StitchingCalifornia
Fiber Artists Interpret the State’s People, Life, and Land
StitchingCalifornia Fiber Artists Interpret the State’s People, Life, and Land
This exhibit focuses on the complexity of California. Quilt artists explore and reflect on the diversity, illusions, realities, and hopes that define — or at least help us better understand — the richness and contradictions of the Golden State. Premier Venue:
The Grace Hudson Museum, 431 South Main Street, Ukiah, CA 95482 www.gracehudsonmuseum.org August 17, 2019 – January 5, 2020 Reception: August 17, 2 - 5 pm Traveling to:
La Quinta Museum, 77-885 Avenida Montezuma, La Quinta, CA 92253 www.laquintahistoricalsociety.com April 5, 2020 – June 28, 2020 Mills Station Arts & Culture Center, 10191 Mills Station Road, Rancho Cordova, CA 95827 www.rcmacc.org August 2, 2020 – September 27, 2020 Museum on Main, 603 Main Street, Pleasanton, CA 94566 www.museumonmain.org June 20, 2021 – August 15, 2021 Temecula Valley Museum, 28314 Mercedes Street, Temecula, CA 92590 www.temeculavalleymuseum.org August 29, 2021 – October 24, 2021 Carnegie Arts Center, 250 N. Broadway, Turlock, CA 95380 www.carnegieartsturlock.org September 4, 2022 – January 1, 2023 SAQA was founded in 1989 as a non-profit organization whose mission is to promote the art quilt through education, exhibitions, professional development, documentation and publications. www.saqa.com 1
Curators
Holly Brackmann Jennifer Landau
California is known as the Golden State, but what makes it so? This is the question that was asked of Studio Art Quilt (SAQA) members in Northern California and Northern Nevada. The art quilts in the exhibit are their interpretations of the State’s People, Life, and Land. We were curious to see what was important to our member artists, and how they would use diverse materials and techniques to express their messages. The only guideline from SAQA is “the art quilt be a creative visual work that is layered and stitched or that references this form of stitched layering.” As you can see, the response is rich and varied. We offer our sincere thanks to all the artists for submitting beautiful, creative artwork for the show. Partnering with the Grace Hudson Museum allowed this show to move from a fuzzy idea to an impressive exhibition. The museum was an ideal partner, as it preserves the artwork of early California painter Grace Carpenter Hudson (1865-1937), exquisite examples of Pomo Indian basketry, aspects of local, state, and American history, and as well as offering contemporary art exhibitions. We particularly thank Director David Burton, and Curators Karen Holmes and Sherrie Smith Ferri, as they were instrumental in shaping the scope of “Stitching California.” The jurors, Katie Pasquini Masopust and Karen Holmes, have chosen art quilts that reflect their understanding of the theme, and how it relates to historic, as well as contemporary California. Thank you for your careful considerations of what to include in the exhibit. We also extend our appreciation to the Exhibition Committee for SAQA Northern California/Nevada, with special thanks to Denise Oyama Miller, Sonja Campbell, Jean Renli Jurgenson, and our catalog design team, Pat and Bob Porter, plus proof reader Sue Siefkin. The Grace Hudson Museum introduced us to Exhibit Envoy, an organization which brings high quality exhibits to California galleries and
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museums. We thank Amy Cohen of Exhibit Envoy for this opportunity to take the story of California and the work of our local fiber artists to communities throughout the Golden State. And to our viewers, we appreciate your interest in art quilting, and hope that through this exhibition, you find your own answer to what it means to live in California. Finally, our heartfelt thanks to each of the artists represented in this collection. Without you, there would be no “Stitching California.� Franki Kohler Roberta Lagomarsini Jennifer Landau Carol Larson Ann Baldwin May Denise Oyama Miller Cathy Miranker Melody Money Katie Pasquini Masopust The Pixeladies Patricia Reed Porter Priscilla Read Jean Renli Jurgenson Nancy Ryan Ann Sanderson Lin Schiffner Eileen Searcy Rickie Seifried Sue Siefkin Jan Soules B. Lynn Tubbe
Nancy Bardach Penni Barger Holly Brackmann Donna Brennan Barbara Confer Gerrie Congdon Lynn Crook Adriana Dakin Adriane Dedic Giny Dixon Aileyn Renli Ecob Cassie Elberg-Gibson Susan Else Laura Fogg Robin Goldner Vicky Groom Jane Haworth Susan Helmer Ann Horton Susan Kelly Barbara Kibbe
