Flying High: For the Love of Birds

The International Quilt Show in Salt Lake City, Utah, was a fun place for us to visit last month! There were a number of special exhibitions and quilts grouped by theme, which we really enjoyed. Here are some of the highlights of this excellent show!

This visually exciting collection of art and contemporary traditional quilts celebrates our feathered friends and the many ways in which they help sustain our ecosystems.

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White Raven by Virginia Greaves (Georgia)

Virginia writes, "Legend holds that black ravens were kept at the Tower of London (shown in the background) to protect the monarchy. My piece presents a rare white raven and asks the question of what that would mean for the monarchy and the Tower."

 Close-up, White Raven

Virginia's excellent, detailed original design was machine stitched. We enjoyed learning about the legend of the ravens in protecting the monarchy.

The Lord of Birds: Hunting in Magnolia by Mary Jane Sneyd (New Zealand)

Mary Jane created her quilt based on a photo by Leo Thomas in Cologne, Germany. She explains, "I was blown away by the obvious bond between a young Kazakh woman hunting with her eagle in Mongolia. In a male-dominated activity, this woman is working to keep a 4,000-year-old traditional alive and has found a way to connect to her traditions and her roots. In Kazakh, 'qusbegi' refers to falconers and comes rom the words 'qus', meaning 'lord', and 'begi', meaning 'bird', thus, 'lord of the birds'. "

 Close-up, The Lord of the Birds

Mary Jane's fascinating quilt is fused, raw-edge appliqued, and plaited, with machine and hand quilting.

Cockles Magic Circle by Denise Griffiths (Australia)

Denise notes, "Most days, I have two cockatoos that visit me looking for seeds or crackers. I call them Mr. and Mrs. Cockles. The male one is especially friendly and quite a character. I could think of nothing nicer than to make this quilt for them. " 

Close-up, Cockles Magic Circle

Denise's colorful, enchanting quilt is an original design which is photo printed. We especially like the pretty pink and mauve floral embellishment in the upper left background.

 My Feathered Friends by Laura Ruiz (Florida)

Laura Ruiz comments, "My Feathered Friends began with an 8 x 10 colored pencil drawing that I drew, photographed, enlarged, and printed on cotton. I added patchwork, followed by ghosted patchwork, created with paintsticks to blend into the background color." 

Close-up, My Feathered Friends

Laura continues,  "Since I love both kinds of feathers, the quilted kind and the living kind, I thought I would combine the two."  Laura's enchanting creation is pieced, appliqued, machine quilted, stenciled, and digitally printed.

Pelican Rescue by Michelle Jackson (New Mexico)

Michelle says, "This [quilt] is to bring attention to and educate the public about those who rescue, care for, rehabilitate, and release wild birds, such as the pelican, so that they can thrive in their natural habitats.

Close-up, Pelican Rescue

Michelle very creatively portrays this pelican from a side profile, so that the bird's striking, dramatic plumage can be shown. Her lovely original design is done with raw-edge fused applique.

 

Image credits: Photos were taken by Quilt Inspiration at the 2022 International Quilt Festival in Salt Lake City, Utah.  Note: Many of the contributors to the Flying High exhibit are members of Studio Art Quilt Associates.