Special Invitation to SAQA Members: Join CTFAC for Tea at the Phelps-Hatheway House (Suffield, CT)

“STEEPED IN STITCHES”
Luncheon Tea Party* at the Phelps-Hatheway HouseSaturday, September 12, 201510:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.

Wear a Festive Hat, Garden Party Attire!
Prize for Best Hat
Quilt Raffle
Gift Basket Raffle*
Advance reservations are required
 

RESERVATION DEADLINE for the Luncheon Tea Party is Sept. 8, 2015
Don’t wait to make a reservation! The Luncheon Tea Party is open to SAQA members in CT, MA and RI but space is limited to 30 people.
To sign up for the Luncheon Tea Party, contact Catherine Smith: smith.catherine62@gmail.com
Tea Party is $15 per person, which includes admission to the Quilt and Textile Show.
Menu: tea sandwiches, fruit salad, tea and cookies.

If you are not a SAQA member or otherwise unable to attend the special Tea Party Luncheon:

Other events at the Phelps-Hatheway House, including the CT Fiber Arts Collective Quilt and Textile Show, are OPEN TO THE PUBLIC on Saturday, Sept 12 from noon to 5 pm and Sunday, Sept 13 from 11am to 4pm.

Lectures, demonstrations & unique items for sale will bring color & inspiration to the Phelps-Hatheway’s rustic 1867 barn.  A book signing by Mary Lachman, author of Moth at the Window will take place in the Summer House.
Admission is $5 for Quilt Show, or FREE with purchase of a house tour. This event coincides with the town’s popular Suffield on the Green festival.
For more information on the artists, visit: www.ctfac.blogspot.com, or www.mothatthewindow.com.

Phelps-Hatheway House
55 South Main Street
Suffield, Connecticut 06078

 

 

We Need Mentors! A message from Sue Bleiweiss, Mentorship Coordinator

Now that the mentorship program has been underway for several weeks I thought I would post an update on how it’s going and provide some statistics and other information about it. 

So far 12 matches have been made and all the mentees have met with their mentors at least once via Skype, FaceTime or telephone to talk about their objectives and goals and to set up a regular communication schedule with each other.   Everyone is very excited about their new partnerships and I couldn’t be happier about that.

You might be wondering who these mentors are so I am going to tell you!  I’m sharing their names with their permission of course and they are:
Pamela Allen
Sue Bleiweiss
Lisa Call
Jenny Bowker
Sherri Culver
Kathleen Loomis
Alison Schwabe
Pamela Druhen
Carol Ann Waugh
Susan Polansky
Phylis Cullen

Each of them have signed on to work with at least one mentee and a couple are working with more than one.   I am grateful for their willingness to sign on to be a part of this program because the success of the program really hinges on having enough mentors.  And that brings me to my next statistic…

I have 9 mentees on the waiting list waiting to be matched up with a mentor.  I need more mentors!
So I am once again putting out the call for mentors.  Now I know that being a mentor isn’t for everyone, and I absolutely understand and respect that. But I’m guessing that there are some of you out there who are thinking you might be interested but you’re not sure about it because you are not sure how to be a mentor or what areas or categories you can mentor someone in.  To answer those questions, just pop over to the SAQA website here:  http://www.saqa.com/memberArt.php?ID=3369

All the information about the program is there and if you take a look at both the mentor and the mentee applications (regardless of which you want to apply for) those will also help answer your questions.  If you still have questions or your unsure, then write to me at sue@....  I will be happy to talk with you about the program and how you can be a part of it. 

The mentorship program is just one of the programs brought to you by the SAQA membership committee.  The committee is chaired by Diane Wright and is made up of volunteers Clara Nartey (Secretary), Sue Bleiweiss, Paula Huffman Brown, Sharon Buck, Christine Hager-Braun, Candice Phelan, Allison Reker, Desi Vaughn, and Martha Wolfe.  We meet once a month to discuss, brainstorm and develop programs and initiatives related to areas of membership. Watch for updates about the committees other programs and initiatives in future emails.

By the way - if you're curious about what other committees that SAQA has you'll find that information on the SAQA website here:  http://www.saqa.com/about.php?ID=72

Sue Bleiweiss
MA/RI regional co-rep
Membership committee volunteer
Mentorship program coordinator
http://www.suebleiweiss.com

Deadline Next Weekend: ARTISTIC WANDERINGS, Norwich Arts Center (Norwich, CT)

Attention ALL visual artists! 

Don’t miss the opportunity to enter your artwork into “Artistic Wanderings” at the Norwich Arts Center (NAC).

Exhibition Dates: August 5 – 29, 2015
Opening Reception: Friday, August 7

Work must be dropped off at NAC for jurying.
Norwich Arts Center
60-64 Broadway
Norwich, CT 06360
http://www.norwicharts.org

Drop off dates: Friday, July 31 and Saturday, August 1, 2015
between 12 - 4 PM

Juror: Donita Aruny, Program and Marketing Director for the Shoreline Arts Alliance

**Over $1600 in prize money will be awarded!**

Available Awards: $250 for 1st prize, $125 for 2nd prize and for
3rd prize: free rental space for 1 month in “Gallery Too”, sponsored by NAC. Any 2-dimensional work is eligible (except photography)

Plus 5 additional $250 prizes for Fine Craft, sponsored by the Katherine Forest Crafts Foundation. Eligible work includes pottery, weaving, jewelry, textile, woodworking and metal.

