Aullwood 2011: Maude Haeger and Joan Hershey Traditonal but not

Maude Haeger "Lake Michigan Memories All Day Long".

2 panels total size 56" x 54" $2,000

Maude Haeger is someone I've had the pleasure of "meeting" through the Quiltart message board.  I had hoped to meet her in person in June since she's from West Chester, but that didn't work out.  Maude's piece "Lake Michigan Memories All Day Long" is loosely based on traditional patterns.  If you look closely, you can see the log cabin block and of course the New York Beauty.

Here's the text of Maude's statement:

"Lake Michigan is my favorite body of water.  I have been going to the Lake since I was a child.  Growing up in Urbana, Illinois,  it was a big treat to go to my grandfather's farm in Indiana, pile into the car with my cousins and go off to Three Oaks, Michigan and the Warren Dunes.  We would stop at Drier's Meat Market and get bologna for sandwiches and then go off to the Dunes.  We were there from sunrise to sunset and it was wonderful.  Later, I introduced my husband to the wonders of Lake Michigan and then we shared it with our children.  By then we would camp up on Holland, Michigan and again get to stay all day and and swim and sun and just enjoy the water.

This piece is actually a part of the "Thinking Outside the Box" series I have been working on for the past year in which there are central motifs framed with color using the log cabin pattern.  Being at the Lake helps one "Think Outside the Box"  and we need to "Think Outside the Box" in order to preserve this wonderful water heritage."

Having grown up in Michigan and spent a fair amount of time at the beach in South Haven, I have to agree with Maude.  In fact, this section of quilt reminds me of the sun setting on the water and the sparkly diamonds it makes.

You can see in this detail as well as the above how Maude heavily quilts her pieces.  You can see more of Maude's work on her website.

One thing which was bothersome about the installation was that they separated the two pieces.  I understand the need to do so because of the balance of the space, but the section on the right has no label to indicate that it is Maude's and that it is a diptych.  Only the left side has a label.  I also understand that it would make the label too low for easy viewing, but to my mind, even though it would be 4" below the lowest to the right, it should have been done.

Joan Hershey "Dangerous Waves",  29" x 31" $524.00

Another quilt based on the log cabin pattern is Joan Hershey's "Dancing Waters."  The colors and textures are just wonderful. It makes you want to invest is a surf board, doesn't it?

I don't really think it needs any explanation.  I also think it is great that she used commercially printed batiks.  Sometimes I think we get really wound up in dyeing our own....which is fine, especially when you can't find the right shade or color...but when commercially printed material is out there readily...then it is great to use that.  I don't think we should shun one over the other, except of course if you have concerns about the environment and want to ensure that the method used in dyeing is environmentally friendly.

Joan Hershey, Dangerous Waves detail.

Cool quilting job, No?