Judy Ross Accepted into "SAQA: Food for Thought"

Congratulations to SAQA-CT artist Judy Ross! Judy's fiber artwork "Vege Peels Circling the Drain" has been juried into SAQA's traveling exhibition "Food for Thought".

Food for Thought will premiere at the National Quilt Museum in Paducah, Kentucky from April 10 - July 8, 2015.  In August it will travel to Festival of Quilts in Birmingham, UK.  Additional travel venues may be added.

A complete list of participating artists can be found on SAQA's website: http://www.saqa.com/memberArt.php?cat=8&news=364

New Dyeing Workshop by Carol R. Eaton at NBMAA Next Month

Interested in dyeing your own fabric?  Check out this new workshop by SAQA-CT artist Carol R Eaton at the New Britain Museum of American Art on March 29th:

Learn 3 fun ways to dye fabric!

The class will explore dyeing with ice, the low immersion process and confetti dyeing in a bag. Students will learn how the dye reacts differently to the 3 techniques. Students will gain an understanding of the dye process and tips on how to dye fabric successfully at home. The class will create 3 yards of one-of-a-kind fabric to take home!

Fabric and dyes included; students bring small containers, gloves, dust mask and a few other incidentals. Supply list available with registration.

Adult Studio Workshop
12:30-4:30 p.m.
Sunday March 29, 2015
Registration required
$70 members/$95 non members

New Britain Museum of American Art
56 Lexington Street
New Britain, CT 06052
p: 860.229.0257
f: 860.229.3445
e: nbmaa@nbmaa.org

Kate Themel's "Fox" Chosen for SAQA:Wild Fabrications

Congratulations to SAQA-CT artist Kate Themel!

Kate's Red Fox, Blue Fox was accepted into the Studio Art Quilt Associates juried exhibition "Wild Fabrications".

Wild Fabrications celebrates a world of animals both real and fantastical.  The exhibition will debut at the International Quilt Festival (IQF) in Houston, Texas in October and will then travel to IQF in Chicago, Illinois in March, 2016 and Quilt, Knit, Stitch in Portland, Oregon in August, 2016.

(image: Red Fox, Blue Fox by K.Themel)

Juror: Geoffrey Gorman
Curator: Jennifer Day

The full list of accepted artists can be found on SAQA's website:
http://www.saqa.com/memberArt.php?cat=8&ec=2&ex=53

Barbara McKie Earns Katherine Forest Crafts Foundation Award at CT Artists Exhibition, Slater Museum (Norwich, CT)

Congratulations to SAQA-CT artist Barb McKie, winner of the Katherine Forest Crafts Foundation Award for Excellence in Fine Crafts, for her quilt "Machu Pichu Visitor".

Barb McKie creates fiber art using the photographs she takes during her daily life and travel abroad, often depicting animals and nature scenes. Her work includes a combination of photo-printed fabric, machine applique, machine quilting and trapunto to create a textured, dimensional scene.  Barb described her creative process in an interview with Quilting Arts magazine:

"I manipulate the photos and sometimes I combine more than one. I print them out in multiple steps since my printer isn’t large enough to print the entire quilt at once, then appliqué together the different pieces of cloth using fusible web.
..One of my earlier quilts, 'Mommy and Me' was based on a picture I took in South Africa of a mother baboon and her baby. For this quilt, I did a lot more stitching to give the illusion of the hair and that kind of got me started on this thread sketching technique."

More of Barb McKie's work can be seen on her website: http://mckieart.com/

Katherine Forest Crafts Foundation is a non profit foundation dedicated to the support and enhancement of the crafts community in New London County. 

The CT Artists Exhibition is on display now until March 20 at the Slater Memorial Museum in Norwich, CT.

Slater Memorial Museum
108 Crescent Street
Norwich, CT 06360
http://www.slatermuseum.org/

New Workshops by Jane Davila at the NEST Arts Factory (Bridgeport, CT)

Jane Davila invites you to join her at the NEST Arts Factory this spring!