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Jurors
Karen Holmes Katie Pasquini Masopust
We are honored to have had the opportunity to jury this exciting collection of art quilts that interpret the complexities of the Golden State–a place that both of us have long called home. Katie was born in Eureka and has resided at both ends of California (Ventura and Humboldt Counties). Though she spent 25 years in Santa Fe, she returned to her roots in Humboldt County in 2016. Beginning as a painter who dabbled in traditional quilt making, she is now an award-winning fiber artist and accomplished teacher and lecturer. She is also a prolific author on creative quilting, and serves as the executive director of the Alegre Retreat at the Gateway Canyons Resort in Colorado, a destination for quilting enthusiasts and fiber artists. Karen was born in San Francisco, and has spent the majority of her life in the Bay Area and Sonoma County. Her background includes art history, graphic design, and archival studies. She is the Curator of Collections and Exhibits at the Grace Hudson Museum in Ukiah, Mendocino County. The Museum honors the legacy of early California painter Grace Carpenter Hudson (1865-1937), whose subject matter focused on the local Pomo Indians–masters of the fiber art of basketry. At the Museum, Karen has originated and designed numerous exhibits related to the art and artists of the state. Familiar with California, and with an eye for composition and innovative techniques, we were on the lookout for pieces that told a story and would make a compelling exhibit. As we went through the entries, we found ourselves reminded of the wonders–and woes–of our multi-faceted state. The submitting artists notably paid tribute to striking iconic places we ourselves had enjoyed (San Francisco, Marin, Yosemite, Hollywood), and to the beautiful native flora of California (oaks, poppies, grapevines, wildflowers, and redwoods). But we also saw distinct, darker themes emerge: the impacts of climate change on our state, such as drought, floods, and fire; the long-lasting detrimental effects of the Gold Rush; the persecution of and challenges faced by California’s Indigenous peoples, its Hispanic population, and the Japanese Americans interned during World War II. There were references to industry, economy, geography, and topography, to despair and hope. In short, a well-rounded picture of complex California began to form, and it was up to us to choose the works that best conveyed that picture. Unfortunately, there were many exceptional pieces that had to be 4
left out, as the number of quilts that could fit in a traveling show limited us, and we were tasked with choosing only one quilt from each submitting artist. Reading the Artist’s Statements that accompanied each piece helped us understand what each artist was trying to convey, and this often added a depth and richness to the artwork that aided our decisions. In the end, we strived for a balanced show of beauty, thought-provoking content, realistic and abstract images, and quality workmanship. Our thanks to all the artists, exhibit Curators, the Exhibition Committee for SAQA Northern California and Northern Nevada, and Exhibit Envoy. We enjoyed working with them and with each other, and both appreciated the creativity with which the artists approached the exhibit’s theme. We hope you enjoy the resulting show. Katie Pasquini Masopust
Valerian Still life “Valerian” is inspired by a playful still life of flowers and leaves gathered from a California field. The first step was to create the still life by cutting the shapes out of my painted canvases and collaging the still life by stitching the canvas pieces together. Then I translated that stitched painting into this quilt. This piece is the second in my new series based on California wildflowers. 5
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The Art
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Nancy Bardach 45" h x 30" w
Flowing 2 Trees and sunlit meadows abound in California, with liquid movement both diagonal and horizontal.
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Penni Barger 21" h x 28" w
Paradise Lost California is now known for devastating fires. “Do you live near all those fires?” is the first thing I am asked by those who do not live in California. Our firefighters have stood strong and brave as the color of the sky has transitioned from bright and cheerful blue to raging orange and red, and then on to the solemn sadness of purple gray.
