Thursday, October 31, 2013

Diane Wright in Fiber Artists Network Show: Point of View (Jacksonville, FL)

Congratulations to SAQA CT artist Diane Wright, who will exhibit two quilts in the upcoming "Point of View" exhibition presented by Fiber Artists Network (FAN).

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(Image: I'm a Stranger Here Myself: Blue Mountains AU by D.Wright)

Two of Diane's "I'm a Stranger Here Myself" quilts "Blue Mountains AU" and "Melbourne AU" were juried into the show by Elizabeth Barton.

December 8, 2013 – January 8, 2014
Van Droth Gallery
Promenade at the David A. Stein Jewish Community Alliance
Jacksonville, Florida

To learn more about the exhibition, visit the FAN website:

http://www.fiberartistsnetwork.org/Exhibits.html

Friday, October 11, 2013

Meeting Notes: 10/5/2013 at Wildwood Farm (Madison, CT)

A Message from SAQA-CT Reps Catherine Smith and Barb Adams:

LauraLyons

October 5, 2013

This SAQA CT meeting was held at Wildwood Farm in Madison, home to artist Laura Lyons. We toured Laura’s enormous studio after our morning business meeting, members “Show & Tell”, and Lunch which included a another of those delicious Motta cakes – dedicated to Diane Wright – and some pretty amazing cookies made by our newest member Alice Chittenden . Laura shared her techniques and expertise in producing woven and felted artwork. We were all inspired by her enthusiasm and creativity.

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LOCAL COLOR

The exhibit of “Local Color” at the Slater Museum in Norwich will be installed on Tuesday, November 19, 2013. Volunteers are asked to confirm their attendance with Barbara McKie (email: mckieart@comcast.net) so that the museum’s security service will let you in with no fee. Volunteers are advised to bring a brown bag lunch and a Phillips head screw driver.

IMG_0450“Local Color” will hang at the Slater from Nov 22 through January 14, 2014. The Opening Reception will be on Sunday, December 8 from 2:00 – 4:00. There will be a SAQA CT meeting prior to the reception at 1:00. The exhibit will be taken down on January 15.

The last scheduled venue for the exhibit is the Guilford Art Center February 7 through March 16, 2014. The group Sisters in Cloth will host the opening reception on Friday, Feb 8 from 5:00 – 7:00. Because there are no more scheduled exhibitions of this collection work will be returned to artists in March. We are exploring holding a meeting around this time; artists could pick up their work and save the shipping costs.

IMG_0454SAQACT Artists who submitted an entry into “Local Color” (whether it was accepted into the final show OR NOT) are encouraged to submit a fiber art piece (up to 10”) for exhibit and sale at the Slater Museum. There is a glass display case to fill. Thirty per cent of the sale price will go to the Museum. Items should go to Diane Wright by Nov. 15. Any unsold items remaining in January will be taken to the Guilford Art Center for sale in their shop where the GAC commission is 40%.

SAQA CT BLOG

Kate Themel’s continuing work maintaining our Regional Chapter blog is enormously appreciated. She reminded members to send her their news of exhibits so that it can be added to the blog.  Send your news and updates to saqact @ gmail.com

SAQA emeritusTHANK YOU, DIANE!

The entire group extended to Diane Wright many, many thanks for her work as Co-Regional Representative. Diane is stepping down, and Barbara Coleman Adams will join Catherine Whall Smith as co-rep. Diane’s leadership and inspiration will continue to be an integral part of our region’s activities. Cathy presented Diane with a gift inspired by the presence of crows in many of her pieces: a life-like crow hand puppet.

NEW COMMITTEE – Fundraising

IMG_0461Members were asked to volunteer for a committee to explore ways of raising money for our chapter. These funds would be used for speakers, workshops, etc. Three members stepped up: Carol Eaton, Jennifer O’Brien and Kendell Storm. Everyone is encouraged to share ideas with them.

OTHER ANNOUNCEMENTS

The SAQA 25th Anniversary Conference, “Capitalizing on Fiber,” will be held in Alexandria, VA May 1-4, 2014.

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Carol Eaton (who has already booked a room) is looking for a roommate for the conference. Please contact Carol carolreaton@comcast.net for details about room cost and length of stay.   Remember - Registration is limited to 200 and is filling fast.  Rooms at the host hotel are also going quickly, but there are many additional hotels in the area.  Registration in on-line through SAQA.com and there is a $50 reduction in fees if you register by October 31.

The new SAQA website is up and running. The goals of the redesign included making it easier to navigate and showing more art. Members are encouraged to explore this resource. Note: if you are having trouble with the site (blurry) try the refresh button while holding shift on your computer.

At the SAQA website you can also get more information about the new level of SAQA membership. There are now three levels of membership: Supporting Member (formerly Active Member and discussions are ongoing on which title to use), Arts Professional (a new category), and Studio Artist Member (formerly Professional Artist Member). Please check the website for more details on the benefits of each level of membership.

IMG_0469The Windham Textile and History Museum will host a quilt exhibit in May, 2014, which will exhibit together a dozen of the antique quilts from their collection with modern interpretations of the quilt done by invited artists. SAQA CT members are all urged to contact Cathy Smith smith.catherine62@gmail.com if you plan to submit a 10 ½” square for this spool-inspired quilt.