PROSPECTUS for Artistic Wanderings 2015

ENTRY FORM for Artistic Wanderings 2015

For more information, visit the NAC website: www.norwicharts.org

Rita Hannafin Interviewed at Sacred Threads (Herndon, VA)

Congratulations to SAQA-CT artist, Rita Hannafin!

Rita was at the Artist Reception for “Sacred Threads” in Herndon, Virginia and was interviewed for the Quilt Alliance: Go Tell It at the Quilt Show. 

You can watch Rita’s and dozens of other artists’ interviews on the Quilt Alliance YouTube channel:
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLbRL8gNFw9DBEAuPT2fLHaehysLU9veeW

All the participating artists in “Sacred Threads” were invited to speak about their work. Accepted artists include SAQA-CT members Christina Blais, Diane Cadrain and Mary Lachman. A full list of participating artists can be found on Sacred Threads’ website: http://sacredthreadsquilts.com/html/artists2015.html

Rita’s quilt will now be listed in the National Registry of Quilts.  Rita enjoyed the reception, as she put it: “The catalogue is fantastic, and it was great having other artists sign it…  I was also interviewed for a documentary specifically being made for Sacred Threads, so this was a really great experience.”

Another piece by Hannafin, Threaded Cat Blues, was accepted into the “Out of the Blue” exhibit at the Whistler House Museum of Art in Lowell MA.  The Artist Reception will be on Saturday, Aug 15 and the exhibit runs until September 19th.

SAQA Trunk Show is on Display at the Lyme Art Association (Old Lyme, CT)

This week, SAQA-CT artists Catherine Whall Smith, Barbara Adams and Rita Hannafin brought the Studio Art Quilt Associates’ Trunk Show to the Lyme Art Association. Please stop by and take a look at these beautiful, handmade works of fiber art.

SAQA Members: You will have a chance to see the Trunk Show at our next regional meeting, which will be held at the Lyme Art Association on July 18 from 10am – 2pm.

The SAQA Trunk Show will be on display at the Lyme Art Association from July 15 – 22, 2015.

LAA's main floor Galleries will display over 50 art quilts. Each quilt is 10 x 7 inches, mounted on a black backing board, and sealed inside a clear envelope. The artist's location, artwork title, statement and information about techniques and materials are on the back. The quilts are not for sale.

Lyme Art Association
90 Lyme Street
Old Lyme, CT 06371
www.lymeartassociation.org

Diane Wright, Presentation on Fiber Art this Saturday (Guilford, CT)

Fiber Artist Diane Wright to Speak on Contemporary Quilts 

Saturday, July 11, 2015 beginning at 2 PM
At the Guilford Keeping Society
Medad Stone Tavern Museum
197 Three Mile Course
Guilford, CT 06437
http://www.guilfordkeepingsociety.com/

As a special feature of Guilford's town-wide summer quilt show, Diane Wright, nationally known art quilter, will speak on "Contemporary Stitches in Time,"  She will discuss the use of antique quilt patterns in the making of contemporary quilts and quilts as art. 

Diane has invited friends and fellow quilters from the Guilford quilting group, Sisters in Cloth, to join her in sharing their own contemporary quilts that have been influenced by tradition. Times change, but as Diane says, "It's always been about the hand and the stitch."

The talk will take place at The Guilford Keeping Society's Medad Stone Tavern, 197 Three Mile Course. Visitors to the Tavern can also view a display of historic quilts owned by the Society.

Since the 1990s, Diane's focus has been on the fabric medium: fabric of all kinds, hand or machine stitched, often embellished with beads, fiber "shards" or found bits. Her work is noted for its use of color, original design, and a variety of fabrics that include commercial, foreign, hand-painted, and vintage pieces.

Admission to the program is free but donations are greatly appreciated.

SAQA-CT Trunk Show

Attention SAQA artists in Connecticut!  Hope Barton, Mary MacIlvain, and Betty Warner are spearheading a plan to create our own regional trunk show! Read on for details and a look at the registration form.

SAQA Connecticut Trunk Show: You’re Doing What?

The “You’re Doing What?” Trunk show is an opportunity for SAQA Connecticut members to show the world what they are doing now. Member work will be showcased in a traveling trunk show that will be shown in venues throughout the region.

We are looking for original fiber art pieces 6” x 10” sized (portrait or landscape) artwork (any fiber medium; any subject). We will display the work mounted on a  8” x  12” black backing board using archival tape and placed inside of clear cellophane sleeves. Creative edge treatments are encouraged.

Artwork of this size can be quick and fun to make, showcasing your voice and promoting art quilting and education.

Deadline October 24, 2015: This is the Delivery Deadline.  Artwork, registration form and check should be personally delivered or shipped to Betty Warner.

You may bring it to the SAQA-CT Regional Meeting at Sew Inspired Quilt Shop on October 24, 2015.

Guidelines:

· Create an original 6” x 10” sized (portrait or landscape) artwork (any fiber medium; any subject). We will mount your finished piece on a black backing board using archival mounting tape.

· Complete the registration form. Please include a copy of this form with your artwork and fee.

· Bring your 6” x 10” artwork, a completed registration form and a $5 check made out to our regional meeting at Sew Inspired Quilt Shop

OR

Ship artwork, form and check to:

Betty Warner
20 Wescott Road
Simsbury, CT 06070

Questions? Contact Betty Warner at betty@ bettywarner.com or by phone: (860)658-2691