International Quilt Festival Cincinnati 2013

Last week was the International Quilt Festival's show in Cincinnati.  Once again, I went and worked at the Mistyfuse Booth with Iris Karp.  It is such fun to go....see people at the Studio Art Quilt Associate's booth, and all the wonderful quilts.

This year, I opted not to take a class.  I did go and stay in the hotel, sharing the room with fellow MVAQN'er/SAQA member Carroll Schleppi...the thought of driving in rush hour traffic on I75 southbound wasn't my idea of fun, so that's why we stayed down there.

I ran in on Thursday morning and grabbed my badge....75 had been particularly bad as it was raining buckets and we were about an hour later than we had anticipated.  I didn't notice the typo on my name badge until one of the customer's said "Is that REALLY your name????"  OOOPs.  I sometimes make that mistake when I am typing my watermarks on my photos....but I didn't notice this one....certainly I'm saving it!

 This year the show was a little smaller than in previous years and rather than running through Sunday, it closed on Saturday.  I had to quickly see the quilts as we were so busy demonstrating in the booth.  I would have liked to show you lots of photos....images of pieces I liked from a number of quilters....but...IQF has rules about photography, as do most shows, and I have not been terribly successful in reaching a lot of the artists to get permission (something I try very hard to do) I decided I would share one of Sue Reno's quilts.

I had the pleasure of meeting Sue at the SAQA conference in Philadelphia last year....Sue loves to hike and take photos, as well as work in her garden.  She is a kindred soul even if she does get out more than I do these days!  Here is her website.

This particular piece uses a cyanotype print (a method of printing originally used to make blueprints) on silk of a columbine.  She framed it in a patchwork of small silk pieces which just sparkle in the spotlights.  Sue often combines things from her garden, or that she has found on her walks, particularly skeletal remains of animals (although sometimes she buys the remains in order to make the combos she wants).  She likes columbines for the wonderful habit they have of seeding themselves....you find them in new places each spring.  I also love them for the interesting color combinations and mutations that they produce.  You can see more images and learn more about this piece here.

I always enjoy going to Cincinnati.  I love all the wonderful things around...bits and pieces that surprise you...as well as being able to meet up with friends like Iris and Stephanie Kleinman.  One surprise is the art that you find tucked away....  This wonderful piece is made from chipping away the plaster/paint areas on a wall.  Pretty cool, eh?

I'm happy to say that I was so busy that I didn't get a lot of time to look at the vendors.....I did manage to get some 12 wt threads from Wonderfil and Superior.   I've been wanting to try these heavier threads to see what they can do....so, I didn't do a horrific amount of damage to my pocketbook....always a danger when one attends such events.

Post Cards to Benefit Friends for Life

 While I was in Montana, Pokey Bolton, Quilting Arts Diva, announced a project she thought up...her "IQF Pet Project Postcard Pledge."  Just before she left to do some show work, she found a pit bull mix stray.  Pokey scooped the dog up, deposited her at the vets, had her checked out, and tried to find the owner...then, when she returned looked hard to find a no-kill shelter to see if this abandoned animal could find a forever-home.

Pokey's got a soft heart like that.  She had already rescued her dog Clarence, and at least one cat.....She knew of Friend's For Life no kill shelter in Houston because that's where she found Clarence.  Pounds, Humane Society Shelters, and other rescue organizations have a lot of bills, and often not enough money to meet their needs.  No-kill shelters have even more pressure because they often take animals that have issues, some behavioral, some just because they happened to have a certain kind of ancestor....such as Pitt Bulls, Rottweilers, Dobermann's etc.

"Longhorns have homes on the Range"

"Spot and Dash"

So, Pokey asked people to make 4" x 6" fabric postcards that she is going to sell at the International Quilt Festival in Houston.

So...I started out by making the top one.  Blech. But it was a post card.  I decided I would whip out my Inktense pencils and make a Longhorn, using my hand painted sky fabric and some rust dyed fabric for the range....after all, Longhorns all have homes on the range, shouldn't other domestic animals have a shot for a home?  Besides....it's Texas...longhorns should sell.

The last one is just because I love goldfish.   This is "Spot" and "Dash" portraits of two goldfish from my pond.  I used Inktense on these, then sheer crepe, which I stitched the fin lines through...and put them on a batik "pond."

The dumb thing was that with all the flooring, cleaning, cooking, etc. for kid coming home with friends last week, and the fact that we ripped up the carpeting in the dining room.....well....I forgot to mail them.

