BEST OF AUSTRALIA QUILTS
The Best of Australia Exhibition features the Best of Show quilts from State Guild Shows around Australia in 2011.
Freedom by Helen Godden
ACT: Best of Show: The Canberra Quilters Inc
Freedom by Helen Godden
Artist Statement: The red hooded black cockatoo, the Gang Gang is a Canberra bird like me. He is bold and loud and sours through the tree tops, free from restrictions, rules or boundaries. This quilt represents my creative spirit and the FREEDOM I have as an Art Quilter. Introducing my new technique "Paint-chwork".
Preston Dreaming by Merelyn Pearce
NSW: Best of Show: The Quilters' Guild of NSW Inc: Sydney Quilt Show 2011
Preston Dreaming by Merelyn Pearce
Artist Statement: In this final quilt, in the series of six, I have sought to highlight the influence of Australian Aboriginal Art on the work of Margaret Preston who strove to achieve a truly uniquely Australian artistic expression.
Ruled by Chocolate by Desley Maisano
Victoria: Best of Show: The Victorian Quilters Inc: Quilt Showcase 2011
Ruled by Chocolate by Desley Maisano
Artist Statement: Ruled by Chocolate was given its name for a number of reasons: firstly, the rich chocolate fabric that I fell in love with; secondly, the large amount of ruler work involved. And finally, the considerable amount of chocolate consumed whilst quilting it.
The piecing was purposely simple because the quilting was always the focus of this quilt, both when deciding on the fabrics and in the overall design.
I started with the striped fabric and then chose the three co-ordinating fabrics carefully so that they all complemented each other. It was important that the quilting would show well on them.
The width of each strip was determined by the quilting I had planned, and I used a combination of rulers, stencil, and freehand quilting.
A Caterpillar's Dream by Rose Lewis
Tasmania: Best of Show: The Tasmanian Quilting Guild Inc: Island Quilts Tas 2011
A Caterpillar's Dream by Rose Lewis
Artist Statement: This quilt was started after renovating and repainting the house a totally different colour, so we needed a new quilt on our bed. I chose 80% of the materials on the one day. There is no pattern, I designed as I went. I always had a rough idea in my head of what I wanted, and knew it was to be a appliquéd, with lots of trapunto and lots of quilted feathers. This allowed me lots of freedom to work with.
Once the top was completed, I added the trapunto using two layers of wadding, this took me 3 months to sew and cut around shapes. It was now very thick to work with. It then took me 10 days to pin the layers together ready for quilting, using 4,000 safety pins. This made the quilt exceptionally heavy to work with. I then ditch-stitched around every little petal, leaf, etc to make the trapunto stand out. As it was all so thick, I broke dozens of needles. Then lastly, the final quilting of the rest the quilt was carried out. The outer border feathers are a Karen McTavish design that I Have totally pulled apart, twisted, turned and revamped into my own.
The only hand work on this quilt is the stems on the bluebells and the stamens on the fuchsias, plus the hand sewing on the back of the bindiing, everything else has been done on my domestic sewing machine. This quilt took 2 years and 8 months to complete, it has never been on our bed, and is too big to hang on a wall.
The Best of Australia exhibition is sponsored by:
Knotted Logs by Margot Kitchen
Queensland: Best of Show: The Queensland Quilters' Guild Inc
Knotted Logs by Margot Kitchen
Artist Statement: An original design to use Log Cabin blocks. Designed with EQ6 and foundation pieced topped off with an original appliqué and quilted centre knot using colour for added effect.
Bushwalk by Rebecca Stewart-Bartell
WA: Best of Show: The West Australian Quilters' Association Inc: QuiltWest 2011
Bushwalk by Rebecca Stewart-Bartell
Artist Statement: After seeing an Australian floral medallion quilt by Denise Ridge at the end of 2009 I was inspired to create my own. I decided that rather than make something similar to Denise's I would create mine in more of a Baltimore Album style.
I started by buying every Australian wildflower calendar I could find. Then I chose the fabric, I wanted to stay consistent throughout the quilt without adding too many different colours and prints. The background was a complete accident – I found it in the remnants bin and bought it a few months earlier and when it came time to start my quilt it was perfect for an Australian design. I then decided rather than get overwhelmed by the quilt I would make it one block at a time and see where it took me. There was no plan at all when I started, I just made one block each month by picking a flower I like sketching, then arranged it in either a wreath or four corner appliqué design. Every block was hand appliquéd using freezer paper to cut out the shape and then needleturned onto the block. Once four of the blocks had been stitched, I put them down to look at them; they seemed somehow flat so even though I don't like hand embroidering I pulled out the pearl cotton and started. I ended up hand embroidering every block and the borders in order to add detail.
The borders were the hardest to do, not in the sewing sense but in the designing. After a few weeks of quilters' block (like writers' block) my middle child, Morgan inspired me when she asked me why I hadn't put in the birds that are always in gum trees. We had been for a trip to Pemberton a few years before and my girls had handfed the 28s (South-western WA parrots) that live in the gum trees down there. So in her mind there couldn't be gum leaves without birds.
Quilting it was the easiest part. I knew from the beginning I wanted to use a leaf design in some way and the twisting vine with leaves fitted into the blank corners perfectly. The background was stippled down very closely so that the trapunto leaves would pop and using wool batting made it much easier
Bushwalk was a labour of love, it took almost 18 months to make and several blocks ended up in the bin, but in the end I am very happy with it. When I was making it I never thought it would be finished, but looking at it now I am so happy that I put in the time.
Sorry to my husband and girls that we ate so many takeaway dinners last year!
More Morris by Michele Hill
SA: Best of Show: The Quilters' Guild of South Australia Inc; Festival of Quilts SA
More Morris Magic by Michele Hill
Artist Statement: I set myself a challenge to complete a drawing of William Morris's – not sure if he ever used it in production. I hope he would have liked my interpretation.
Fantasia by Marney Leerson
NT: Best of Show: Darwin Patchworkers & Quilters Inc.: Territory Quilts 2011
Fantasia by Marney Leerson
Artist Statement: fantasia wasinspired by a Jinny Beyer design in a 2007 magazine. I made the foundation pieced centre and the quilt 'rested' for four years. In 2011 I decided to finish Fantasia. I placed the centre on point, added drafted foundation pieced fans and appliquéd birds.
