Spice Route Quilts at New England Quilt Museum

We are excited to have our Spice Route quilts on exhibit at the New England Quilt Museum in Lowell, Massachusetts!  We have visited this museum several times and seen some absolutely wonderful exhibits, but never thought we'd have quilts of our own on display here.  What an honor!  Of course, the Along the Spice Route exhibit is more than worthy.

Here is a quote from Pam Weeks of the museum to Paula Golden, exhibit curator, about the exhibit. 
"What fun we had yesterday hanging this lovely exhibit. Thank you for all of your hard work. All of the quilts are in good shape and it looks great."  Pamela Weeks  Binney Family Curator
New England Quilt Museum

Though you've seen them several times before, these are our 2 quilts.

 Elizabeth's China - Black Pepper

Sue's Mustard Seed.  

If you haven't had an opportunity to see this exhibit, be sure to take some time to view the collection at the link above.  They have been traveling since March of 2015 and after the New England Quilt Museum, will move on to the Texas Quilt Museum and the Rocky Mountain Quilt Museum.  

Happy Thanksgiving everyone!

Current Exhibits at VQM

Over the weekend Sue had an opportunity to visit the Virginia Quilt Museum in Harrisonburg, VA, for the opening of the "Inspired By the National Parks" exhibit and artists reception.  It was a double treat as she has TWO quilts currently on exhibit, the one in the National Parks group and the other in the "Along the Spice Route" exhibit still on display.  How cool is that??  All current exhibits run through September 10.

We started with the Spice Route quilts, since Sue's friend Kathy had not seen that exhibit in person yet.  The gift shop offered this reminder of the exhibit.

Here is Sue with her quilt, Mustard Seed.

Some other views of the display - the "log cabin" room.

And gallery walls; Elizabeth's quilt is in the corner on the left.

Moving on to the main floor, we found the a portion of the parks quilt exhibit in the room that normally houses Civil War quilts and artifacts.

The exhibit covers the walls floor to ceiling, windows too!

There is great impact seeing all these wonderful quilts blanketing the walls.

However it is a bit more challenging to see those near the bottom close up.

Sue's quilt was in this room, the Scarlet Globemallow flowers at the bottom representing Mesa Verde National Park.

The other half of the exhibit was in the upstairs hallway and small exhibit room on the 2nd floor.  The small room had the best lighting.  Of course the lighting in all the galleries is controlled so as not to damage the textiles.

It was a great day for an outing as we did some row by row shop hopping on the way to the museum.  More on that in another post.

Along the Spice Route at the Virginia Quilt Museum

On Saturday, June 11, 2016 Elizabeth went to Harrisonburg, Virginia, for an Artist Reception marking the Virginia Quilt Museum’s display of  Along the Spice Route. Both Elizabeth and Sue have quilts in this exhibit but Sue was unable to attend. 

The quilts are mostly displayed on white walls in the basement gallery of the museum which is located in an historic home in downtown Harrisonburg. Elizabeth likes seeing them displayed against a white background. There is one room called the log cabin room where the walls are a light wood and some quilts are displayed there, but she likes them best on the white because the warm tones of the wood absorb some of the light and provide less contrast.

This is the fourth time she has seen the exhibit, twice on white walls in a gallery style setting, twice on black drapes in a show setting. The white walls seem to show off the vibrant colors in these quilts quite nicely and are her preference although the hanging in Fredericksburg at the Sewing and Quilt expo was dramatic with the quilts hanging in two long rows.

The reception hosted by the museum was very nice and it was a treat to get to meet many of the other quilters who contributed to this exhibit.

Other posts about this exhibit were in August 2015 at the New England World Quilt Show, October 2015 at the Sewing and Quilting Expo, and November 2015 at the Manassas Center for the Arts.  It's always a thrill to see your own work hanging in an exhibit!

Sue's Spice Route Favorites

Like Elizabeth, Sue had her favorites of the Spice Route quilts for various reasons.  In some cases it was the workmanship or techniques, in others it was the very skillful choices and manipulation of fabrics to create strong visual impact.  We still feel honored to be included with this group of quilt artists!

Road to Mathura - Ginger from India by Carole Nicholas stands out for it's design which invites you in and captures you with her attention to detail.  The beautiful hand quilting and neutral background balance the colorful figures in the foreground.

When viewing pictures of Quest for the Nutmeg by Nancy Oldham, Sue thought it looked like a painting.  In this close up you can see how the fabric choices helped her achieve that effect.

Elizabeth and Sue share Tanzanian Cardamom by Peg Green as a favorite.  With it's bright colorful batiks and skillful use of fabric you can't help but be drawn in for a closer look.

Cinnamon by Jill Jensen stands out for it's color evocative of cinnamon and the block printing and discharge techniques used.