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Holly Brackmann Photographer: Tom Liden
42.5" h x 28" w
Pomo Basketry Adaptations Pomo Native Americans inhabit Northern California and are recognized for their extremely ďŹ ne basketry made from local plants, feathers, shells, and beads. This interpretation in cloth of Pomo basket designs includes quail topknot, buttery, arrowhead, ant band, and deer back. Not all designs were called the same because the Pomo spoke seven distinct languages. I strived to keep the essence of Pomo designs, but used a personal palette of bright colors. 10
Donna Brennan 30" h x 15.5" w
Then and Now: Connecting Waterways “Then and Now” shows the waterways that give California life. The top depicts the Imperial Valley, where I grew up amidst fields and irrigation canals that made the Anza-Borrego Desert an international food producer. I now live where the Sacramento and American Rivers join. Here are artifacts of river life: River Road on the levee, the bridges, Folsom Lake (with a bead where my house is), the wetlands, crane migration, and curved rice fields. 11
Barbara Confer 54" h x 33" w
Sanctuary II There is no more iconic symbol of California than the towering redwoods of the North Coast. These magniďŹ cent giants represent the strength and endurance of the natural world, surviving ďŹ re and storm over centuries and providing habitat for many birds and animals. Their challenge now is to survive man-made disasters including destruction of the environment and over-logging. We need to protect these giants so that they may be enjoyed by future generations. 12
Gerrie Congdon Photographer: Kayley Hoddick
37.5" h x 29.5" w
California Sojourn We moved to California in the 1970s. From the Northeast, I was captivated by the diversity of the landscape. Once in Los Gatos, the golden hills on my left and the green mountains on my right always guided me home. The sculptural hills still thrill me with their golden glow in summer and their blanket of green after a rainy winter. From the blue PaciďŹ c to the rugged terrain of the Sierra Nevada, California’s landscape is stunning.
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Lynn Crook Photographer: Steven Crook
56.5" h x 38" w
O California! Mountains catch clouds, creating rivers that flow across valleys, into bays and meet the Pacific Ocean. Fresh water travels the land, nourishing people, animals, and plants. In harmony with this ecosystem, early people cared for and used trees and plants that provided shelter, food, and fibers for baskets. But this ecosystem is stressed: the land mined, forests leveled, rivers dammed and air polluted. Climate change brings hotter weather and rising waters. What can we do? 14
Adriana Dakin 34.5" h x 30" w
Hard-to-Count California California needs an accurate census count in 2020 for fair representation in government and funding. Children are among those often uncounted, left off confusing forms, and undocumented people fear how census data will be used. Symbolic elements include: Children hidden in folds and pockets; colors for hard-to-count areas; worn Levi’s for resilience, toughness, and history; a seam line open along the San Andreas fault; and a Southern profile portrait because borders are about people. 15
Adriane Dedic 44” h x 15” w
Movie Memories California is the home of the film industry, but not only in Hollywood. The little town of Niles in Fremont, California, is where Charlie Chaplin filmed some of his earliest films and where the Bronco Billy westerns were born. These, as well as Hollywood legends such as Bette Davis, Audrey Hepburn, and child star Shirley Temple dancing with Bo Jangles, are remembered in my filmstrip art quilt, “Movie Memories.”
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Giny Dixon Photographer: Sibila Savage
59.5" h x 38.5" w
Sierra Snowpack, 1975-2015 The California Department of Water Resources measures and publishes the snowpack amounts with the statewide averages every March 1st. The white lines represent the snowpack in the Sierras, starting with the year 1975, showing each year thru 2015. Nearly one third of California’s water supply comes from the snow in the Sierra Nevada and lower Cascades. The uctuations in precipitation illustrate the need for everyone to be prudent with their use of water. 17
Aileyn Renli Ecob 25" h x 20" w
Oak Leaves and Acorn California’s native oaks are widespread in our state. Their many varieties show variation in leaf and acorn shapes, in leaf color, in bark and in crown shape. To me, they represent natural, not built, California.
