Pacific Piecemakers Quilt Guild

Bits & Pieces

July 2002 -- Volume 7, Issue 7

Jackie Morse, Editor

KASURI DYEWORKS Lecture and Trunk Sale

July 19th at the Community Center

12:30 Refreshments   *   1p.m. Program

      East meets West when Kasuri Dyeworks visits our Guild. It is a privilege and rare opportunity for us to view, handle, buy, and learn about the making of some of the world's finest fabrics. Traditional Japanese textiles in all their variety will be the subject of Debby and Koji Wada's lecture and trunk sale. The Wadas have given this program to prestigious museums and textile groups around the country and received overwhelming response. We are very fortunate to have this generous and interesting couple visit us.

      For those who missed their first visit to PPQG in March 1998, it was a sold-out event! Mr. Wada is a dynamic, charming, and knowledgeable speaker. He is a native of Japan, and he and his wife travel there frequently to purchase the best textiles available, both newly made items as well as antique fabrics and kimonos. Many of these textiles, in cottons and silks, are made by processes which are endangered. The craftspeople who hand-print, hand-dye, and hand-knot the fabrics are no longer being trained. So mark your calendar and prepare yourself for a treat unlike any other, and please bring a friend. Anyone interested in textiles or in Eastern culture would enjoy this program.

Upcoming Local Shows

      The Art Quilt Study Group is busy finishing up new pieces to be featured in their Dolphin Gallery show called Fabrications: Exploring the Year in Quilts. Annie, Anita, Judith, Iris, Janet, Elaine, Jackie, Jo, Bev and Gayle invite you to join them for an Opening Reception on Saturday, July 6th from 5-7 p.m.

      Judith Jones is also preparing for her one-woman show at The Sea Ranch Lodge in September. Please mark your calendars and join her for the Opening Reception on Thursday evening, September 5th from 5-7 p.m.

Art in The Redwoods Booth

August 17th & 18th are just around the corner.  So far, 304 items have been received from 33 members. We need about 480 items to fill our TWO LARGE BOOTHS.  Remember the proceeds from this fundraiser make possible the wonderful speakers and events we enjoy.  PLEASE, we would like to receive donations from every member. Items received so far include: pin cushions, wine & tea cozies, comfort, lap & baby quilts, wall quilts, pen & thimble holders, placemats, potholders, fabric boxes, sachets, fabric (fat quarters), tote bags, and children’s toys. Mark your calendars because July 31st is the last day to turn in your items to committee members.

          Then, come enjoy the Festival and support your Guild. Plan to do your birthdays, Christmas and gift shopping at our booth. Bring your friends. There will be many beautiful and unique items to choose from.

From the President

      Our guild activities continue to excite, delight, and even incite a feeding frenzy of sorts, at Giselle Shepatin’s fabric table, and at Eddie’s and Carolee’s quilt stores on our “Quilting Safari” in June.  Kasuri Dyeworks’ exquisite textiles await us in July. Be assured that this program is a winner, as all who remember Koji Wada’s March, 1998 presentation would agree. Once again, it’s all about textiles, and using them to create things of beauty, which we all know are ‘a joy forever’.

                                                                   Paula Osborne

GUILD GLIMMERS

By Jeri Taylor

          We had a real treat at our last meeting with the visit of Giselle Shepatin, weaver, designer, and textile artist.  Giselle brought an ample supply of her imaginative clothing, luscious fabrics, and beautiful hand-woven scarves – which many of us left wearing!

          She presented a slide show which had everyone ooohing and aaaahing. Her evolution as an artist was very much in evidence, from the days when she hand-wove her own cloth and sold four vests and four skirts, until the present time when she hires others to do the weaving while she experiments boldly with ethnic designs and fabrics.  The designs of her clothing were truly spectacular and show the confidence and courage of a committed artist.

          Slides of her travels to Bulgaria, Turkey, and India gave us a good look at the locales that were clearly inspirational to her.  Her love affair with India after a visit there is visible in many of her current designs.

          And – Giselle excels in another, more esoteric area:  she is a world-class weight lifter,  just inducted into the sport’s Hall of Fame!  Believe me, her body is a walking advertisement for the benefits of strength training!

          In all, it was an unusual and inspirational presentation.

Member News

We have two new members:

Anne Prentice,  14771 Cypress Point Rd. Manchester  95459, Birthday June 29, email apren@mcn.org

Suzy Bates,  158 Joost Avenue, San Francisco  94131, Birthday March 26,  no email address at present, local phone is 785-2069

And three new email addresses:

Katy Horn's is seahorn@gtcinternet.com

Miriam Littlejohn's is miriaml@mcn.org

and Judith Jones’ is judithjones@pocketmail.com

Make a note!

