ATCs: Nine

As I opened the squishy envelopes filled with this month's ATCs (Artist Trading Cards), I knew immediately who the quilters were. The theme for September was "Nine." Looking at these cards, can you tell what was on everyone's mind?

"Nine"
(A stitch in time saves nine!)
by Karen Downer

"9" by Marilyn League

"9" (The disappearing 9 patch)
by Linda Smith

"Dressed to the 9's"
by Lisa Howard

"9 pins in a row"
(for safety, don't you know???)
by Liz Armstrong

(My favorite) "Nine" (Beethoven's)
by Bonnie Stevens

"Nine"
—After 8 and Before 10—
by Carlene Jacobsen

"This is what you get when you mix a blackboard
with some glow in the dark paint. A Domino"
by Sharon Griffith

"Nine"
"Let me count the ways."
by Cathy Dillon

"Nine"
by Veronica Hofman-Ortega

Gee's Bend production—a must see!

The cast of "Gee's Bend" at the
Chattanooga Theatre Centre.

Rich with history, the poignant story of the Gee's Bend quilters is brought to life on the stage of the Chattanooga Theatre Centre through the thoughtful and skillful writing of playwright, Elyzabeth Gregory Wilder, and a superb cast. Seven of my quilting friends and I had the pleasure of attending a matinee performance on Sunday.

Whether you are a quilter or not, "Gee's Bend: A Story of the Alabama Quilters," is a must-see performance!

Bruce Shaw of ShawNuff Productions co-produced and directed the production. Also recognized after the performance was our friend and fellow Choo Choo Quilters and CMQG member, Janet Suber, who put the script in Bruce's hands about a year ago.

Come to find out, Janet and Brenda Schwab, the costume designer for the production, also provided a hands-on "quilting tutorial" for the actors (who are not quilters or sewers) so they felt comfortable doing "hand piecing and quilting" in various scenes of the play.

Contributing to the ambiance, the lobby of the Theatre Centre is bedecked with a a display of Gee's Bend inspired quilts by Chattanooga quilters that was curated by Janet Suber, and a pictorial timeline of that time in history.

Pictorial timeline mounted in the lobby.

Gee's Bend inspired quilt exhibit. Improvisationally pieced with
both hand and machine quilting.

Here are photos of the quilts in the lobby exhibit. 

Quilt by Janet Suber, original design.

Quilt by Mary Keasler, original design.

Here I am with two of my original pieces, "Marketplace" (top) and
"A Tribute to Steve," that were included in the Gee's Bend inspired quilt exhibit.

Made from a Gee's Bend quilt kit
by Sandi Suggs.

"Gee's Bend—A story of the Alabama Quilters"
and so much more.

Those attending the Sunday matinee were treated to a Q&A session after the performance. Cast members, the playwright and producer took questions from the audience.

The Gee's Bend production goes through September 21, 2014. Call right now and get a ticket! 

This story is not only about the people living in a secluded, rural Alabama area who made quilts out of necessity and as a creative expression, but about a time in America's history, during the civil rights movement, about women's history and gaining the right to vote, and about our country's culture.

Feeling strongly about getting this story out to everyone, especially the youth in schools, producer, Bruce Shaw, is offering a special ticket price to school groups and youth organizations (or any organization). With 10 or more who come to a performance, the ticket price is less than $5 per student with a complimentary ticket for the supervising adult who accompanies the group. Contact the Chattanooga Theatre Centre for details.

QuiltWeek exhibits still happening in Chattanooga

Whew! What a exciting, colorful and quilt-filled week it has been at AQS QuiltWeek Chattanooga! Although the AQS show is over and the quilts are boxed and being transported back to owners or to future shows, there are still several quilt exhibits in Chattanooga to enjoy!

Gee's Bend performances at the
Chattanooga Theatre Centre,
through September 21.

Tennessee Temple University's Student Union: 35 quilts (8 from the 1800s), African textiles, UGRR arts and crafts, free fabric swatches. Through September 17.