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Cassie Elberg-Gibson Photographer: Tom Liden
42" h x 33" w
Dancing the Dream This painting is from my photograph of members of Ballet Folklorico dancing at the 2018 Women’s March in Petaluma. Ballet Folklorico promotes the rich history of folk dances of Mexico. My perception of the dream is that the people of California will create and model an environment for people of all races, ethnicities, religions, genders, and sexual preferences to prosper economically, culturally, educationally, politically, and socially. 19
Susan Else 15" h x 12" w x 12" d
Hope A ďŹ gure with cracked-earth skin kneels in a dry riverbed, and a tiny seedling sprouts from her palm. This piece began as a comment on California’s seemingly eternal drought and the hope that it would end someday. As I was working on it, however, the piece became imbued with my dismay and resolve after the 2016 election. Sometimes hope springs in dismal circumstances, created from within us through force of will. 20
Laura Fogg 50" h x 39" w
California Cuisine “California Cuisine� is the clever buzzword that lures tourists and residents alike into the expensive restaurants that abound in our Golden State. But what is behind the glitzy and alluring bounty? Farmworkers still labor in miserable conditions with extremely low pay to grow and harvest that elegant produce. And food insecurity exists everywhere in the state - a huge number of people, even those who work, cannot afford to purchase food for their families. 21
Robin Goldner Photographer: Ree Slocum
34" h x 38" w
Caution: Carbon Change “2017 was the worst fire year in California, until 2018” - Gavin Newsom. In these two years, 3,275,318 acres of California burned. Homes, lives, and wild habitat were destroyed. Personal, state, and corporate economies suffered. Physical and mental health deteriorated. For thousands of years California’s Native populations used fire to nurture plant growth and improve hunting grounds. Because we’ve abandoned these healthy forest practices, and experience extreme climate (heat and wind), fires are fierce and frequent.
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Vicky Groom 17" h x 17" w
Injustice This is a memorial to the tens of thousands of Japanese Americans interned in the United States after the bombing of Pearl Harbor. Forced to relinquish their liberties, civil rights, livelihoods, and most of their possessions, over 110,000 Japanese Americans (more than 70 percent American citizens) were sent to live in detention camps. The Manzanar and Tule Lake Internment Camps in California held 22,000, including children, between 1942 and 1945.
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Jane Haworth 28" h x 32" w
Packing in to Point Reyes Preserving memories of exploring California is important to me. The rocky trails, eucalyptus scents, and encountering wildlife are all memories created backpacking in Point Reyes National Seashore.
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Susan Helmer 23" h x 34" w
The Visitor This spring was an explosion of color as wildflowers coated the hillsides of California due to increased rainfall this winter and spring. I focused on the state flower, the California poppy. This poppy truly represents the Golden State.
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Ann Horton 40" h x 30" w
Chico's Cart The Mexican/Spanish culture and people have greatly inuenced the history and shape of California across time. The vibrant colors, tastes, traditions, music, and art can be experienced across this beautiful state. This quilt depicts a young Latino ready for the farmers market, richly celebrating our shared heritage. 26
Susan Kelly 35" h x 26" w
Second Wind - Fort Point The Wind series celebrates the coast of California, which is embedded in my earliest memories and in all the important stories of my life. “Second Wind, Fort Point� recalls those whom we have lost. They are still watching, from the shoulder of the mountain, over the place where sunshine, ships, winds, tides, and fog converge.
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Barbara Kibbe 60" h x 24" w
The Shadow of Manzanar The central design motif of this piece was inspired by a shadow I photographed when visiting Manzanar, where Japanese Americans were incarcerated from 1942-45 in the cold, windy, dry, and bleak landscape of the California High Desert. Today you can see the bones of the lives lived there, including the ruins of eleven painstakingly constructed Japanese gardens. In size and dimensions, the piece references the Japanese scroll and it incorporates Boro stitching in lieu of binding.
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Franki Kohler 60" h x 24" w
Woodwardia Wonder Though I live in Oregon now, I have lived most of my life in California. My work has focused on plant life, and I especially appreciate the ferns that grow the whole western length of the state. The woodwardia fern, native to California, can easily have fronds 7 to 8 feet high. Its fractal-type growth and sheer size, especially when many are planted together, command attention. They are truly a wonder!Â
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Roberta Lagomarsini 37" h x 25" w
Bodie Lat 38.21354, Long 119.0156 Bodie State Park was a gold mining town located in Mono County, California, right at the state line. The quilt’s topo map sky shows Aurora, Nevada, as this area was originally assigned to California and named as the Mono County seat. Later, Aurora was found to actually be in Nevada. The Bodie mine was in production until 1942, when everyone walked away, leaving everything behind, now preserved in a state of “arrested decay” for visitors.
