Shawn Towey

I discovered that I enjoyed graphic arts almost accidentally, after learning to make leaflets and newsletters for feminist and social justice causes I was involved with. I started quilting when graphic arts moved to computers and I missed making things with my hands. At first it felt like a mismatch: I never had the patience for traditional quilting. I wanted to work small, explore a new idea, and move on. Then I discovered a whole community of quilt artists who were already doing that!

Working with the ArtQuilts at the Sedgwick organizing committee has given me a chance to contribute to a dynamic institution in my own community, while having the pleasure of working with a group of creative, inspiring artists. I started volunteering for the 2001 show.

I am currently creating quilts that marry my various passions: nature, maps, and birdwatching. I continue to explore the continuum from realistic to more abstract representations of nature, places and memories.

2006 quilt:
Wissahickon Valley III: Her Dual Nature
23w x 38h




Artist Statement

Brilliant fall colors and autumn light always inspire me to use silk because of its reflectiveness. Spring and fall are mirror images in their own riotous palettes. The sky and creek are constants, yet are ever-changing and impossible to render in a static form. I wanted them to be viewable from both sides. Their transparency provides the unity of the two sides.

With fusible appliqué, I enjoyed the freedom to cut freehand shapes and to layer and move them around. There is a formal design, but there is also a lot of improvisation in this quilt.

Fuseappliqué, machine quilting, hand appliqué; hand beading. Commercial (new) silk and antique kimonos, ribbon, various threads, organza, tulle, beads.


2004 quilt:
Wissahickon Valley II: Spring Birdwalk
21"w x 24"h



Artist Statement

This map-quilt of the lower Wissahickon creek in Philadelphia is the fourth in a series that explores places and the memories they evoke. I use maps as one type of representation of "reality" and juxtapose them with satellite photos and more abstract ways of evoking a sense of place—color, texture, pattern, light. The map's topographical lines are quilted to portray depth; out-of-scale bird photos memorialize memories of sightings in those locations. An independent, partly transparent layer—depicting human-made elements imposed on the natural environment—floats above the quilt, held by the frame.

Techniques/Materials: commercial and hand-painted silk, cotton, ribbons, various threads. Top layer: Solvy (dissolved), tulle, hand-painted photo-transfer on silk, and silk threads. Plexiglass frame holding two layers apart.


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Melva Hightower

We forgot to submit our surveys before leaving the show yesterday. It was wonderful! I left feeling so inspired and in awe of the level of detail incorporated into each piece. It never ceases to amaze me that a few bits of fabric & some thread can produce such beauty. Thanks for the show.

Thus began Melva’s unofficial involvement with ArtQuilts at the Sedgwick.

She exited the 2002 exhibit buoyed by a secret knowledge and determination that she would someday soon work with the organization that produced the show. A short 16 months later, her official involvement began. She processed the applications for the 2004 exhibit then volunteered to help with lawn sign distribution, corralling gallery sitters, and serving as the voice of the audio tour as well as a variety of other tasks.

Just prior to the opening of the 2004 exhibit, Melva was offered the opportunity to join the Committee. She accepted without reservation. Since that time, Melva’s activities have shifted. She is now responsible for maintaining the online presence for AQatS and overseeing the Committee shared task of promotion and marketing in addition to a host of other activities.


Artist’s Statement

Texture. I love texture. Working with fiber reinforces my fondness for tactile expression.

When I was little girl, my mother taught me to how sew and how to crochet. It was this early indoctrination that reinforced an innate affinity towards fabric and fiber of all kinds. I remain fascinated by the seemingly endless variety.

My most recent work incorporates my interest in the recycling and reuse of waste materials—particularly paper. It is my goal to reduce the detritus in my life by creating works that utilize materials found in my everyday.


Quilt Description

RECLAMATION 1: Grandmothers’ Legacy
2006
24” W x 40” H
Papier-Mâché
Recycled Paper (several types), jute and thread

Papier-Mâché is made of common materials—paper and glue. Paper mash/paper pulp is made by tearing newsprint and other papers into small pieces and soaking in hot water. The mash is then beat with a blender or hand mixer and plenty of water. Once the water has been removed, white glue (polyvinyl acetate) is added as the binder. Bleach or natural elements such as oil of wintergreen or oil of cloves are added to keep the mash from souring.

The disks were made from 5 different batches of paper mash. Each disk was formed in a mold and allowed to dry then sealed with at least 5 coats of matte and/or gloss medium. The disks are backed with 5 layers of gessoed newsprint covered with stitched, tea-dyed paper. Jute is used as the connectors.

RECLAMATION 1: Grandmothers’ Legacy pays homage to my paternal and maternal grandmothers. Each woman had extraordinary sewing skills and each set a fine example of recycling and reusing available resources.

RECLAMATION 1: Grandmothers’ Legacy (detail)

Cindy Friedman

Cindy Friedman has a lifelong obsession with fiber. A childhood filled with sewing and needlearts, and careers as an Industrial Designer and as a Fashion Designer led to a convergence in the art quilt medium in the early 1990's. Her work has always reflected her fascination with human body forms, their construction, and function as they interact with architectural and geometric shapes, grids, and patterns.

The work she is currently producing continues to explore the possibilities of fiber in art. The art is linked by textile references and quilt making traditions and is a fusion of multiple disciplines, from drawing to intricate needlework. Her nationally exhibited work can be found in gallery exhibitions, private collections and locally in the Hospital of the University of PA, Infectious Disease Clinic and the Philadelphia Ronald McDonald House.

Her role in ArtQuilts at the Sedgwick began innocently enough by agreeing to exhibit work, and to design and install the first show in 1999. As the show has grown and evolved, her responsibilities have also grown and include installation design, the CD-ROM catalog.

