Last weekend my boyfriend and I went out-of-town. Destination? Spokane, Washington. Why? Well, there were a few reasons. First and foremost, our friend’s sister is on the 2009-10 Women’s National Hockey team, which will represent the United States at the 2010 Winter Olympic Games. They had a match with Canada on the “Quest Tour”. So we went to Spokane to check out the game, show our support, and have a good time. Our friend rented a beautiful house on a lake, so we were there with 3 other couples as well. I like meeting new people and partying with them. It was totally fun and funny. Miscellaneous high-points include: The sucking goat public art sculpture down town, Italian dinner at Luigi’s, a drink at The Swamp bar (supposedly where David Lynch wrote Blue Velvet), The White Elephant store (where toys and ammo are sold side-by-side), a few drinks at The Viking bar ( I imagine where people who shop at The White Elephant go to drink after buying guns and toys), random aluminum Tough Shed-looking churches with logs-as-crucifixes nailed to the side, drinking whiskey with Alicia until 5AM, a slew of fun conversations, and The Washington State Quilters Carousel Centennial at the Expo Center.
It was a rushed affair, getting through this quilt show. I was dragging around my hung-over boyfriend who had a 6-hour drive home to look forward to. But I suppose it was just enough time, and I don’t think I could have lasted a minute longer even if I was going it alone. Among the hundred’s of quilts I visually skimmed, I photographed maybe 20 of my favorites. Above are 4 of my favorite favorites:
1. A quilt made of men’s silk ties. Artist unknown (sorry artist!) A freakin' amazing re-purposing of ties dude will never wear.
2.1104. Miniature Bow-tie Quilt. Luana Hager. Rendered in simple variations of blue and white, a systematic diagonal umbre undulates. And it is completely quilted by hand. Awesome!
3. 939. “A” Quilt. Darlene Franks and Dana Kinder. I dig quilts that have an optical effect. “Op art is a perceptual experience related to how vision functions. It is a dynamic visual art, stemming from a discordant figure-ground relationship that causes the two planes to be in a tense and contradictory juxtaposition.” http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Op_art. First, I take in the piece as a whole. On closer inspection, I look at each block in closer detail. Different planes created by the darker and lighter colors make my vision tremble for sure. This activity can be uncomfortable, but if one were to drape this quilt on a bed, the effect would probably be lost due to change in perspective. I imagine one would be left to appreciate the richness of the various fabrics and patterns. Sweetness.
4. 1939. Winter Solice. Karen Querna. What do I love about this quilted wall hanging of two woodsy studies cut into vertical strips then pieced together in an alternating pattern? Let me count the ways. One of my favorite bands/ band names is “Nature and Organization”. This band and name has created within me an aesthetic mood category so essential to my being that I can not imagine life complete without experiencing the occasional rush I get when I take in a piece of art that fits into this slot. Winter Solice clicked right in there. The illusion of dimension within the tree bark has been created by the quilting itself. And what up with the red orb ellipse weaving through the trees? It immediately grabbed me as some sort of abstracted pagan astronomical observation. It also has a vaguely Danish Modern/ Scandinavian aesthetic feel to it. Perhaps a nod to the tradition of Finnish Rya rug weaving. It is so complicated, yet the final effect is so crisp and clear. Yummy Coolness.