Ruth Powers graciously agreed to take them to Pokey at THE SHOW ....as Ruth won an award...I wanted to to do more...especially a house bunny one because my niece Katie adopted a pet rabbit from her local shelter.  I think my crew here will forgive me...Lemmie was a dumped kitty, Acei was an abandoned cat from people who moved and left three litters of cats behind, Angel, and her predecessor Tassie were both from Protector's of the Animals in Connecticut.  Henry, my first cat when I was out on my own was one who if I didn't take him was going to be drowned.  Harrison, my roomie Nancy and my cat was one which had gone through three homes before I took him in in Williamsburg.  My other neice Beth's dog, Trucker, came from a English Shepherd rescue group, and Luna was a stray who I finally tracked down the owner and they gave her to me.  So...yes, it is about time I give back too.

If you are going to Houston, check out the sale.  They will be sold for $20 each and Pokey is also contemplating some on-line sales.  Maybe I'll get to do a bunny too, if she does!  Thank's Pokey, and a HUGE thanks to Ruth Powers.

12 x 12 at International Quilt Festival, Cincinnati

Yesterday, Gerrie Congdon asked me about what I thought of the 12 x 12 exhibition at the International Quilt Festival (IQF) Cincinnati.  I'm glad she did because in my nuttiness lately, I completely forgot about commenting on it!

As I reported in an earlier post, Del Thomas graciously sponsored the exhibition of the theme series and the color play series at IQF Houston, Cincinnati and Long Beach.  I was anxious to see them as I "cyber-know" several of the twelves, have been following them since they started putting up information on the web and I own "Twelve by Twelve" the book....  I have to admit, 288 quilts was A WHOLE LOT!  You could sit and look at them for a long time...Here's a taste of the show....I don't much like this part of the show ....it sort of got a little choppy, I suppose because there were so many quilts.  I am also not fond of the break int he hangings, but I suspect it was for emergency equipment or egress.

The lighting could have been a little better over in this corner, but they did have to work within the confines of the building, available space, electricity, etc.

I did like that the information on the quilts, with a photo of the quilt was right there in front of the quilts. In some of the other exhibitions, you had to struggle to find the right stand holding the information on the quilt in front of you.

I'm happy to report that it was very well received.  While I worked at the SAQA desk, which wasn't far from the 12 x 12 exhibition, a couple of people came over and asked if we had the book. We didn't, but I was able to point them in the right direction.  You can too!  Just go here for a full list of where you can obtain it, and I recommend that you do because they are so rich and I love the extended commentary and the lighting is a heck of a lot better in my home.... Of course, the color play series isn't included in the book as that series post dated the submissions for it.

It was wonderful, however to get a close up view and to be able to see all the stitches.

The exhibition of the 12s literally ran all along one wall from the back to the front of the show floor.  You can see the Artist Village which was nearer the front  with the 12s still running behind it.

Of all of the series....I'm afraid that Terry Grant's challenge of orange was my favorite. I am seduced by orange and I found this particular selection joyous.  How can you look at these quilts and not smile?

Top row, L-R: Hibiscus, Deborah Boschert; Endless Summer, Gerrie Congdon; Drought, Helen Conway; 2nd row: Central Park, Kirsten Duncan; Orange Lilies, Terry Grant; John Lennin's Glasses, Diane Perin Hock; row 3: Focus, Francoise Jamart; Enjoy the Delicious Twelve Brand, Kristen LaFlamme); Orange, Karen Rips; Row 4: Suits, Brenda Gael Smith; Bouquet by Terri Stegmiller; Short Summer by the Inch, Nikki Wheeler.  (sorry the bottom row is obstructed....

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.

IQF 2012 Cincinnati: Artist Village Project

One of the fun things to get a chance to see "up close and personal" was the Artist Village Project organized by Kathy York.  Kathy's work is exhuberent and often has squares and three dimensional elements in bright colors.  After seeing Judy Coates Perez's work, she thought it would be fun to do an artists village and ask a number of people to join in...The village debut was at Houston last November....with a blog tour in May.

One thing which made me grumpy about this was that while the artists involved were listed, the houses weren't identified.  Although some were very easy for me to spot, others were artists with whom I wasn't familiar....therefore, I thought I was going to be able to put up this blog post easily...instead I was researching who did what houses for two hours tonight.... The house with the squares and the orange on the roof is Kathy's.  She describes the meaning of her house here. 

The little purple pointy house and the bluish traditionally sort of shaped house right in the center I think are Jane Davila's.  The rusty brown house on the left with the viney shapes is Judy Coates Perez's. The little rectangles in front of the roof line of Kathy's house are Lisa Call's "affordable housing", taking inspiration from some of the work being done to provide low cost housing.

The yellow and multicolored house in the front here covered in buttons is Frances Holliday Alford's.  The wild loopy house center right is Laura Wasilowski's. Just to the left of Frances' house is a corner of Barb Forester's which resembles a pueblo.

The black wavy roofed house on the left here is Jamie Fingals.  The butterfly roofed one is Connie Hudson's.  The pointy house right with the "granite" roof right in front of the butterfly house is Melani Testa's.