Cindy is also a member of Fiber Revolution. Her work will be on exhibit with this group during the Philadelphia Furniture and Furnishings Show April 28-30, 2006. In additon, she has been invited to participate in the the Bernina 2006 Fashion show which will premier in Houston at Quilt Festival in October 2006.

Additional Profiles

2004 Interview with Carolyn Lee Vehslage

Quilter's Save Our Stories

The Fiber Revolution

The Fairfield Fashion Show 2000/2001
"Straight from the Heart"
November 2000 - Houston, Texas

Cindy's Website:
http://www.CindyFriedman.com

IMAGES


ChromatiX
19”w x 25”h
©2005


Flights of Fancy
41"w x 53.25"h
©2006

These figures were inspired by dancers and in
my imagination they are freed of gravity which
allows their feet to literally fly. I was interested
in the play of the sheer figures overlapping and
echoing as they move through space.
The figures are drawn on organza and then
fused to the pieced surface. Materials: silk



Spring Sentinel
19"w x 18.25"h
©2005

I am so tired of the snow and shoveling
and noticed just this weekend that my
daffodils are poking up through the latest
bout of March snow, so I know that spring
cannot be far behind.
All silk, pieced and appliquéd, and
drawing with Prismacolors.



Dance of the Soul
27.5"w x 27.5"h




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Betty Ann Fellner

Betty Ann Fellner has participated in AQatS since its inception, first, as the Founder and Executive Director of the Sedgwick Cultural Center (1996-2004), and from 2004 to the present, as an active member of the Committee for AQatS. An experienced writer, musician and teacher but not a visual artist, Betty Ann considers herself very fortunate to be the “stand-in” for the public: since a major part of the AQatS mission is to educate the public about the art quilt, she is the ideal person to test out the many written materials produced for AQatS. But most of all, Betty Ann Proves Our Success: AQatS creates a passion for the art quilt!


Click the logos for more on Betty Ann and the History of the Sedgwick Cultural Center







Philadelphia Weekly Article






Chestnut Hill Local Article

Deborah Schwartzman

Deborah Schwartzman is a former elementary school teacher who was introduced to quilt making in 1975 at a workshop teaching patchwork to children. The geometry of quilt making and the inherent possibilities of intersecting lines appealed to her. Twenty- eight years later they still do.


Deborah Schwartzman has received recognition in nationally juried exhibitions, and her art quilts are installed in galleries, private collections and institutions, including The Crozier Cancer Center and Taylor Hospital in Delaware County, Pa. Her work is inspired by images found in nature, distinguished by saturated color, and enhanced by intricate machine and hand quilting.

Deborah also teaches and lectures throughout the tri-state area, and her articles on quilt design as well as images of her quilts have appeared in numerous publications. In 1999, she participated in planning a local festival to celebrate the "fabric of community" at the Sedgwick Cultural Center. Searching for a significant fiber art exhibition, the committee asked her to mount a quilt show. With the help of many dedicated friends and quilt artists, Art Quilts at the Sedgwick was born.

Deborah currently serves as co-director of AQatS and divides her time between creating art quilts, lecturing and continuing to develop this East Coast venue for quilt art.

EXHIBITS

March 5 - 28, 2006
Ocean County Artists' Guild
Beyond the Stitch II

March 16-April 17, 2006
Textures Gallery
Scottsdale Arizona
Earth Quilts

3 large pieces and small work in two series: Cactus Bee Series and Caladium Layer Series

More information about Deborah Schwartzman

Website: Deborah Schwartzman

Interview: Quilter's Save Our Stories

More of Deborah's Work: Fiber Revolution


IMAGES

Caldium I: Autumn Secrets
24" w x 19.5" h
January 2004



Nature's Lace
22" w x 21" h
June 2002




Sublime Lupine
29" w x 42" h
2001


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Suzan Hirsch

Suzan has spent more than twenty years as a social worker for special needs children. For her, quilting is a means of relaxation and creative expression.

She began quilting in 1977 but in recent years she entered the world of the art quilt where she put her artistic ideas to fabric. Her work revolves around the natural world and often features flora and fauna, both real and imaginery. Being a part of the Committee has given Suzan the opportunity to grow artistically.

Officially joining the Committee in 2002, Suzan thinks of herself as the group's jill of all trades. She has performed a variety of tasks including application processing, slide preparation for jurying, notifing quilts shops and guilds of the upcoming show. More recently, she has served as TV media contact in addition to a host of other duties.

However, Suzan's real passion is helping others preserve and document their family history in cloth. Memory quilts and pillows bring so much delight to those celebrating a 50th wedding anniversary or an important school graduation or a special birthday. Quilting fulfills her artistic and compassionate nature and brings her closer to people and the natural world that I love so much.

Read Carolyn Lee Vehslage's in depth article Preserving Memories of a Lifetime: Suzan Hirsch.

Visit Suzan's website SuzanHirsch.com

IMAGES



Leaves of Grass

Leaves of Grass (detail)

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Rita Burnstein

Originally from New York City, Rita studied theatrical costume design at Pratt Institute before moving to Buffalo. She continued her studies in art at the University of Buffalo and then at Tyler School of Art / Temple University after moving to Philadelphia in 1965.

In 1981, while director of the Art and Activities Department at the Philadelphia Geriatric Center, Rita discovered quilt making. She became a full-time quilt maker since retiring in 1994 and her quilts have been exhibited at many quilt conferences.

In 1999 Rita joined the committee of ArtQuilts at the Sedgwick overseeing the mailing and processing the entry applications. She takes on many additional jobs in her support of this exhibit.

INTERVIEWS

The Alliance for American Quilts interview conducted by Megan Dwyre.



WOOLPACK is a fiber way of saying THE COMPLETE PACKAGE