Highlights of the 2016 AQS QuiltWeek / 4

The 2016 AQS QuiltWeek in Phoenix, Arizona was one of the best shows ever!  With hundreds of quilts and very special exhibits by renowned quilters, it was an incredible show. Here are some more of our favorite quilts.
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Swimming Upstream, 44 x 33”, by Naida Koraly (Cape Carteret, NC)

This mermaid with her flowing locks appears to be swimming with ease! We admire Naida's split-complementary color scheme of golden yellow with hues of cerulean blue to violet. Naida's lovely quilting can be seen in the closeup photo below.

The description reads:  "Naida was arranging pieced squares for a bed quilt and making a small mermaid art quilt when she realized that the two needed to be merged into one. The bed quilt was put on hold and Swimming Upstream emerged."  Naida says that the quilt pattern was by Sarah Maxwell and Delores Smith at Homestead Hearth.  

Summer Storm, 48 x 34”, by Peg Collins (Alamosa, Colorado)

Peg Collins’ used her hand dyed cotton fabrics to create this Summer Storm, which was designed in the style of Dutch painter Ton Schulten. Peg's houses are set among brightly colored fields and surrounded by groups of monochrome trees. The piece was laid out and fused in place, then quilted. Ton Schulten (born 1938) is known for his landscapes that are painted using bright blocks of color. 

We love the sky in Summer Storm. The driving rain was depicted with parallel quilted that appear to have been overstitched for emphasis.  On her website, Peg explains: "One problem that I had is that I decided the lines of rain didn't show up as much as I wanted. I added more lines in a lighter thread color."

Following Mommy, 32 x 31”, by Barbara Barrick McKie (Old Lyme, Connecticut)

Barbara McKie's work is instantly recognizable for the way in which she merges digital photography with quilting to create artistic portraits in fabric.  On her website, Barbara explains: "My love of surface design, photography, and computer graphics, and my travels have influenced my work to make it unique in the art quilt world."  While in New Zealand, Barbara photographed two baby sheep following their mother up a hill where she was sitting. The effect is so realistic, it is like being in the scene.

The Past is Precious, 36 x 52”, by Claire Kerr (Scottsdale, Arizona)

The Past is Precious is a wonderful juxtaposition of colorful steer skulls with classic feathered star blocks. The steer skull is very symbolic of the Southwest where Claire Kerr lives. Claire chose bright colors to contrast with the deeper background.  For the underlying design, she used the Feathered LeMoyne star pattern from Electric Quilt (EQ7).  Each skull was embellished with a turquoise and silver pin as shown below.

In My Mind 2, 38 x 56”, by Eunsuk Lee (Cheongiu-si, South Korea)

This fanciful quilt was embroidered with dozens of different stitches and designs, inviting the viewer to look more closely.  Eunsuk Lee used a traditional Korean motif pattern for her design. The description reads, "In My Mind 2 expresses the tangled thoughts in Eunsuk’s mind through embroidery and free-motion quilting." Through searching the web we discovered that Eunsuk is a Bernina educator in Korea (no wonder!)   You can find her on Facebook and on Pinterest.   

Image credits:  Photos were taken by Quilt Inspiration.