Pacific International Quilt Festival Day 11

We've had such fun showing you all the fabulous quilts of  P.I.Q.F. 2012.  Today we are concluding our regular coverage of this great show, but we'll return occasionally to feature "The Best of PIQF 2012" with some very interesting works that we haven't shown before. Let's go !

Aotearoa  (Land of the Long White Cloud), 80.75 x 53.75, by Kathleen Matthews, United Kingdom

"Best of Country" blue ribbon award winner for the United Kingdom, Kathleen writes, "My eldest son lives near Rotonia in New Zealand. We have travelled around the North Island and South Island several times; such a beautiful country."  ( Note : Aoetearoa, pronounced "Ow-tay-ah-row-ah", is the native Maori people's name for the land that is now New Zealand).

Close-up of Aotearoa
 

Kathleen adds, [This work is] "Hand and machine appliqued. Embellished with sheer fabrics and metallic fabrics, heavily machine embroidered and machine quilted."

Close-up of Aoetearoa

Kathleen continues, "I found inspiration from many sources, including my photography, advertising, tattoo designs, art, and historic paintings. I hand dyed my own fabrics and  fabric painted the center panel." ( shown immediately above).

Indian Rhapsody, 55 x 50, by Hazel Foot, New Zealand

Winner of the blue ribbon, "Best of Country" award for New Zealand, Hazel states, My inspiration comes from a photograph I took in India of a small carved wooden panel. I have created a tryptych with a different floral motif in each centre. The colours are chosen to reflect the vibrancy of India. The three panels are constructed individually and stitched together. The piece is machine appliqued in satin stitch and extensively machine quilted, then embellished with hand-sewn beading. Fabrics used are cottons and silks."

Recovery in Japan after the Earthquake and Tsunami  ( Disposal of Debris), 53 x 55, by Reido Aksmatsu, Japan

Reiko notes, "My husband and I volunteered as members to help with the decontamination of radioactivity in Fukushima. There are many problems recovering from the disaster. The things we have trouble with are invisible  and without scent, which reflects radioactivity. It is necessary for us to develop power to see invisible things. Many precious kimonos were lost from the tsunami (  in March, 2011). So, using Kimonos, we hope that we Japanese will maintain high wills to recover from our losses."

Rays of Happiness, 117 x 98, by Linda Herrera, Salinas, California

Linda says of her original design, machine pieced quilt, "Quilting gives me energy when I am exhausted with other aspects of life; it's like a mutual relationship, one feeding off the other. The act of quilting gives me space to express my creative energy, even when I am otherwise tired and depleted. Little by little, the 'hands-on' experience of quilt making helps clear my mind, inspires new ideas, and gives me energy for other parts of my life. Long arm quilted by Holly Casey."

Cecil and Poiter on a Desert Island, 63 x 66, by Frances Mulholland,  Australia

Frances writes, "When they were young, I used to tell my boys stories about an angry little penguin (Poiter) and a wonderful dromedary (Cecil) who always saved the day, by knitting something wonderful. I used intense applique and machine embroidery with some fabric tinting to show the moment Cecil kissed Poter on the head at the end of the story - 'See, Poiter, I have knitted you a palm tree.' The story is embroidered around the binding."