Only a small part of the 2017 IQF experience in Houston.

Very  exciting to be in Houston when the Astros won the World Series!  After the devastation of Hurricane Harvey, this city needed a celebration.  I am spending a week in Houston to attend the 2017 International Quilt Festival, and wanted to share several images from Festival.  This event never fails to astonish me, with seamless (so to speak) transitions from antiques to contemporary traditional quilts to art quilts.

Part of SAQA’s juried exhibition Masterworks: Abstract & Geometric.

The 70,273 Project, curated by Jeanne Hewell-Chambers, with each double”X” commemorating a disabled person murdered by Nazi Germany. Many of the quilts from this ongoing worldwide project could be seen at Festival.

Danny Amazonas, Abyss, a recent textile extravaganza, fused and stitched with invisible thread. Inspired by the world’s 2nd largest aquarium, in Okinawa.

From the blockbuster solo show of 75 quilts by a remarkable Texan maker, Remembering Sue Garman: Traditional Talent Extraordinaire.

Bern House Quilt, c. 2010. 156 blocks interpreting the city of Bern, Switzerland.

Storyline: The Contemporary Quilt 

This fall, Houston Center for Contemporary Craft presents a survey of several noteworthy artists that highlights the spectrum of contemporary quilt-making techniques and traditions. Storyline brings together a diverse selection of quilters, including Kathryn Clark, Luke Haynes, Carolyn Mazloomi, Aaron McIntosh, and Anna Von Mertens, who document their stories as well as commenting on broader cultural narratives.  Through January 7.

Michael James, detail from Adrift, 2017. Poignant and personal.

Sandra Gschwandtner, Quilts in Women’s Lives V, 2014. A small work pieced in 16 mm film that packs a visual wallop with backlighting.

Anna Von Mertens, Arrangement in Gray and Black’s Aura, 2009. This haunting quilt interprets the “aura” of the figure in Whistler’s Mother.

Kathryn Clark, detail from The Russia Project.

Carolyn Mazloomi, detail from Wrapped in Love, 2016.

Glamour And Romance of Oscar de la Renta

The Museum of Fine Arts in Houston has organized a world-class tribute to the late Oscar de la Renta.  While I am not very interested in fashion per se, his inspired costume-like creations are fascinating and  the detail work in his ensembles and gowns prompts my creativity.  Through January 28.

Oscar de la Renta for Pierre Balmain, 1999-2000. I love the incredible pleated ribbon applique,

Oscar de la Renta, showing the Spanish influence of Balenciaga.

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