Help for Darkening Project

Pacific Piecemakers will be making room-darkening shades for the upstairs classroom at Gualala Arts. Barbara Kalinoski will direct the project and design the necessary hardware. Guild members are needed for cutting the fabric and sewing the shades. The workshop dates are Monday & Tuesday, July 22nd & 23rd. If you wish to volunteer, please call Barbara at 884-9522 or Carol Tackett at 785-1024.

Block of the Month Extended

   After making her announcements for the Winding Way Block-of-the-Month at our June meeting, Mary Austin saw panic and insecurity in the eyes of her audience.

      In order to alleviate concerns and interest a few more quilters, Mary is offering a short mini-workshop in her home on Thursday, July 11th. You can stop by anytime between 1 and 4pm, and Mary will show you how simple it is to make this lovely block. And, she is offering to extend the deadline on this one by a month.

      So for the more intrepid amongst our members, here is a wonderful opportunity to stretch a bit, and Mary will lead the way. Call her for more information at 785-2181.

The Challenges of A Challenge Show

by Annie Beckett

      Our Guild Challenge Show is neither a judged nor juried show. We have the luxury of making our quilts without the pressure of an official selection and assessment  process hanging over our heads, without the anxiety of wondering what a group of experts would think of our effort. Still, all of us care to some extent about the opinions of our fellow quilters and the show's viewers when we submit a quilt for public display. As the Challenge Committee received the entries for our recent Challenge show and was once again impressed by the richness of local talent, some of us on the committee began to speculate what the experts might say about our work and whether knowing what goes into such an evaluation might help us grow in skill and artistry. I've done some research.  Here's the first installment of  what I've discovered:

      There is no definitive canon on how to judge a quilt. As Joen Wolfrom said in an interview with Quilter's Newsletter Magazine on the subject of judging, "A totally standardized system of judging limits creativity and puts too much emphasis on one organization's or group's point of view."  Not a problem: the likelihood that a large group of quilt artists (which is what most quilt judges are), could ever agree on a standardized system of evaluation is infinitesimal. That said, most judges take into account four elements of artistry: originality, creativity, design and workmanship.

      Originality and creativity are the most difficult elements for a judge to define or for a quilter to achieve. The influences that shape creative choice are ubiquitous, the materials available are not limitless and the biases of specific time and place are unavoidable. Yet it can certainly be argued that short of a direct copy, every quilt has an element of originality that comes simply from being created by one individual instead of another. How successfully the creator's individual choices define the finished quilt is something a judge notices. One diamond in the square quilt (to take a simple example), may shine when compared to another because its maker used color in a surprising and effective way, or varied the sizes of the blocks, or integrated the classic block into another overall design. Joen Wolfrom says, "I do not believe originality and creativity can be judged...However, they should be in evidence." A surprising, creative quilt jumps out at a judge and considering how many quilts a judge has to evaluate in a hopelessly limited amount of time, it is bound to impress. Faye Anderson concurs, "Originality and creativity are very important. These two characteristics separate the award winner from those quilts that are superbly crafted but not creative....The risks the designer takes when putting planning and thought into an original design deserve our admiration and appreciation."

      We all know originality and creativity when we see it, particularly when we are looking at something familiar. If you are interested in pottery and have developed a familiarity with pots, the pot that is innovative, that successfully incorporates an unexpected element or idea, jumps out at you. You may like it or not, relate to it or not, but you will still applaud the potter's originality and creativity.  It is the same with all artistic effort.

      So how should a quilt artist set out to be original and creative? According to the most accomplished quilt artist/judges, she/he shouldn't. As in Should Not. Many of the old masters in painting accomplished their formidable techniques by spending years replicating the best paintings of the old masters that went before them, stroke for stroke. That's how they learned technique. But their contribution to art came when they reached inside for what they uniquely were compelled to paint. When it comes to workmanship, it behooves us to imitate the masters, the accomplished quilt artists we are privileged to study with. But there the value of imitation ends. Penny McMorris advises aspiring quilt artists "...not to look at what others are doing, but at their own work, to let their own ideas and designs show the way. It takes time and struggle, but by believing in your own work, refining it, and learning from it, you'll develop authentic originality. And that is what judges, no matter what the show, are looking for."

July Birthdays to Celebrate

Naida Mauthe & Sue Lease                   3rd

Our Country                                        4th

Lynne Atkins                                       20th

Renata Lopez                                      22nd

Laurie Mueller                                    24th

Claire McCarthy                                  28th