I'm delighted to announce new workshops at my studio at the NEST Arts Factory in Bridgeport for the Spring session. One special day, March 7, includes two workshops - one with me and one with Susan Taylor of Finished With Style, for a full day of surface design fun!

Susan Taylor shows you four different and unusual decorative finishes with a bit of "magic" in Magic Metals & More, and I'll help you harness the power of sunlight with SolarFast Dye Printing, using both masks and inkjet prints to create positives from printed negatives. Plus there are three other workshops, covering an assortment of topics.

Simple Screenprinting is an easy, no chemical way to print with a screen, creating designs with 1 to 3 or 4 colors, plus learn how to print with Thermofax screens. 
Four-Color Block Printing combines traditional printmaking with a bit of stitching and as a bonus, learn how to cut a mat, how to market and display prints, and more.
Introduction to Image Transfers adds a wide variety of direct and indirect transfer methods to your toolbox, using your own photos -  there's a ton of in-depth information in this hands-on class.  All of the details are on the attached flyer and on my blog. Hurry, space is limited and payment holds your spot!

http://janedavila.blogspot.com/p/studio-workshops.html

If you have any questions, please don't hesitate to ask: info (at) janedavila (dot) com

Jane Davila

Notes from CTFAC's Opening Reception at Hartford Public Library (Hartford, CT)

 (Image: Roz Spann speaks to SAQA-CT members and guests about CTFAC and the Romare Bearden project)

During our SAQA-CT regional meeting on January 17, Rosalind (Roz) Spann introduced nine members of Connecticut Fiber Arts Collective (CTFAC) and gave the background story behind their latest exhibition honoring Romare Bearden.
Each CTFAC member spoke about how they became interested in fiber art and how their involvement with this dynamic group has influenced them as artists. The tenth member of CTFAC, Wanda Seldon, arrived later.

After the SAQA meeting, members and guests were invited to go upstairs for the opening of "Art, History and Social Activism: CTFAC Honors Romare Bearden".
Thanks to library staff like Jeffrey Mainville, Program and Events Manager, visitors were treated to an informative, inspiring and well attended event including a reading by famed poet Kate Rushin.

Check out this YouTube Video to learn more about the show:  http://youtu.be/_re-VYGtmS4

Part of the large and diverse collection was hung along the hallway while other pieces were displayed on shelves in glass cases.  (Image below) Linda Martin posed in front of her portrait of Martin Luther King Jr. during the installation of the show.
 


On opening day, it was difficult to get photos of the display because of the crowd of admirers!



Visitors were invited to gather in the History Center to learn more about this exhibit.  Brenda Miller, Chief Cultural Affairs and Public Programming Officer for the Hartford Public Library, introduced the show and gave a brief bio of Romare Bearden, while Roz Spann spoke on behalf of the CTFAC artists.
The exhibition was inspired by artist Romare Bearden who became active in the Harlem Arts Guild during the 1930's. Bearden was a prolific artist who worked in New York City as a social worker devoting nights and weekends to his art. Over his lifetime Bearden experimented with many mediums and is best known for his textured collages. The Collective paid homage to Bearden's commitment to civil rights and his contributions to the jazz and art communities.



(Image: poet Kate Rushin reads 3 works written/selected especially for this event)


(Image: All the artists of CTFAC pose together at the Opening – Christina Blais, Mary Lachman, Karen Loprete, Wanda Seldon, Carol Vinick, guest poet Kate Rushin, Toni Torres, Linda Martin, Carol R Eaton and Roz Spann)


(Image: SAQA members Roz Spann, Barbara C. Adams, Kate Themel, Toni Torres and Carol R Eaton pose with a portrait of Romare Bearden made by R.Spann and T.Torres)

Congratulations on a fantastic show, and many thanks Carol R Eaton and her sister for all the great photos!

The "Art, History and Social Activism: CTFAC Honors Romare Bearden" exhibition will be on display at the Library from December 17, 2014 – March 13, 2015.
Hartford Public Library
500 Main Street
Hartford, CT 06103
http://www.hplct.org/