Houston Int’l Quilt Festival 2022 – The Quilts, Part 1
Here we go, Houston 2022 quilts!! This year was especially challenging, as I had extremely limited time on the show floor. So I ran around and took photos without the joy of lingering in front of them, drinking in their beauty and detail.
Also, please note, there are NOTEABLE quilts that I don’t have photos of. If a lingering group was in front of a quilt I wanted to photograph, I just couldn’t wait until they left. I have no photos of some of the most remarkable quilts. And many times I do not post my photos of the big prize winners. Excellent photos of them are everywhere.
My “Much In Common” and “Third Time’s a Charm” (see below)
My “Much in Common” was on display and I was pleasantly surprised that when I first visited her, she had a group in front of her, enjoying the details and discussing her. That was cool! Honestly, in a sea of spectacular, I am thrilled that anyone stopped to enjoy my work. And look who she was next to – a very deserving award winner.
I have a philosophy about showing my work. Generally, I only show my work where I am teaching. The level of competition is so high that I know I will not ribbon, which is fine. Competition for me sucks the joy right out of quilting. If I’m trying for a ribbon, every. detail. matters. Ugh. I like to show where I’m teaching and that’s it. Others find joy in competition, I do not. Of course, if by some wild chance I ribboned, YES, I would be thrilled! But I don’t want to endanger the joy of creating.
Oddly enough, I found myself drawn to generally more traditional quilts this year. I am very careful to acknowledge the maker and quilter, but signage was sometimes confusing. If I have an error, please write me and I will fix right away. BTW, if you see my finger in front of a quilt for scale, I was NOT touching the quilt.
I will comment only on a few quilts as I go:
Third Time’s a Charm; Ruth Ohol
The details on this quilt were divine; enjoy:
Detail – Third Time’s a Charm; Ruth Ohol
Detail – Third Time’s a Charm; Ruth Ohol
Over the Cosmos; Tomoko Takeda
Heat Lightning; Amy Pabst
Amy Pabst work is stunning. This is a small quilt, note the ribbon’s size next to it. See below for how teeny tiny those seams are. Imagine the accuracy!
Detail – Heat Lightning; Amy Pabst
Kaleidoscopic XLIII: Square Dance; Paula Nadelstern with Rachael Dorr
A new look for Paula Nadelstern’s iconic kaleidoscope quilts.
Madam Butterfly; Marilyn Badger
There was lots of bling on this one!
Losing It; Randa Mulford
Cranberry Bog Reflection; Sue Colozzi
Bread; Diane Firth
I am a long time admirer of Diane’s work. She frequently uses some sort of sheer fabric that will cast shadow on the wall. This quilt cast a beautiful shadow.
The Glistening Light 3; Chiaki Dosho
Dance Room; Dana Owczarek
Fun! Joy!
The Contact: Grove; Ann Johnston
A Boy and His Imagination; Deb Cashatt
I love how she capture the essence and freedom of “boy”.
Once Loved; Alison King
“Photographic elements on canvas” created a remarkable piece. You HAD to draw in and look at it. I wish I had details shots to share with you. It was an amazing piece in person.
Put Up Your Feet and Take It Easy; Cindy Richard
Writing the Next Word; Bobbi Baugh
Blue Pots; Lisa Walton
Food Is Life, Food Is Love; Kathryn Alison Pellman
Everything on the Table; Marissa Marquez
Land of Cotton; Jayne Gaskins
Eternal Persia; Toshiko Imai
Hand pieced and quilted based on Persian carpets. What a magnificent piece!
A Spark of Joy; Zena Thorpe
Rose of June; Yumiko Yamamoto
This was one of my favorites. Look at that border!
Detail – Rose of June; Yumiko Yamamoto
Dark Hollow Falls; Nancy Hershberger
Illinois Album 2; Jane Sassaman
I love everything Jane creates. This piece is so exuberant and colorful.
Na-amah of the Ark; Lisa Thorpe
Introspeccion; Isabel Munoz Bueno
Incredible use of commercial ombre fabric.
Tree Town; Karen Eckmeier
Augustinii; Andrea Brokenshire
Detail- Augustinii; Andrea Brokenshire
Trip to America; Karen Hogan
Now you know I love a whole cloth! This was so beautifully designed and quilted. It just glowed!
Detail – Trip to America; Karen Hogan
In the Square Where the Refreshing Breeze Is Blowing; Isako Wada
Oh my, the hand workmanship!
Detail – In the Square Where the Refreshing Breeze Is Blowing; Isako Wada
Crazy Covid Stitching; Jane Haworth
I love Jane’s work and this quilt hung in the hand stitched category along with with the exquisite, detailed hand work like the quilt above. I loved that! Jane’s work is beautiful and whimsical, a delightful departure from the more detailed work.
Dear Humans…; Sue Sherman
I got a chance to talk with Sue; I appreciated the fact that her message was subtle. Her statement says that the animals are expressing their feelings about humans’ empty words about addressing habitat loss and climate change. She quilted her message into the top of the quilt. Sorry I didn’t get a good photo of you Sue!
I’ve got more next week. I may also be able to get to the River City Show too – I haven’t forgotten! It takes quite an effort to crop, adjust color and resize each image. I am running as fast as I can!
I’ll share at:
Thank you for sharing.
What talent and imagination went into each quilt.
They are truly amazing. I can only imagine what they were like to see in “real life”!
Thank you Patti! It is awesome to see them in real life!
Thank you Jenny. Appreciate you.
You are welcome! I love to share what I see.
Thanks for sharing these photos from the show, Jenny! Wish I’d been there in person. Maybe next year! I am especially fascinated by Isako Wado’s quilt. It’s incredibly intricate and if it had been made with every color under the rainbow, the effect could easily have been chaotic and overwhelming — “way too busy.” Her restrained palette in terms of both color and value allows her to create a quilt that is awesomely complex, yet utterly soothing to behold. And I love your attitude about entering shows, too. I totally agree — I feel like, in order to be competitive, you’d have to study and analyze which quilts judges were drawn to and try to create quilts that were specifically designed to satisfy what judges are looking for rather than creating quilts that express what YOU are looking for and wanting to say in your work.
Oh if I only had time to ponder the details of the quilts! Yes, Isako Wado’s quilt was quite lovely. I hope you make it next year; then we shall meet in person!
Oh, Jenny, thank you so much for sharing all of those stunning quilts. Wow! I’m sorry you didn’t have time to really study them. I had previously seen photos of some of them, but most were new to me.
I’m in awe of all of that creativity.
I know, it is humbling to see so much talent in one room. Glad you enjoyed the view.
Jenny, Thank you so much for sharing these gorgeous quilts with us. They are fantastic. The quilt designs, fabric choices and, particularly, the fine skilled fingers of the quilters are almost divine! Take care, stay well and have wonderful Holidays.
Thank you Loretta. Some of the quilts are just stunning. Wishing you also a wonderful Holiday season!
Thanks for sharing the beautiful photos that might not have received the attention of the big winners, but certainly just as spectacular
You are welcome Pat! The big winners—there are lots of high quality photos out there so yes, let’s look at some of the others!