Modern Quilt Month 2020 ! part 2

We're celebrating Modern Quilt Month at Q.I., and we couldn't be more excited about these quilts!  The characteristics of modern quilts may include the use of bold colors and prints, high contrast, graphic areas of solid color, improvisational piecing, minimalism, and negative space.  Here are a few modern art quilts we admire.

P.S.  For continuous listings of free quilt patterns, please check us out on Twitter !
For low-cost quilt magazines and vintage collectibles, check us out on E-Bay - we're Top Rated Sellers !)

Event Horizon, 48 x 60", by Karen G. Fisher

There is so much to see in this stunning wall quilt, which comes alive with its high contrasts and intriguing textures !  Winner of Best of Show in 2011, Event Horizon was displayed in a special exhibit of past award winners at the 2020 Quilt Arizona show.  Karen G. Fisher says, "Event Horizon came together from two quilts.  The first quilt was a red, white, and black quilt that had gone terribly wrong, but I couldn't bring myself to throw it away.  The second quilt was from a workshop and never felt like "my own" work. I decided to cut them both into smaller sections and combine them together."

Karen continues, "I didn't want big bulky seams, so I bound them and overlapped the edges.  Yet even combined, there was a hole in the middle, which I purposely trimmed to be round, and the idea of an Event Horizon took shape... The interior of the hole became black, but also dimensional (the center is very thick, with a shaped piece of firm foam, not just batting.) I used everything I could think of to add texture to this quilt: foil, paint, tulle, yarn, stamping, and lots more quilting than it originally had."

Paper Cuts by Claire Victor

Paper Cuts, a striking original design by Claire Victor,  won the second place award in the Modern-Solo quilts category at the 2020 Quilt Arizona show. Claire envisioned this as pieces of colored paper, suspended, and some intersecting.  The strong geometric shapes, solid colors, and thoughtful use of negative space create a truly modern quilt.

Claire Victor created Paper Cuts using English paper piecing, and she quilted it on a domestic Bernina sewing machine.  We admired her creative, modern quilting designs!

Reflections, 58 x 67", by Karen Foster, Stephanie Ruyle, Leanne Chahley, Debbie Jeske, Hillary Goodwin, Felicity Ronaghan, Marci Debetaz, Kari Voitechovsky, Melissa Richie, and Diane Stanley (California)

Reflections won a blue ribbon for the Best Mid Century Mod quilt at the 2019 Pacific International Quilt Festival.  Using a palette inspired by the picturesque Venetians of Capitola Village and an '80's surf contest poster, members of the BeeSewcial quilting group in Capitola (California) created improvisational blocks in solids. Karen Foster puzzled the blocks together to create "Reflections".  It all came together beautifully!  This original design quilt was machine pieced and longarm quilted.

Witches Brew by Karen McCarty

Entered in the Art/Abstract category, this dynamic quilt was a crowd favorite at the 2020 Quilt Arizona show. Karen McCarty says, "I wanted to make something bright and cheery, using appli-piecing and paper piecing to make shapes in curved spaces.  My husband saw something different and came up with the name." The original quilt was designed, pieced, and beautifully quilted by Karen McCarty.

Image credits:  Photos were taken by Quilt Inspiration at the 2020 Quilt Arizona show (Witches Brew, Paper Cuts, Event Horizon) and the 2019 Pacific International Quilt Festival (Reflections).

Hexagon Quilt Inspiration

Today's post is inspired by some outstanding hexagon quilts we've seen over the last few years.  The hexagon shape is so versatile, it can be used to create flowers, diamonds, tumbling blocks, and even pixel quilts (check out the Hexie Hummingbird, below !)

Please check out our E-Bay shop for great bargains on quilt patterns, books, and collectible items !
For the latest free quilt patterns, please visit us on Twitter.


Hexie Hummingbird No. 2, 42 x 36", by Gail L. Weiss

Gail L. Weiss created her original design, Hexie Hummingbird No. 2, with 474 one-half-inch English Paper Pieced Hexies!  This quilt is hand pieced, appliqued and quilted with fine silk thread on the Hummingbird, and with #12 Perle Cotton for the background.  Gail describes Hexie Hummingbird as "A quilt that makes me happy!"

You can find a pattern for this quilt, and for more of Gail Lizette's wonderfully creative works, at her website (click here: gaillizette.com.)

Lupines by Karen McCarty

Winner of a ribbon for third place in the Applique - Solo category at the 2020 Quilt Arizona show, Lupines was inspired by a photo which Karen McCarty took in Ushuaia, Argentina, in 2014.  She says, "I knew that someday it would be a quilt. Just needed to find a way to make those tiny hexies."  We admire Karen McCarty's excellent technique and the many artistic details, including tiny bead embellishments.

City by Crystal Bray

Inspired by Libs Elliott's "Weight of Love" quilt, this quilt combines whole hexagons and hexagons divided into 60-degree triangles, radiating from light to dark, creating a 3-dimensional appearance. Crystal Bray says that she pieced hexies by the values in the Hoffman City fabric (shown below), hence the quilt title, City.  This quilt "reads" modern without being overtly minimalist... we love the look!

Oranges, Lemons and Limes - Oh My!  by Lynn G. Kough

Made by Lynn G. Kough, a member of the Arizona Quilters Hall of Fame, and exhibited in 2015, this quilt is a whimsical celebration of citrus in Arizona.  The fragrance of citrus blossoms is a beloved scent in the Valley [of the Sun] and throughout Arizona's warmer regions.  Small and large hexagons combine to create a lively mixture of lime green, orange, and lemon yellow hues. 

Diamonds Are Forever by Susan Cox, quilted by Jessica Gamez

Bright colors in many different hues create the sparkling diamond-shaped emblems in this beauty. Winner of a second place ribbon in the Scrap Quilt category, Diamonds Are Forever is made up of 4066 hexies. Susan Cox created this heirloom quilt using the traditional English Paper Piecing technique and many, many hours of work -  a true labor of love.

Image credits: Photos were taken by Quilt Inspiration at the 2020 Quilt Arizona show (Lupines), the 2015 Quilt Arizona show (Oranges, Lemons and Limes), the 2018 Road to California quilt show (Hexie Hummingbird), the 2018 Quilt Arizona show (City), and the 2019 Quilt Arizona show (Diamonds Are Forever).