More from Quilting Natural Florida 2

I just had to share a few more photos from this excellent exhibition at the Natural History Museum in Gainesville. (Related posts are here.) Above is a detail from Laura Quinn’s Pelicans by Susan Walen. The Laura Quinn of the title runs a volunteer bird hospital in Key Largo that the artist had visited and wished to honor. The sewn-on seashells on the seashore (try saying that three times, fast) are very effective, aren’t they? Below is the full image.

Another beautiful bird quilt is Solitude, by Gretchen Brooks, which depicts a Snowy Egret. The dark background shows off the white bird very dramatically.

I was intrigued in the label information about how the egret was made... the egret is a machine embroidery design that was digitized by BFC Creations. The company offers a huge number of designs that can be stitched out by the advanced sewing machines now available. This page shows the egret design. Personally, I’m only interested in creating my own original designs, but it is amazing what is “out there.”

Below is Road 9, Crandall Pasture, by Julie Mainor. The artist created quite an effective depiction of sunlight streaming into the woods.

Last but not least, below is GoPher It, by Dawn Moore. Like many Floridians, I adore gopher tortoises and often find them munching the vegetation on our property. Then there are the deer that keep hoovering the citrus tree leaves, but that’s another story!

It’s funny, but I can’t remember seeing any quilts with alligators... how did that happen?!? To see a page from the museum’s web site with several more nice images, click here. If you look at the participant page, there are several artists who don’t live in Florida, so anyone could enter as long as the quilt referenced the state’s natural beauty.

Quilting Natural Florida 2 is even better

The first version of this show in 2006 was enjoyable, but those involved really outdid themselves with the current exhibition. The bird-themed quilts almost stole the show. Above is Roseate Spoonbills by Sally Pearce Freeberg, with a detail below. 

Another stunning quilt depicting the same subject was Happy Together, by the Lovin’ Spoonbills, by Susan Slaton. She pieced the background first, then added the birds, nest and mangroves.

Here is a closer look at the wonderful chicks. We’ve seen quite a few spoonbills over the years, particularly on the Black Point Wildlife loop drive on Merritt Island, but have never glimpsed an actual chick.

Florida Flamingos (below) is by Denise Oyama Miller. Did you know that according to Audubon of Florida, there was a small breeding population of flamingos at the very southern tip of the peninsula when the first Europeans arrived? (I had not known that, just looked it up.)

The palm fronds certainly are well done, and of course the birds themselves.

There were many other subjects other than birds that quilters were moved to depict, including abstract representations of some aspect of the state such as weather. However, to complete the visual theme we have going, here is one final pink quilt:

Florida Beauty is by Martha E. Berles who found inspiration in her own back yard. I have attempted to make a quilted hibiscus in the past... that central stamen stalk is not so easy to do.

There are many non-pink quilts in the show, the majority of them, actually. In addition to birds and flowers, they include trees, butterflies, turtles, and even a fungus. To see the previous two posts about this show, click here. The exhibit is open until April 25, 2010 and is well worth seeing if you’re in the Gainesville area.

Quilting Natural Florida 2 exhibit is now open

If you’re in the Gainesville, Florida area from now until April 25, 2010, be sure to stop into the Florida Museum of Natural History. A special exhibit of nature-inspired quilts will be there, sponsored by the Quilters of Alachua County Day Guild. To see the guild’s lovely quilt, appliquéd with the flora and fauna of the state, click here. 


This is my piece, Reaching, that was juried in. We haven’t seen the exhibit yet, but since it’s only about 7.5 X 10 inches, it’s probably the smallest piece in the show. Here is my artist’s statement:


I painted this pine tree directly on the fabric while on location at Highlands Hammock State Park. The twisting branches of pine trees continuously catch my eye, each treetop a unique formation caused by Florida’s weather extremes.

All of the image color is paint, except for the binding fabric. This detail shows the stitching. One drawback of using acrylic is that it causes the fabric to retain needle/pin holes, so it’s best to get the stitching right the first time. I made the mistake of using safety pins to hold the layers together which left a few holes. Using a sharp needle mostly from behind, it wasn’t too difficult to gently pull the threads together to minimize them. 


There are a few more trees that want their portraits done... hope to fit them it sometime soon. I would like to try a larger one that incorporates chunks of fabric in addition to or instead of paint. At long last, the weather is not so chilly now, so that helps. Spring is right around the corner, yay! 

World Quilt Show in West Palm Beach

My husband Andy and I drove a couple of hours down to this new show last Saturday and it was definitely worth it. There were 400 quilts on display and some 80 vendors, a nice diversity on both counts. The West Palm convention center is very easy to get in and out of and is quite an attractive building. Plus it’s right across the road from City Place, a lovely collection of shops and restaurants. Another plus was that it wasn’t freezing inside from excessive air conditioning, so yay! My only complaint is that the lighting wasn’t the greatest, which is typical of so many similar venues.

On to the the quilts— these are a few of the many nice pieces that caught my eye. Below is Parasol by Liz Jones (United Kingdom). She must have visited Florida at some point, or do palmettos grow in many locations? I have no idea.

Here is a close-up of the wonderful free motion stitching.

Midsummer Melody is by Jane Rollason (United Kingdom).

Next is Little Bit of Sunshine, by Cynthia Wismann. This was part of an exhibit by Art Quilters Unlimited, a group based in Ft. Myers.

Here is a detail from Little Bit of Sunshine, which was whole cloth painted with fabric dyes (as well as some other techniques.)

Below is Morris in the Garden is by Sue Reich (Connecticut). The way the cat was depicted with outline stitching is what intrigued me about this one.

The Birder by Cheryl Costley is also part of the Art Quilters Unlimited exhibit. He’s wearing a real hat and his camera and binoculars are 3-dimensional. There weren’t very many depictions of people in the overall show, we noticed.

The next two photos are details from Down Under Florabunda by Margo Hardie (Australia). This quilt was just covered with beautiful birds and flowers. It must have taken ages to create.

To finish up the birding theme, here is a detail from Fantasy Flock by Sheena Norquay (United Kingdom). She used her own doodles as the design inspiration.

To prove that most quilt shows have something for everyone, here is a quilt that my husband Andy was enthused about. This detail of Leaves on the Ground by Helen Richards (Australia) shows leaves she drew on fabric from her photographs. My plant pathologist hubby got a kick out of the holes eaten by insects, galls, spots, and other evidence of apparent plant diseases.

There were quite a few nice quilts from Japan and other countries, too. The vendors were from all over the U.S... nice to see some new faces with interesting merchandise. Anyway, I hope you enjoyed seeing a small excerpt of this large show.