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Jennifer Landau Photographer: Sibila Savage
20" h x 18" w x 18" d
Painted Ladies Among the iconic views of San Francisco is that of the Victorian houses along Alamo Square, with the downtown in the background. “Painted Ladies” is an interpretation of that view, with many liberties taken to architecture and perspective. The viewer’s imagination must provide the hills.
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Carol Larson 40" h x 30" w
Fire & Flood Because of climate change California faced the irony of too little water and too much water, in several months’ time. Both wildfires and floods have devastated communities, taken lives, and forever changed the landscape. Sadly, this foreshadows the new normal in the Golden State. 32
Ann Baldwin May 17" h x 19"w
Blue Collider Event Display Science and scientific research in California push the learning envelope. World renowned universities and research facilities are at the forefront of many new discoveries. This quilt was created in a collaboration between artists and UCSC PhD physics candidates (2018-2019). It was inspired by experiments done in Large Hadron Colliders. When subatomic particles are smashed together, predictable patterns and colors are created. This facilitates the study of dark matter in the universe.
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Denise Oyama Miller Photographer: Sibila Savage
24" h x 36" w
Poppy Reserve We had an incredible event in California in 2019, the Super Bloom. An unusual amount of rain during the winter and spring resulted in enormous numbers of poppies and other wildowers. People stopped on the freeways just to take photos of the hills. The Poppy Reserve in Lancaster was actually closed, because there were too many people. Around Lake Elsinore in Southern California, the orange hills could even be seen from space.
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Cathy Miranker Photographer: Douglas Sandberg
29" h x 30" w
International Orange This small quilt pays homage to the bold geometric style of Czech artist František Kupka (1871–1957), reinterpreting his black-and-white painting, “Abstraction,” in ombré blue and the iconic color of the Golden Gate Bridge, which is known as International Orange.
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Melody Money Photographer: Glenn Marshall
38" h x 23" w
Moonlit Hills of Marin This piece was inspired by the coastal hills of Marin County, California.
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The Pixeladies 50” h x 38” w
Photographer: Glenn Marshall
Deb Cashatt & Kris Sazaki
Fault Line “Fault Line” uses words and phrases cut out from magazines and newspapers to highlight the interplay between form and message. It explores the car culture in California, emphasizing how the modern state was built around the car. The red jagged line not only represents the geological fault lines on which California sits but also points to our state’s other divisions or fault lines: north and south, urban and rural, documented and undocumented workers, etc.
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Patricia Reed Porter Photographer: Robert Porter
28 h x 19 w
California Dreaming: Who Can Own a Home? We have a housing crisis in California, both in availability and cost. This quilt points to that problem, with images culled from newspaper real estate sections. The brightly colored fabrics in poppy orange and deep purple suggest all those things that attract people to California‌and keep the crisis alive. 38
Priscilla Read 34" h x 38" w
Healdsburg Oaks Just about anywhere you look in California, you’ll see oak trees. The resilient oak has withstood droughts and made a comeback after ďŹ res. A group of glorious, backlit oaks caught my eye on a walk after nonstop rain during a quilt retreat in Healdsburg. For printing, I played up the blue and gold. Trapunto is used to add depth, and hand embroidery and machine quilting suggest the texture of the bark and twigs.
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Jean Renli Jurgenson 37" h x 26" w
Plaza Reimagined This piece honors the stunning architecture that is an important element of San Francisco. In addition to icons like the Painted Ladies, Coit Tower, Transamerica Building, and the Golden Gate Bridge, San Francisco is home to unheralded gems including the beautiful mosaic oor of a plaza near Montgomery Street. My interpretation interrupts the regularity of the pattern and gives our eye a path to follow, while giving a nod to a Bauhaus aesthetic. 40
Nancy Ryan 27.5” h x 37” w
Popping Up “Popping Up” is an art quilt that represents the Golden State and its state flower, the California poppy. Poppies are such a happy flower filling the fields in California with a splash of orange and yellow hues. Being born and raised in California, the poppy has always been one of my favorite flowers and one that I use in my art quilts.
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Ann Sanderson Photographer: Jim Delwich
29" h x 33" w
Sushi Q California is a melting pot of immigrants. Japanese have influenced the cuisine of many of us. My travels to Japan have fostered a fascination with the food. What I find interesting is the beautifully prepared sushi. In our town we are lucky to have a wonderful sushi restaurant. The chef prepares “works of art” that are amazing. A piece of marbleized fabric that looked to me like sushi was my starting point for this piece.
