Fly Me to the Moon at Library of Congress.

Tuesday was another great day.  The "Fly Me to the Moon" book of quilts is currently featured in a display at the Library of Congress, in the Science and Reading Room in the Adams building.  The quilt artists who were close enough and able were invited to come for a special tour and viewing of the exhibit, as well as a display of the quilts made by the participants, for that day only.  It was a very special event!

As we gathered outside the main entrance we began signing each other's copies of the book. Here are Marsha White and Linda Cooper, two of the local quilt makers.

Our morning started off with a tour of the Jefferson Building which opened in 1897.

This is the Great Hall on the main floor of the Italian Renaissance-style building which is heavily ornamented.  A large brass inlay of a compass rose is the centerpiece of the marble floor.

The second level mezzanine is highly decorated.  Fifty-six circular printers' marks adorn the triangular ceiling vaults.  In the ceiling of the west mezzanine above, the 8 paintings in the arches show The Sciences.  Three medallions in the center depict the arts - sculpture, architecture, and painting.

We saw the reconstructed Thomas Jefferson library on the second floor.  When the original collection of books was lost to the burning of the Capitol in 1814 where the library was housed, Jefferson offered his personal library as a replacement.  It was purchased by Congress in 1815 and became the foundation of the national library.  The books remaining are what is left after a second fire, before the current library was built.

Some of the books are Jefferson's originals.  Some have been purchased to replace ones that burned.  Some were replaced with identical copies from the Library's collection.  Others are still missing and the library continues to search for copies and replace them as they are found.

Above is the overlook of the main reading room.  It's hard to see here, but all those alcoves under the arches contain books.  The top of the dome which isn't visible here contains a mural painted by Edwin Blashfield representing Western civilization as understood in 1897.  The marble columns support 8 figures representing features of civilized life and thought. The bronze statues are tributes to men whose lives were devoted to the subjects which the plaster statues represent.

We then moved on to the Adams building where the Science, Technology and Business Division is located.  In the Reading Room here is the exhibit honoring the Fly Me to the Moon book. 

The display includes photo copies of some of the quilts, and other books from the library collection that connect to the events and themes depicted in the quilts.

From there we went to a central room where the quilts of those in attendance were on display.  Again, the display included books that linked to the subject matter of the quilt, as well as a placard for each quilt on display.  It provided an opportunity to see the quilts up close, sign each other's books, and chat with members of the library staff who came in to see them.

Here is Sue with her quilt.  Another amazing thing the library staff had done was create a slide show of all the quilts, which was showing on 2 electronic screens in the room.  The colors of the quilts on screen were particularly vibrant.

Above are the folks who made this all possible: Nanette Gibbs, exhibit curator and guide, her supervisor, and Susanne Miller Jones with husband Todd.  Susanne is the curator/book author of the Fly Me to the Moon collection whose forethought and dream made this idea a reality.

Finally, we have the  book itself along with Sue's quilt "Moon River" shown in the book.  The book has just shipped from the publisher and is available from Amazon. If you want to know more about the creation of Sue's quilt, you can read about it in this blog post.

Elizbeth's FMTTM Fvorites

Since Sue shared her favorite Moon quilts, it's only fair to highlight Elizabeth's as well.  Interesting that there wasn't a lot of overlap in our choices.

Snow Moon is by Ginnie Hebert of Puyallup, Washington.  Snow Moon refers to the February full moon, and is inspired by Native American lore.

Parkes Telescope - Australia is by Susan Auden Wood of Croydon South, Victoria, Australia.  The Parkes site was used to broadcast the pictures of the Apollo 11 moon landing.

Connected By the Moon by Susanne M. Jones of Potomac Falls, VA.  This quilt depicts Susanne's grandparents who were separated during WWI, he in France, she is Alabama.  They had agree to both look at the moon at a particular time each night, thus their connection by the moon.

