of Quilting Arts and our sister magazines—announces our first-ever quilt competition, Pieces of the Past, which will embrace all styles of quilts and quilt makers. There are many prizes, including an appearance on “Quilting Arts TV” for the first-place winner! Check out quiltingdaily.com/quilt-competitions for details on entering, deadlines, prize packages, and more. We asked our Facebook friends to tell us what (non-fiber) artists inspire their work and why. We learned so much and discovered new-to-us artists. Thank you! Here are some of their insights. I admire a multitude of artists and styles, but I think I am most inspired by Van Gogh, as I feel I can see hand embroidery in his brush strokes, and Klimt—as in ‘The Kiss’—which…

i love to design portrait quilts! Sometimes my quilts are very methodical and the raw-edged fused appliqué pieces fit together like a puzzle. The following technique, however, creates a whimsical portrait quilt with negative space to play in. It requires the artist to be spontaneous and not overthink the results. The goal is to pick and choose the facial and body elements from a variety of designs and literally ‘make a face’ using those components. With each variation in hair, facial features, and neckline, a different portrait appears—just like real people! DIRECTIONS Start with a drawing 1. Create a line drawing of a face, then add shoulders and a neckline. If you draw on paper, you can use the drawing as a pattern. The idea is to play and be…

at QUILTING ARTS, we celebrate contemporary art quilting, surface design, mixed media, fiber art trends, and more. We are always looking for new techniques, innovative processes, and creative approaches to the art of quilting. We’d love to hear from you! What are we looking for? • Artists with inspiring portfolios of work to be featured in our In The Spotlight, Artist Profile, Open Studio, and Q&A articles. Show us your work and tell us your story.• Unique techniques, new ways to use existing tools and supplies, and ideas we’ve never featured before.• Projects and techniques featuring mixed-media, collage, and fabric book art. How to submit • Write a brief description of your idea and email it to qasubmissions@goldenpeakmedia.com. Your submission should give us an overview of what you are proposing…

as artists, we often hear horror stories about quilt designs being used without the maker’s permission. From designs being used on other products to direct copies of their work without any attribution at all, artists have a tough time keeping their work in the public eye while fighting theft and improper use. Add to this the confusing landscape of intellectual property (IP) law, it’s no wonder quilt artists feel frustrated when something goes amiss. Dr. Elizabeth Townsend Gard, a professor of intellectual property law at Tulane University School of Law, has been working to educate quilters about copyright laws. Her podcast Just Wanna Quilt serves up “a little bit of copyright” while interviewing guests. Partnering with Tulane University School of Law, she is now publishing a series of books for…

Lynn Krawczyk is a textile and paper collagist living in southeast Michigan with her rescue dog Carter and an unreasonable number of houseplants. Her work revolves around the glorious tension created by layering imagery, color, and hand stitching. She is the author of three books, most recently HAND SEWING MAGIC. lynnkdesignstudio.com Lea McComas is an international award-winning artist, author, and teacher who creates realistic pictorial art quilts. Her work has been featured in numerous publications and venues. She lives in the mountains of Colorado, but lectures and teaches around the world and on line at quiltingdaily.com. Lea is the author of THREAD-PAINTED PORTRAITS: TURN YOUR PHOTOS INTO FIBER ART. leamccomas.com Pam Seaberg is an avid gardener and lives with her husband Jim and two orange cats in Kenmore, Washington. Her…

THE ULTIMATE THREAD GUIDE: EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW TO CHOOSE THE PERFECT THREAD FOR EVERY PROJECT BECKY GOLDSMITH Finally, a comprehensive guide for one of the most overlooked materials used in quilting. Becky Goldsmith not only examines the background of the thread-making process, but brilliantly explains how—and why—each type of thread is unique and can be used to its best advantage. Full of hard-to-find information and easy reference charts, you’ll pull this book from your shelves more often than most. “After much research, I am happy to report that cotton, polyester, silk, wool, and other synthetic threads are all good when used properly. Once you understand the differences between the fibers, choosing the best thread for the job is a lot easier.” $14.95 • C+T Publishing • ctpub.com CYPRESS…

sometimes you have an experience that stands out like a beacon in a sea of experiences; the day that inspired this quilt was one of those days. My husband and I went on a hike called the ‘Sea to Sky Trail’ above the Northern California coast. The trail has a 3,600-foot elevation change in the 7½ miles up and then, of course, 7½ miles back down again. The hike took us 7 hours; it was beautiful, challenging, exhausting, and inspirational. It began as a gorgeous clear day on the Sonoma Coast in early July. The trailhead is on a bluff above the Pacific Ocean north of Jenner. A thin layer of fog rose above the beach. The call of sea gulls and the crashing waves mixed with the rhythm of…

I DON’T EVER RECALL A TIME WHEN I DIDN’T HAVE A NEEDLE IN MY HAND. Some of my earliest memories are sitting with my grandmother while she was sewing on her treadle. It was mesmerizing watching the needle going through the fabric making stitches. My grandmother died when I was 12 but not before teaching me to cross stitch on gingham, crochet, and knit. In seventh grade, I took home economics and loved every minute of it. My dad realized how much I loved the sewing part of home economics and took me to a shop to buy my first sewing machine. The sewing machine was an aqua portable Singer®, which still sits proudly on a shelf in my studio. With that first machine, I began making my clothes and…