Another Quilt from Visions 2010 03-14-11

Once again I admit to, essentially, being a thief.  Seeing the quilts at a Visions exhibit is such an awe inspiring event for me that I always want to share it by taking pictures.  The quilts are splendid, but I get real joy out of being able to see the fabulous details the artists have created.  This is one I would have purchased had it not already been sold. And hurrah for the buyer, of this and the other quilts that sold, for putting funds into the Visions bank account.  Every little (or big) bit helps keep this great exhibit coming back every two years. 

 
This piece is 45"wide and 41"long. 

The color is subtle and soothing.  Someone said it looked like a tombstone, but to me it resembles a piece of broken wall with moss and stains and graffiti.

The bluish area is composed of torn lace with lots of over stitching.  The little flecks toward the top are either stones or wood.  I hope they have been coated with something to keep the acid from eating the fabric.

 

Very small scraps of brown tone fabrics are scattered above the 'graffiti' which is done with both machine stitches and very long single thread couched stitches.

I have never previously noticed this technique on a binding.  So delicate, so time consuming, so much the artist's own "mark".  Beautiful binding!

Click on the pictures to enlarge.  I don't find a website for Brooke, but you can Google her name and find various sites that show images of her work. 

And you can enjoy this quilt and all those in Visions -2010 by purchasing a catalog!

http://www.visionsartmuseum.org/cart/listproducts.asp

A Great Day 03-10-11

I was on the road about 9:15 this morning headed to San Diego for the current exhibit at the Visions Museum, lunch at a good fish restaurant nearby and then a stop at Oceanside for one last view of the Visions - 2010 exhibit at the Oceanside Museum of Art.  Sunday is the last day.



Yes!  It is the very blue Pacific - gorgeous, eh?   This is part of Camp Pendleton and the clearing near the water is a staging area for practice maneuvers - and the Marines were in action there today.

A little further south I-5 is slightly elevated and closer to the water, so the waves rolling onto the beach are visible.  The bare area across the middle is another staging area - if you click on the pictures you can see more details.   Way off to the left on the horizon is a warship - probably connected to the Marine maneuvers.

I took another picture of Velda Newman's "Zinnias" at the Visions Exhibit.  And I sat on the bench for about ten minutes just taking it in.  So beautiful, so amazing.  Hand appliqued and hand quilted.  The last image on today's post is the sign that accompanies the quilt. 

Because it is such a large quilt (212"W x 87"L) the details are not apparent.  There is a lot of 3 dimensional work.  Such as these petals - finished back and front and then layered on the quilt.

Here are the same petals from the side so we can see that they are raised.

This shows edges that have been purposefully frayed and we can see the the stamens go under some of the petals.

The red flower center is hollow with the petals cupped around it.  More 3-D petals.

This stem is textured with little tucks and appears to have some stuffing inside.  More 3-D petals.  The blue circles represent pollen flying from the flowers.

"The Quilts Japan Award rewards the artist whose work will encourage and inspire quilt artists internationally.  It is awarded by Japan Handi Crafts Instructors' Association and Nihon Vogue Co. Ltd.."

Quoted from the very thorough and informative catalog - great photos by Eric Nancarrow - well worth the price and available from http://www.visionsartmuseum.org/cart/listproducts.asp

Oceanside Museum of Art - Visions and leftovers. 02-09-11

Yesterday Mary rode down from San Juan Bautista with Joe, who went to the Anaheim Convention Center today. Today Mary rode with me to Oceanside to see the Visions quilts.  She was concerned that I had already been several times, but I reassured her - I usually enjoy the Visions exhibit at least half a dozen times during the time it is open.  I know I will never again see those quilts in that grouping, and I want to have each one imprinted in my memory.  We enjoyed seeing them together.  I was surprised there were maybe twelve or fifteen people while we were there, but the docent said there has been a good number of visitors every day she has volunteered.  Nice!  After we had examined every quilt in detail and sat on the bench for twenty minutes or more admiring Velda Newman's "Zinnia", we walked over to the Oceanside Civic Center with its beautiful tiled pool.  Don't know what has happened to the seagulls, they have been missing the last few times I have been there, and they were missing today.  But the camellias are in bloom and some are just gorgeous.

 
These dark salmon pink ones are doubles blooming in a clump at the end of a branch - an entire bouquet!  I should have put my hand, or Mary's, in the picture so you could see how large they are.  The background tiles are maybe 1.75" square. 

This pale pink variety is fringed on the edge of the petals and has lovely tiny "hands" upraised in the center. Perfectly lovely. 

