Taking the Long View

Y-Bridge, Zanesville, OH from park

A great benefit of belonging to Studio Art Quilt Associates (SAQA) is the opportunity to sit and discuss art with other members.   I especially like how quite often such discussions can change the way I look at things.  When working at the SAQA booth in Cincinnati, I had the pleasure to sit and discuss some of the work we saw at Fiber Philadelphia with Sue King and Nysha Nelson.  Both Sue and I had had similar reactions to a piece on display.  We were struck by it, but for all the wrong reasons.

I didn't see any design merit in it, and saw it as merely a gimmicky piece which stayed in your mind for negative reasons (reaction, not statement).  Nysha disagreed.  He said that he first saw it from across the room, a long view of it.  What he saw was a tree-shaped piece with an interesting play of light and darks.  It was only when he got up close to it that he realized what it was made of and some of the other details which served to put me off.

I, on the other hand, had come upon it from close quarters, and I didn't see the positive elements that Nysha did.  Well worth considering.  Certainly enlightening and I came away from that discussion with the thought that I needed to see it again, through Nysha's eyes.

Later, when I was walking through the quilts on exhibition at IQF Cincinnati, I came upon an older woman who was using her reducing glass, otherwise known as a peep-hole from a door.  I exclaimed how brilliant she was to bring it along, especially in areas where you couldn't really stand back.  She grinned and said that she really can't come to appreciate the whole quilt until she views it from far and from near.  She pointed to one quilt and told me I had to look through to see the play of light and dark.  She was so right...I wouldn't have realized how superb the quilter was at giving the piece depth without borrowing her glass because I simply couldn't get far enough away from it.

One amusing thing....the white glove lady hurried over to us and said "I'm sorry, but I have to ask this...with all the new equipment, that's not a camera is it???" We laughed and said no, and the lady explained what it was used for....and the woman had a blank face...I don't think she understood.

I, however, had my dear husband buy me one on his next visit to Lowe's....and now, for all of $3.95, I too can take the long view.

Halla! International Quilt Festival Cincinnati

Sign at Duke Energy Convention Center, Cincinnati, OH

"Halla!!!" Yes, I know this isn't how you really spell it, but every time I look at this sign I smile and think of my daughter yelling "Holla!"  This is the sign for Hall A, at the Duke Energy Convention Center in Cincinnati, Ohio.  For the last two years, the International Quilt Festival has been held here, having moved from Rosemont (near Chicago).

Last year I went and worked for Iris Karp at Mistyfuse, and I did the same this year.  My intentions were good....I brought camera, iPad, laptop, cables, etc....but I found after working at the show all day, I was just too tired to blog afterwards!

Vendor set up, International Quilt Festival Cincinnati 2012

I stayed at the Millenium Hotel with a friend starting on Wed. night as she was taking a class Thursday morning.  On Thursday morning, I wend on the floor to Iris' booth to put down rubber pads I had brought from home and to bring in my stool....last year I had neither and between the pelvis fracture and the chemo drugs...I was in agony and I resolved NOT to do that this year.

If you've ever wondered what set up looked like, here it is.  I was on the upper gallery looking down onto the floor.  See the golf cart going by? It's rolling along on plastic covered carpet.  Other parts had yet to get the carpet down. In other areas, however, the carpet had been laid and the plastic partially removed.

International Quilt Festival Cincinnati 2012 vendor set up

Here's one of the vendors working as fast as possible to get out their wares.

International Quilt Festival Cincinnati, OH Vendor set up 2012

B

Quilt Display, prior to opening 4/12/12 International Quilt Festival 2012 Cinci

That plastic caused me no end of grief.  After setting up my part of the booth, I walked away and tripped on some of the plastic, because of the neuropathy in my foot, I couldn't tell where my foot was.  I thought I cleared it, but all too quickly found that I had injured my foot!  My own darn fault...one of the issues one gets with cancer treatment and I'm still learning to live with. Fortunately, it was only a sprain, but it meant that one more year I was hobbling around the place.  NOT a good thing if you want to see everything!

I love attending this show.  I worked in the SAQA booth and had some really enlightening conversations with Nysha Nelson.  There's nothing better than the opportunity to talk art with other interested people.  I always come away with new and better perspective.

Of course, the vendors are really cool too, but I try to limit myself there.  The quilts, now that's the thing!  Quilts from around the world....several of the SAQA exhibitions, Quilt National, the Twelve by Twelve show, the Soft Village, O Canada.....just absolutely wonderful!  So many ideas and so much to share!

I can't recommend going highly enough.