The Spice Bazaar-Cumin by Karin Tauber has great visual impact.  Here is a close up of the spice crocks in the bazaar.

We ran into Linda Cooper at the exhibit and got a shot of her with her Sanctuary (Mustard Seed) quilt.  Her circular cut work creates an intriguing view through the window.

Ann Reardon's Tumeric Caravan is another shared favorite and here is a close up view of a different aspect, the tumeric plants with beautiful shading and stitch detail.

We hope you have enjoyed this virtual exhibit and check the touring schedule to see if it will be coming to a venue near you.  It really is so much better in person!

Elizabeth's Favorites from "Along the Spice Route"

The quilts in the exhibit "Along the Spice Route" are all interesting and include some spectacular workmanship.  As this was the second time Elizabeth got to see the exhibit, she focused on details of her favorites. 

Banda Island Sunset-Nutmeg by Anita McLarin was a favorite piece and the three dimensional leaves on the vibrant background make the quilt very interesting.

Bunny Jordan’s Ajwain quilt included this charming pastel panel.

Tanzanian Cardamom by Peg Green is an amazing study in the technique of making faces take shape through the use of contrasting fabrics.  It is certainly an impressive example and the bright colors are so fun.

Ricky Smith Selva made Za’faran-Saffron with some beautiful 3-D flowers in a basket and a field of stitched saffron flowers.  These details are charming.

Star Anise by Gwen Goepel includes a very accurate interpretation of this fragrant spice.

Co-curator Ann Reardon made a spectacularly colorful interpretation of a camel led spice caravan with a bright variegated fabric background and a vibrant banner across the top in Turmeric Caravan.

The details of the ship and people in Banda Niera-Nutmeg by Karen Starnes really stand out as a highlight of the exhibit and perhaps I would have to rate it as the favorite of the favorites.

A big difference between this show and the same exhibit at the Manchester NH show reviewed here was the arrangement of the quilts. At Manchester, they were in small groups in alcoves, which was nice.  But the impact of seeing all the quilts in two long rows at once at the Sew Expo was more impressive.  It will be interesting to view the collection again in another venue, the Center for the Arts in Manassas, VA where it will be on exhibit from Nov. 5 to Dec. 16, 2015.   You can view full size photos of all the quilts on Paula Golden's website here.

Sewing and Quilt Expo/Along the Spice Route

We were excited to attend the Sewing and Quilt Expo in Fredericksburg this weekend where our "Along the Spice Route" quilts were being exhibited.  You might remember that Elizabeth saw them in New Hampshire this summer, but this was Sue's first chance to see them on display, and to see the whole group in person as opposed to online photos.  What a treat!  It really is an impressive exhibit.  Kudos to Paula Golden and Ann Reardon for curating it, and inviting us to participate.

The exhibit sign tells the story of the spice route.

Half of the exhibit spanned one wall.

The other half faced it on the opposite wall.  In New Hampshire, they were set in alcoves, so there wasn't the impact of seeing them all at once.

Sue with her quilt, mustard seed.

Elizabeth with her China black pepper quilt.

This quilt by the curators depicts the ancient spice routes and the key shows where the various spices are found.

In additional posts, we'll share some of our favorites.  Hope you enjoy the virtual show!

World Quilt Show - New England

Last week Elizabeth went to the World Quilt Show New England in Manchester, NH.  It is one of the shows put on by Mancuso Show Management.  In addition to the standard show entries and vendors, one of the special exhibits was the "Along the Spice Route" exhibit, in which both Elizabeth and Sue have quilts.

 

Along the Spice Route is an exhibit of 41 wall quilts interpreting a spice used in cooking today and its country of origin. In addition to the artistic interpretation of a spice, the goal of the exhibit is to provide a learning opportunity about the origins of spices, learn the importance of early trade routes and the connection between countries. The exhibit is curated by Ann Reardon and Paula Golden.

We've shared pictures of our spice quilts before, but Elizabeth was so excited to see her quilt in person hanging in a show.  She reports that the venue was bright and well lit and it was a pleasure to view the quilts in that setting.  It's always a little nerve wracking to go to see your own quilt in public as you hope it hangs straight and has good lighting along with being seen as a good example of your work.  Having your mother come along to check it out added a bit to the stress too.  Elizabeth was happy with her quilt hanging in the exhibit and of course is a great admirer of Sue's exquisite work so she knew her quilt would come across as fabulous!

Here are some more photos from the exhibit.

 

Sue's Mustard Seed on the left, and Star Anise by Mary Beth Bellah.

 Elizabeth's China Black Pepper.

Road To Mathura by Carole Nicholas

Merci Edmond Albious by Beth Weisner

The show will also be at two upcoming venues in Virginia - the Sewing and Quilt Expo in Fredericksburg, VA, Oct. 1-3, and Center for the Arts, Manassas, VA, Nov. 5 - Dec. 16, 2015.