Quilt National 2011

I have been going to Quilt National since I was a Fibers major in college. It's typically a wonderful collection of art quilts and since it only comes around every other year, it has always been worth the visit. In 2009, however, I was really disappointed. I started to realize that it was more of a collection of work from the same artists year after year. And I remember really only liking a few pieces. So this year I was a little hesitant about it, but knowing that the judges change every time, hoped that it would be another show like the year when Tim Harding was a judge, and around every corner were pieces that were just gorgeous.

A couple of weeks ago I went to see Quilt National at the Foundry in St. Charles, MO. And I realized that I enjoyed the show partially because one of my favorite pieces in the show was done by one of the judges: Nelda Warkentin. Her piece, Meadow Pine 2, drew my eye from far away and never failed to impress on close-up:

This is not the first of her pieces I've seen in person, but I love it! Go see more of her work on her website! Other favorites included: Katie Pasquini Masopust's "Con Brio - with Spirit", Carol Goossen's "The Conversation", Pauline Verbeek-Cowan's hand-jacquard "Silk Roots", Carol Watkins' "Reflections on Duality" (more because of the message than the actual piece), Mary E Stoudt's "Equilibrium", Pat Pauly's "Pink Leaf 2", and my absolute favorite... Kate Themel's "Dandelion":

If Quilt National comes to your town, I highly recommend going to see it!! If not, you can buy the book and check out the whole collection that way.

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