We drove south on I-5 to Carlsbad for lunch at Sammy's Wood Pit Pizza.  I like their food and today I had the chopped chicken salad which tasted so fresh and cool with the Santa Ana winds blowing outside. Mary had skewered shrimp served atop a little salad.   It was a very sunny,  clear day with views of the mountains topped with a little snow.   

 

I didn't photograph the presentation of my steak dinner last evening, so tonight you get the leftovers!  This is about half of the steak, which I sliced tonight and ate cold, with the warmed over potatoes and fresh microwaved broccoli with a little shredded New Zealand white cheddar (from TJoe's).  The waiter even put the 'embellishment' in the box - it is the very thin slice of potato with the 'viewing' holes which stood up straight at the restaurant, but was too floppy as a leftover. A perfectly delicious dinner tonight - as it was last night.

Visions - the Int'l exhibit in Oceanside 01-25-11

Another trip to Oceanside today with three friends from the Book Group.  Verna and Teresa are quilt makers and Carol is a quilt admirer, so sometime when the exhibit is on we like to go down and talk about quilts and techniques. 

 
The sky was pretty clear as we drove down and the Oceanside Civic Center is as white as always!  This view is looking at the back corner of the museum building. I didn't notice the flag on the left side center, too bad the wind wasn't in a different direction.

 
Right now the Bird of Paradise flowers are everywhere, they are a great addition to the winter landscape.  The camellias are starting to bloom, but I got sidetracked and didn't take a picture.

It was very nice to look at the quilts without the crowd that was there on Saturday, but I missed Charlotte Bird's comments on the quilts.  I wish I had been able to tape them to go over in the peace and quiet of home.  But I know a number of the artists' work and am familiar with many different techniques, so I gave a pretty thorough spiel.   Two ladies, neither of them quilt makers, joined us here and there and seemed to enjoy seeing the exhibit.

Afterward it was a toss-up between Sammy's Wood-Fired Pizza a few miles south on I-5 or Ramos House Cafe in San Juan Capistrano for lunch.  They insisted I make the choice, so we went to Ramos House.  It was delicious, as always.  One of us ordered the sweet potato fries and I almost ripped them off her plate - yummy.  We all enjoyed the meal and the visit and the rustic atmosphere.  Where there was a small parking lot there is now a small park, so it is imperative that one park in the two level garage on the opposite side of the RR tracks.  I forgot and had to make a circuitous trip back to park after dropping the others off at the restaurant.    And then the drive home as the rush hour(s) traffic was starting.  Nice to have three carpool buddies to allow driving in the reserved lane.   Lovely day. Lovely company. Lovely lunch.  Thanks, my friends, it was a treat.

Visions Gallery/Museum + Visions - the Int'l Exhibit 01-22-11

Liz Williams went with me today to San Diego to the Visions Art Museum (previously named Visions Art Quilt Gallery), to see the exhibit "The Art of the Stitch" which closes tomorrow.  There are some very nice quilts in the exhibit and several additional pieces on display in different areas.  Photographs are not allowed in the gallery. 
A new exhibit will open February 4th (through April 17th) with quilts by Dominie Nash and Jeanne Lyons Butler.

We had lunch diagonally across the intersection at "Con Pane" which was excellent.  And so close to the Visions Quilt Museum - the pink building at center back with the arched door.

 
It was quite warm for San Diego in January so we sat outside under the luscious red umbrellas.  Liz is here in the front left.  At a table not in this picture a woman and husband were eating and their Toyota was parked about ten cars down the block.  The planes from San Diego airport go directly over the restaurant with a great thunderous noise and, every now and then, one would have just the right tone to set off the Toyota's alarm.  At first the husband would walk out on the sidewalk, advancing and clicking the remote until the Toyota shut up.  But after a while he would just wait it out - as would we all.  It was like a bit from a romantic movie.

After lunch we drove back north to the Oceanside Museum of Art for a special gallery walk through "Quilt Visions 2010: No Boundaries "with Charlotte Bird, President of the Visions Art Museum in San Diego. Charlotte has headed a number of the International Visions exhibits held at Oceanside Museum of Art. Because she knows many of the artists and the entire 25 year history of Quilt Visions she has many insights to share, so it was an interesting afternoon. There was a great crowd there, though we sometimes  couldn't see the quilt Charlotte was standing next to, her voice could be heard throughout the gallery. I had my catalog and could look at the picture of the quilt while I listened.