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Lin Schiffner Photographer: Gregg Schiffner
29" h x 36.5" w
California Topo California is geographically the most diverse state in the U.S. I chose to depict a topographical map to celebrate and to better understand the incredible biodiversity of our state. We can travel from the highest peak in the Continental U.S. (Mt. Whitney, 14,505’) to the lowest point (Death Valley, -279’). We are blessed with a natural wonderland of ecosystems. Honoring and protecting our biodiversity and preciousness of all life in California is our responsibility.
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Eileen Searcy 44" h x 36" w
Eureka This quilt is about how Northern California history is inextricably intertwined with rivers and their geologic bounty. “Eureka” means “I have found it!” and is the motto of our state. It harkens back to the Gold Rush which changed California in extraordinary ways. While sparking unheard of economic growth in California and the entire country, the Gold Rush also meant devastation for Native residents and the environment. 44
Rickie Seifried 25" h x 20" w
Madonna The San Luis California Madonna is a pictorial representation in fabric of California’s past and present art genres. The religious icon sits in juxtaposition to a current-day graffiti border. The piece signifies the juxtaposition of California’s past and present through photo transfer and stitch.
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Sue Siefkin 26" h x 38.5" w
Yosemite Valley: View from Taft Point Taft Point towers a dizzying 1000 feet above Yosemite Valley. Unguarded fissures in the granite walls drop straight down to the valley floor. The views are mesmerizing, terrifying, and occasionally fatal to hikers, base jumpers, and selfie takers. Like California itself, the hypnotic allure of the legendary place attracts seekers of beauty and thrills.
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Jan Soules 27" h x 38" w
Pink Coneflowers The beauty of nature can be found throughout the Golden State. A few years ago, I spotted an outcrop of coneflowers along the side of the road at an openair quilt show in Winters, CA. The photos I took became the inspiration for this piece. I wanted to make a “happy piece” to bring joy to the viewer.
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B. Lynn Tubbe 43" h x 33" w
El Dorado Crush Colorful vineyards in the fall, or vines threatened by ďŹ re and climate change? Grapes are California’s 3rd largest cash crop, creating 85% of the wine produced in the U.S. Yet global warming threatens the industry. Grapes previously harvested early in October are now picked in late August. Vintners change the types of grapes grown. A National Academy of Sciences study predicts wine grapes will soon be viable only on a thin strip along the California coast.
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Listen to the Artists To hear each artist speak about her art work, call (703) 520-6404 and then enter the audio number next to the artist name - followed by the # sign.
Nancy Bardach
2268
Franki Kohler
2289
Penni Barger
2269
Roberta Lagomarsini
2290
Holly Brackmann
2270
Jennifer Landau
2291
Donna Brennan
2271
Carol Larson
2292
Barbara Confer
2272
Ann Baldwin May
2293
Gerrie Congdon
2273
Denise Oyama Miller
2294
Lynn Crook
2274
Cathy Miranker
2295
Adriana Dakin
2275
Melody Money
2296
Adriane Dedic
2276
Katie Pasquini Masopust
2309
Giny Dixon
2277
The Pixeladies
2297
Aileyn Renli Ecob
2278
Patricia Reed Porter
2298
Cassie Elberg-Gibson
2279
Priscilla Read
2299
Susan Else
2280
Jean Renli Jurgenson
2300
Laura Fogg
2281
Nancy Ryan
2301
Robin Goldner
2282
Ann Sanderson
2302
Vicky Groom
2283
Lin Schiffner
2303
Jane Haworth
2284
Eileen Searcy
2304
Susan Helmer
2285
Rickie Seifried
2305
Ann Horton
2286
Sue Siefkin
2306
Susan Kelly
2287
Jan Soules
2307
Barbara Kibbe
2288
B. Lynn Tubbe
2308
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Front Cover Image: B. Lynn Tubbe, “El Dorado Crush” Back Cover Image: Susan Kelly, “Second Wind - Fort Point” Catalog Design & Production: Robert & Patricia Porter Contents copyright ©2019 Studio Art Quilt Associates, Inc. Images copyright by the individual artists. Images may not be reproduced or used in any way without written permission. All rights reserved.
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