Gee's Bend performances and Gee's Bend inspired quilts at the Chattanooga Theatre Centre through September 21.

Sampling of quilts by Kaffe Fassett and other quilts at the Houston Museum of Decorative Arts through the end of September.

Association for Visual Arts (AVA): Needle and Thread exhibit through October 24.

Bessie Smith Cultural Center: Textile: Quilts from the Zuri Quilting Guild through December 5.

Quilt show sidewalk art

Today, the sidewalks outside the Convention Center were decorated with sidewalk art in honor of the AQS QuiltWeek Chattanooga.

QuiltWeek Chattanooga sidewalk art.

QuiltWeek Chattanooga sidewalk art.

QuiltWeek Chattanooga sidewalk art.

Large tables were set up outside for visitors to enjoy lunch from the inside caterers or the myriad outside food trucks. It's been a fun first day at the festival.

Quilters and visitors enjoyed lunch and
lively conversation outside the Convention Center.

Volunteering: behind the scenes at QuiltWeek Chattanooga

Several guild friends and I had the opportunity to help hang the quilts for the AQS show in Chattanooga. Here is a photo chronicle of the two days prior to the show.

Terry Guill, with Michelle Duffy, AQS,
explains the quilt unpacking and hanging processes.

The AQS staff were great to work with and the process was so well executed. Chattanooga quilters were pleased to hear the compliments about the Chattanooga Convention Center facility—especially the natural light that this venue affords an exhibit comprised of stunning quilt artistry such as this.

Volunteers waiting to enter the showroom.

The hanging system is engineered for easy installation. All the equipment, tools and props are in a wooden crate with wheels. This storage crate is wheeled where needed from exhibit space to exhibit space.

Hanging system.

Entering the convention show room, the boxes, signage and displays are laid out on the floor. Vendors are bringing in their displays, racks, shelves and products to set up their booths.

Moving in and setting up.

We used the "pot passers" to hang the corded hooks on the curtained walls.

Quilt hanging system.

Setting up the various quilt exhibits.

Sliding rods into the quilt sleeves.

Sliding the rod into the quilt sleeve.

All the volunteers and AQS staff wore white gloves to handle the quilts.

Sliding the rod into the quilt sleeve.

Raising the quilts.

Raising the quilts.

Raising the quilts.

The "Welcome to Chattanooga QuiltWeek" sign lets you know you're in the right place!

QuiltWeek sign in the Chattanooga Convention Center main hall.

Pre-exhibit process for TN Aquarium, IMAX quilt exhibits, QuiltWeek Chattanooga

On Monday, the Chattanooga Modern Quilt Guild Committee members were stationed at the Chattanooga IMAX Theater for the drop-off of quilts for the Tennessee Aquarium and IMAX quilt exhibits, in conjunction with QuiltWeek Chattanooga. All anticipated quilt entries were present and accounted for at the scheduled drop-off time! 

Susan Lawson shows "Sparkly Sunfish" to Joan Thornbury at quilt drop-off.

Between the aquarium River Journey exhibit, the Tennessee River Collaborative project, the IMAX exhibit and a special Friday night (September 12) after-hours reception, 5pm to 8pm, there will be over 50 quilts on display.

A big Thank You to all the CMQG members who contributed their time, energy, talent and cooperation toward making this outstanding exhibit a reality. Special kudos go out to my Co-Team Leaders, Joan Thornbury and Vista Mahan, for all your collaboration, hard work, and thoughtful and creative insights during the planning and execution of this project.

Here are several committee members diligently working on checking in quilts, handing out quilt pick-up receipts, tagging bags, and separating and packing the quilts for each exhibit.

We had a sneak peek at a few of the quilts that you can see at these exhibits.

"Jellies" (left) and "Otters at Play" by Brenda Cregger.

"River Storm" by Josie Dinwiddie.

Detail of "Sparkly Sunfish" by Susan Lawson.
The inspiration photo is attached to the plastic bag.