Usually no pictures are allowed in the galleries, but there were several people taking pictures and I thought a special exception was being made for this event.  Wrong!  I took these two images and someone told me no pictures were permitted.  Charlotte Bird is on the left and Jane LaFazio (San Diego, CA) on the right speaking about her quilt "Zen Eucalyptus" (Hand-made felt, dyed cotton batting, paint, embroidery threads.  Hand sewn, needle felted, hand dyed.)

 

Passing the mike back to Jane on the right and from Charlotte on the left.  Several artists were there and spoke about their quilts which are in the exhibit. 

 This exhibit continues through March 13th - see it if you possibly can.  It does not travel. 

Visions 2010 Installation photos 10-30-10

When you face the gallery where the Visions - 2010 exhibit is hanging at Oceanside Museum of Art, you see Susan Willen's work "Ordered Cacophony ". It is stunning on a mustard colored wall.

One of the Visions artists, Deborah Bein, too pictures when the artists were allowed to do so before the gallery was open to the public. She has posted these images on her blog. Check them out at http://deborahbein.com/artblog/

Visions 2010 @ Oceanside Museum of Art 10-25-10

The biennial Visions exhibit has a special place in my life - I've been attending since the very first one in 1987 which was held in Fallbrook. I still remember the thrill I felt as I walked through the quilts displayed - a feeling I experience with every Visions exhibit. The friend who accompanied me was much more of a traditionalist and she was disappointed! I was amazed that the quilt she liked the most was the most traditional one there. Yesterday I attended the special events in connection with the opening of "Quilt Visions 2010: No Boundaries", as always, I was thrilled. The Oceanside Museum of Art where the exhibit is held is adjacent to the Oceanside Civic Center - a breezy, tiled, water-filled pavilion.

I seem to discover unusual flowers there. This is a hibiscus with two-colored petals than turn down instead of flaring open. Lovely yellow - I can almost taste it.

Looking to the west the water flows gently around islands of palms toward Pacific Coast Highway. Beyond the buildings in the middle of the picture is the ocean.

There are always gulls wading and bathing in the fountain. This guy stood pat after the others took wing. He refused to spread his wings on my command!

Across the street at the Oceanside Museum of Art ( http://www.oma-online.org/exhibits.html ) art quilt fans gathered on the front terrace waiting for the doors to open for the 11am artists' tour of the new exhibit. I understand there were 25 artists (out of 39) in attendance. But there was a large crowd packing the galleries, so I saw little of the artists as they spoke, but I could hear every word over the p.a. system. It is fascinating to hear what they chose to say about their technique or inspiration or just their selection as a Visions artist. Afterward they all seemed friendly and approachable and I collected a few autographs in my exhibit catalog. Photos are not permitted.

"Before Sunset" Nelda Warkentin 14"L x 50"W

This is the quilt on the cover of the exhibit catalog and is also on the Visions website.

http://www.visionsartmuseum.org/exhibits/exhibitions.asp?pg=biennial

"Zinnia" Velda Newman 87"L x 212"W

This is the quilt that appears on the exhibit postcard. It is absolutely gorgeous and one that I would buy in a split second if #1 I had the money and #2 I had some place in my house large enough to hang it.

There are seven or eight quilts that I would love to add to the Thomas Contemporary Quilt Collection and at the top of the list is Judith Content's fabulous "Cataclysm" which was inspired by a book about the eruption of Krakatoa in 1883. I have always coveted Judith's quilts, but, so far, all I have managed is one of her narrow silk scarves which I hang on my wall when I am not wearing it. I have my fingers crossed that "Cataclysm" will become part of the Collection.

It was a great day and I came home to fall into bed. Although my bronchitis is almost gone, I still tire very easily. In fact, instead of joining acquaintances for lunch I went back to my car and stretched out for a little snooze - it helped me get through the afternoon. Featured then was a panel of four artists answering very interesting questions asked by moderator Judith Content and also questions from the audience. The panelists were Deidre Adams, Gloria Hansen, Jane LaFazio and Katie Pasquini Masopust. They all work in different styles, using different techniques and all were very forthcoming about how they mesh their art and their everyday life.

More Simply Red and Fall really arrives 10-15-10

A few more items for the Simply Red basket. I may have to buy a larger basket as I have more fabric and other items still to go in. Some great things. I may have to bid on this basket myself, I really covet the little red iron.

Look! Fall seems to have arrived. This is the mountain forecast - I couldn't get my camera out fast enough for the "city" and "valley" forecast, but both include rain. We had some early rain this past month but nothing to amount to anything. I hope it doesn't rain on Saturday and Sunday next week because the new Visions exhibit in Oceanside will have an opening plus some special events. I am so looking forward to the weekend, especially now that I missed PIQF.