This was the first one I figured out...remember me saying a couple of posts ago how recognizeable Susan Else's work was?  Well this little person looking out the window and the palette is a dead giveaway for Susan's work.  Such a delight!

One of the fun things about Susan's is that the inside is full of trees and vines.  The tree is Naomi Adams' tree house and I could have looked far more closely at the trees if I had had more time.

I am pretty sure that the house on the left with the nuthatch is Vickie Hallmark's. On the right is Jamie Fingals again from a different angle.

I know I am missing some of these....this is where a few well placed small labels or number or something would have been a world of help!

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.

International Quilt Show Cincinnati, OH

Fountain Square, Cincinnati

 Last year, when we found that the International Quilt Festival (IQF) was moving from the Chicago area to Cincinnati, a number of the members of my local quilt guild jumped on the reduced rate offers at the Hyatt and signed up.

I wanted to go to IQF Chicago for years.  Now that it was only going to be an hour and a half from home, I was really happy.  Since I didn't know exactly how I was going to feel or how I was going to juggle chemo (which was supposed to happen Friday) and the show, I didn't sign up for many classes, but I did sign up for a class with Noriko Endo 

I had the great fortune to work for Iris Karp at the Mistyfuse booth, which I did a lot.  She's one special lady and while I was sold on Mistyfuse before, I really learned a whole bunch more from Iris.  I hope to put up some tutorials or a video on Mistyfuse in the next week because the pencil transfer really confused me when I read about it. Now I understand it!  For more info, you can go to the Mistyfuse facebook page. :)

IQF vendor's floor, right side

The show was large, but not as large as I thought it was going to be.  Cincinnati, as long as you stay downtown right around Fountain square, is very clean and safe.  Here's a shot of the floor from the second story walk over.

I didn't take any photos of the quilts, because on the oneline information it said "NO PICTURES" and there were additional signs to that effect at the special exhibits.  However, people were taking photos of the general entries.

I thought the show was a good mix of traditional and art quilts.  While there were probably more quilts falling into the "art quilt" category, the Baltimore Album exhibition should have satisfied the most die-hard of traditionalists.  It was pleasing to meet Susan Shie and give her a hug at her solo exhibition.  Carolyn Mazloomi also had quilts on display from the Underground Railroad museum, but I missed seeing her. 

IQF Vendor's floor left side

Pokey Bolton was in my class with Noriko Endo and danced with a bunch of my Batty Binder Buddies at the "Welcome to Cincinnati" party.

I also met Roxanne Lesse, another SAQA member who does really neat work AND is a dancer.  I suppose this sounds a lot like name dropping....but I really think these larger shows are wonderful.  You get to see the quilts of people you already know and admire, you get to meet some of those people you only know through the internet and you are exposed to a ton of work you've never even thought of.  Since it is an international show, there was an exhibition called  "Oh, Canada" which showcased Canadian artist's impressions of their home country as well as quilts from quilters from overseas.  I talked with quite a few people from the Netherlands, Germany, France, England and Australia.

Notable events for me:  I managed to get out of the show without buying a single piece of fabric...YAY! Threads, batting and paint....not so good at keeping those items out of my arms.  The other thing? Well, the "confetti " technique Noriko Endo teaches involves a LOT of cutting up scraps into slivers with a rotary cutter.  She warned us NOT to cut our fingers as it was easy to do later in the day when you're tired. About an hour into slicing up fabric, I squealed....and the room fell silent.  A small voice from the back said..."Did you cut yourself?"  Oh! No! My rotary cutter just exploded! I was using one of those ones with the handle you press to open up the blade and the screw had come undone...the spring, washers, protection disks etc. went flying...and my squeal was merely of surprise.

Cincinnati is a really nice city, the people are nice.  I'm a little worried that it won't return after the three year contract is up.  I'm told there weren't as many people who attended.  I'm not sure how much of that is because Ohio is a "fly over state"---one which people don't think about visiting.  Vendors and the IQF staff were happy about the ease of parking and lower cost.  While some vendors were having tough times, some, like the Hobb's booth and a lady from England selling printing blocks, were selling out.  One attendee was complaining about the food.  The food court upstairs was sort of cool as it was showcasing Cincinnati's local foods--Graeter's Ice cream, Skyline Chili, Montgomery Inn Barbecue, another barbecue place (Scott's) which had grilled turkey, another pizza place, another with salads..I ate at the food court on Saturday and was fed quickly, with reasonably priced, good tasting food.

Very close to Duke Convention Center (like one block north in Carew Towers accessible  going through the skywalks if you preferred), you could eat at Hathaway's, a diner,  which had good food and fast service, there were food carts, as well as many other eating establishments with very good food (Bagpiper's, Nicholson's, an Indian place, and several others of various price-points and speed. So, I'm not sure that that was a valid complaint.

I know I had a good time and hope to attend next year for an even better one when my hip doesn't hurt!