Moon Dancer by Catherine Etter of Powhatan, VA.  Her quilt is based on the quote of VA Alison – "She blows kisses to the one who danced through her dreams and leaves a trail of moondust on her heart."  Catherine depicts a couple dancing from the moon to the stars, leaving a trail of moondust.

Stuart Roosa: Space Seeds is another quilt by Susanne Jones of Potomac Falls, VA.  Roosa took 500 seeds of various trees along with him into space; they traveled around the moon 34 times.  Most of the seeds germinated.  Called Moon Trees, they were observed for several years before being given away in 1975-76. 

Forward Motion is by Kate Colleran of Centennial, Colorado.  Kate's quilt is a tribute to astronaut Jack Swigert, a fellow Coloradoan.  He faced obstacles and disappointments throughout his life but kept moving forward.

Bad Moon Rising is by Scarlett Rose of Anderson, CA.  This quilt is a tribute to the popular Creedence Clearwater Revival song.

We hope you've enjoyed this virtual quilt show and encourage you to take a closer look at all the quilts on Susanne's website.  If you are near any of the venues where the quilts will be exhibited, it is well worth your time to see them in person.

Portrait Quilts in Fly Me to the Moon

One of Susanne's requirements in quilt topic selection for this project was to have quilts related to all the Apollo missions and astronauts.  Elizabeth was amazed by the number of quilts depicting people and impressed to see all the human faces and figures created in fiber. 

Alan Shepard, by Margaret Williams of Tucker, GA.  Shepard was the first American in space.

Dr. Mitchell and Friends by Phyllis Cullen of Ninole, HI.  Edgar Mitchell served on the Apollo 14 mission.  He drew attention years after his space experience by stating  that "aliens prevented nuclear war on earth", hence the "friends" in the background.

Godspeed! July 16, 1969 Apollo 11 Liftoff is by Denise Currier of Mesa, AZ and includes President Lyndon B. Johnson and Mrs. Johnson in the crowd.

Roger Chaffee OBM (Of Blessed Memory) is also by Phyllis Cullen of Ninole, HI.  His Apollo 1 mission failed when a fire destroyed the module and took the lives of the 3 astronauts.

Ed White is by Margaret Williams of Tucker, GA.  He was the first American to walk in space in 1965.  Enlarge this to look more closely at the fabrics used in the space suit.

Captain James Arthur "Jim" Lovell, Jr.  was created by Ellen Icochea of Alexandria, VA, and Jayne Gaskins of Reston, VA.  Ellen began the project by creating Jim Lovell's face.  When she became ill, Jayne Gaskins stepped in to complete the quilt.  Great team work!

Tom and Alexei Share a Tube of Vodka by Luana Rubin of Boulder, CO, celebrates the friendship of Tom Stafford and Alexei Leonov.  They were commanders of the Apollo-Soyuz Test project.  Here Luana imagines a moment where a tube of space food is covered with a label from a vodka bottle.

1968 Honored Men is by Etta Stewart of Randallstown, MD.  Apollo 8 astronauts Lovell, Borman and Anders were honored by Time Magazine as "men of the year" for making it to the moon and back.

Do click on these photos to see a larger view, and/or go to Susanne's website gallery for a closer look at these remarkable portrait quilts.

Fly Me to the Moon

The Quilt Show was fun but the spectacular quilts were in the back of the venue in a special exhibit called “Fly Me to the Moon”.  Our friend, Susanne Jones, whom we met at the CABS (Creative Arts Business Summit) is the curator and she has done a great job with the exhibit.  All the quilts are the same size and in some way reflect (pun intended) the moon and the Apollo project to send a man to the moon.  Here is the online gallery of the exhibit.  All 179 quilts in the exhibit will be included in a book that will be released September 28; it is available on Amazon for pre-order.  You can also find the exhibit schedule on her website; some venues will have only a portion of the quilts, while others will show the entire exhibit.

There are so many amazing quilts in this collection that it is almost impossible to pick favorites.  The variety of techniques and artistry is truly impressive.  Suzanne's concept for the exhibit and the book included depictions of the astronauts for the various missions as well as other moon-related topics.  You can explore more fully in the online gallery linked above, but we did pick out some of our favorites. In fact, as with the main show, it's too many for one post, so come back to see more!