Quilt block information is on the SAQACT blog. Squares can be mailed to Cathy Smith at P. O. Box 303 Chaplin, CT 06235-0303 or drop them off on Sunday, December 8th at the SAQACT meeting before the opening of “Local Color” Twenty-five of the squares will be put together in a quilt by Pat Ferguson; this quilt will then be added to the permanent collection of the Museum. Our SAQACT Regional meeting scheduled for Saturday, May 24th, 2014 will be at the Windham Textile and History Museum in Willimantic, CT.

cookies

If you were not able to attend the meeting, unfortunately you missed Alice Chittendon's delicious cookies!  But you can enjoy them at home, if you like.  Here's the recipe:

Ingredients:
2 cups sugar
3/4 cup vegetable oil
3/4 cup cocoa
4 eggs
2 tsp. vanilla (may substitute peppermint extract for a holiday cookie)
2 1/3 cups flour
2 tsp. baking powder
1/2 tsp. salt
powdered sugar

Directions:
In a large mixer bowl, stir together sugar and oil; add cocoa, blending well.  Beat in eggs and vanilla.  In separate bowl, stir together flour, baking powder and salt; add to the cocoa mixture, blending well.  Cover; refrigerate at least six hours.  Heat oven to 350 degrees.  Shape dough into 1" balls; roll in confectioner's sugar.  Place 2" apart on greased cookie sheet ( I prefer to use parchment paper instead of additional fat).  Bake 12-14 minutes or until almost no indentation remains when touched.  Remove from cookie sheet to wire rack.  Cool completely.

Oh, yes - this recipe doubles very nicely.

Enjoy!

Alice Chittendon

Tuesday, October 8, 2013

Diane Wright Represents CT at Chandler Center for the Arts (Chandler, AZ)

SAQA CT artist Diane Wright's work Aging Lines Sing Loud will be on display at the Chandler Center for the Arts from November 1 - January 18 as part of ARTrageous: Art Quilts Year XVIII.

ChandlerGalleryQuilt_postcard

The exhibition features 50 art quilts, each accompanied by a story and artist biography. Artwork was selected based on the Juror Laurie Fagen's theme, “ARTrageous”. 

The challenge was to move beyond any traditional style, context or subject that they had relied on in the past, or to have taken their traditional context and mix it up in a way that is beyond being bold.

ARTrageous: ARTQUILTS Year XVIII
Chandler Center for the Arts

Nov 1, 2013 – Jan 18, 2014

Meet the Artists Reception:
Friday, Nov 1, 2013 6 – 8pm

Chandler Center for the Arts
250 N. Arizona Ave
Chandler, AZ 85225
Admission is Free

Gallery Hours: Monday – Friday, 10 AM – 5 PM
Saturdays Noon – 5 PM
Sundays Closed

For more information and a list of all participating artists, visit:
http://chandlercenter.org/press/pr-visual.html

Monday, October 7, 2013

Local Color and Fiber Revolution at Slater Museum (Norwich, CT)

Two shows for the price of one!

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(Marsh with Cranes by T.Hodge, in SAQA CT: Local Color)

Next month the Slater Memorial Museum will host two fiber art shows simultaneously. Studio Art Quilt Associates CT Regional exhibition "Local Color", curated by Diane Wright and Kate Themel, as well as "Fiber Revolution: Diversity" curated by Barbara McKie.

McKie_Pondering_Pelican
(Pondering Pelican by B.McKie in Fiber Revolution: Diversity)

Both shows will be on display Nov 22, 2013 – Jan 14, 2014 
A joint reception will be held on Sunday, December 8, 2013 from 2 – 4 PM 
Light refreshments will be served
Admission is FREE for the Opening Reception on December 8

Admission during normal museum hours:
Adults - $3.00
Seniors & Students - $2.00
Children under 12 - Free

Slater Memorial Museum of Art
108 Crescent Street
Norwich, CT 06360
(860) 887-2506
http://www.nfaschool.org/page.cfm?p=360

SAQA-CT members will meet at the Slater Museum for a short meeting prior to the opening reception. 
December 8, 2013 from 1:00 - 2:00 PM.

Friday, October 4, 2013

SAQA.com Gets a Facelift!

SAQA logo

Studio Art Quilt Associates (SAQA) is about to celebrate 25 years as a group of dynamic, creative and innovative fiber artists.  Now their website has caught up to the times, with a modern look and user-friendly layout.

The new SAQA.com features upgraded navigation, a new blog focusing on information of interest to collectors, expanded artist member profiles and of course – more images of art quilts.
 
Many of the modifications implemented in the re-launched website were member suggestions obtained in an extensive membership survey conducted last year.
Among the new or expanded features are:

  • The Art Services Directory, a resource for locating a variety of arts-related services
  • The SAQA Store, now offering collectors the opportunity to purchase the art quilts on tour in SAQA exhibitions
  • Profiles of members from the I am SAQA program

See for yourself!  Visit http://www.saqa.com

Quilt National '21 is Coming to Connecticut

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