The boxes are labeled and ready for pick-up for the final installation. Please visit and enjoy these exhibits and the work by members of the Chattanooga Modern Quilt Guild during QuiltWeek Chattanooga!

Exhibit quilts ready for installation.

QuiltWeek hits the airwaves

News about this week's QuiltWeek Chattanooga is hitting the airwaves! Melanie Coakley of Ready Set Sew was on WRCB's "3 Plus You" segment promoting QuiltWeek with quilted examples of the recent Row by Row Experience quilts, trapunto by machine—featuring my Colorwashed Trapunto class sample—using fabric selvedges, and other quilting and machine embroidery projects.

Melanie Coakley of Ready Set Sew promoting QuiltWeek Chattanooga.

Julie Edwards, 3 Plus You host, likens today's modern quilters cotton fabrics to Vera Bradley prints.

Colorwashed Trapunto sample.

Jed Mescon interviewed Robert Shaw, producer, and actress and singer, Azusa Dance about the upcoming performances of "Gee's Bend" at the Chattanooga Theatre Center during QuiltWeek.

Jed Mescon discusses the Gees Bend quilters.

Note the improvisationally pieced quilt in the foreground of the set. There will be a display of Gee's Bend inspired quilts made by local quilt artists hanging at the Theatre Center throughout the performance dates, September 10 - 21, 2014.

Gee's Bend inspired quilt by Janet Suber.

After you hear Ms. Dance sing a cappella on this TV segment, you won't want to miss this performance. Get your tickets today!

Quilts at Chattanooga WorkSpace, Southern Belle Riverboat, and Kaffe's quilts at the Houston Museum

A selection of quilts by Kaffe Fassett
will be on display at the Houston Museum.

This will probably be my last post prior to a full-swing, 110% immersed, AQS QuiltWeek Chattanooga envelopment that begins Monday. Several guild friends and I kicked off the celebration yesterday on the Gallery Hop and a visit to the "Needle and Thread" exhibit at Association for the Visual Arts (AVA) that I mentioned here.

Two quilt exhibits you don't want to miss during QuiltWeek Chattanooga is the 80+ quilt "Quilts of Chattanooga" Trunk Show at Chattanooga WorkSpace and an exhibit of traditional, historical-flavored quilts at the gift shop of the majestic Southern Belle Riverboat at the Tennessee River.

Kim, the owner of Chattanooga Quilts quilt shop, is coordinating and sponsoring these two exhibits that are comprised of over 90 quilts made by local quilt makers. The quilts will display the talent and craftsmanship of these quilters and feature all aspects of quiltmaking—hand and machine techniques, appliqué, patchwork, paper piecing and hand and machine quilting.

"Dream Garden"

I have loaned Kim two of my quilts, "Dream Garden" and "Strips and Flips," for the "Quilts of Chattanooga" Trunk Show. These quilts employ patchwork and lots of free-motion machine quilting.

Machine quilting detail: "Strips and Flips" 

While at the Chattanooga WorkSpace Trunk Show exhibit, be sure to wander the 4 floors of artist studios. Quilt- and thread-themed art will be for sale as well as other pieces made by the resident artists. A Chattanooga Quilts pop-up store will have pre-cuts, kits and fabric bundles available, and visitors can also enjoy munchies while experiencing the quilts and artwork in the evening hours. The "Quilts of Chattanooga" and the Southern Belle Riverboat displays have free admittance.

"Strips and Flips" by Veronica Hofman-Ortega

An extra special treat showing at the Houston Museum of Decorative Arts will be several quilts by acclaimed quilter and fabric designer, Kaffe Fassett. For a dose of color extraordinaire, be sure to visit this venue!

Quilt by Kaffe Fassett

For a recap of QuiltWeek Chattanooga area events, see this article by Times Free Press reporter, Lisa Denton. 12,000 attendees are anticipated for the QuiltWeek events with an estimated economic impact of $3 million in revenue. Quilters have purchasing power!