The photo above gives you an idea of the size of the show.  There were 3 rows, each with 5 panels that each contained 6 quilts - on both sides!  Having all the quilts the same size and hung at the same height provided a pleasurable viewing experience.  Another nice addition was that you could call a phone number and enter the number on the quilt's label to hear a recording of the maker talking about their quilt. In no particular order, some of Sue's favorites follow.

Wolf Moon is by Timi Bronson of Hartsville, SC.  Her quilt depicts her interest in Native American lore, with the January full moon, the Wolf Moon.

Moonlight Sonata, inspired by Beethoven's Piano Sonata No. 14, was created by Wendy Starn of Alexandria, LA.  I love how she created Beethoven's portrait in the clouds.

Verne's Moon, by Marisa Marquez of Madrid Spain, is a tribute to Jules Verne, who is one of the biggest influences on the steampunk movement.  Click on the photo to enlarge for a closer look at the detail.

Kate Themel of Cheshire, CT, created Moonlight in Vermont.  This is her interpretation of the Ray Charles rendition of the song.  What a lovely moonlit scene she has created!

Leaving Home: Launch of the Apollo 8 is by Tanya Brown of Sunnyvale, CA.  This mission was the first to leave earth, orbit the moon 10 times, and return home.  This quilt is painted with water colors on cotton, and heavily stitched.  If you go to the gallery page you can see what the stitching looks like on the back of the quilt.

Letter From Granny by Diane Wright of Guilford, CT, features a letter written by Diane's grandmother in 1969 after a visit at the time of the moon walk.  In it, Granny marvels that she and Grandpa courted in a horse and buggy and now a man was walking on the moon!

Patricia Hobbs of Macomb, IL, created The Moon in the Classroom.  Not only does it perfectly evoke a 1969 classroom, but the image on the TV screen brings the moon landing to life.  Amazing detail!

Ricki Selva of Arlington, VA, is the artist behind Last Quarter Moon.  She depicts the line between daylight and night, when "steeply angled light rakes across the craters".  The amazing thing here is that Ricki spent almost 2 months drawing and painting the moon with permanent inks, dyes and paints.  You really need to see this in person to appreciate the detail and work involved.  If you didn't know better you might think it was a photograph.

Pseudo Lunar Topography is by Meggan Czapiga of Bethesda, MD.  She was inspired by microscopy imaging which captures a black and white image that is then colored.  This image depicts the topography of the lunar surface; blue areas are the lowest spots, red areas are the highest. 

As you can see, these are some amazing quilts.  But wait, there will be more tomorrow!  None included here depict the astronauts - those are pretty amazing too!  Kudos to Suzanne for conceiving and curating this project!

Fly Me to the Moon!

Sue is pleased to announce that her quilt "Moon River" was juried into an upcoming exhibit called "Fly Me to the Moon" which celebrates the 50th anniversary of man's first walk on the moon in 1969.  This project was conceived by Susanne Miller Jones who describes watching the moon landing and walk with her grandmother and cousin, and some family connections to the lunar project and astronauts.  She invited participation from national and international quilt artists through a call for entry early last year.  The collection includes 175 quilts, all 18" x 30", made by 142 artists.   Although specific venues are not yet nailed down, Susanne is working on that aspect and has interest from several.  It is anticipated that the quilts will travel through 2019.  (Due to space restrictions, not all quilts will travel to each exhibit.)  The quilts depict a variety of topics, including the first moon walk, the Apollo missions and astronauts, scientific moon images, moon idioms, songs, pop culture, myths and superstitions.  Here is Sue's quilt, "Moon River", based on the song that debuted in 1961 in Breakfast at Tiffany's and became even more popular when Andy Williams made it the theme song for his TV show.  She also remembers playing it on the piano.

  More about the quilt and its creation in another post.