family life

cotton, recyled clothing, variety of fabrics
thread, machine pieced, hand quilted
1990




twenty two

velvet journal: secret garden

taffeta, velvet, floss,
ribbon, beads

journal papers, paint, thread

English paper pieced,
the paper left in

2005





reverse side




twenty one

on the lake

On the Lake 1989

Colour photographs, thread on cotton, satin binding

machine assembled, finishing by hand

this photo taken by the Canada Council Art Bank

When we lived in Kenora, I was invited to submit some work to a Winnipeg Artist Run Gallery for possible purchase by the Canada Council Art Bank.  They selected this piece.  

number twenty

I love you to pieces

cotton, over dyed cotton, thread
machine pieced, hand quilted
1988







Number nineteen

Zen Ecstasy

cotton, variety of fabrics and found objects, threads
layered, hand stitched, embellished
two sided wall hanging
part of the the Millennium journal series

eighteen




2004

Self Portrait

Self Portrait     hand painted cotton, repurposed maternity clothes, hand stitched  46.5" x 43"  1985

In 1985, our third child was born.

I painted my self portrait.  Drawing with one hand, tenderly holding my babe with the other, at the same time.  

In 2000, a university professor asked for images of mothering for her book.  She used a detail of Self Portrait on the cover.  Her name was Andrea O' Reilly.  O'Reilly edited the journal and also contributed the essay, 'A Mom and Her Son:  Thoughts on Feminist Mothering'.  The full image of Self Portrait appears on page 46.

Several other pieces of mine were used to illustrate essays and articles within the book.  October 1986, a paper quilt of photos and gift wrap on cotton, illustrated 'beyond the world of guilt and sorrow' by Nancy Backes.  

Mothering, 1988, dyed felt, printed and painted papers with embroidery floss stitch, illustrated 'mothers, sons, and God' by Aileen M. Fitzke.

self portrait: back of quilt

Self Portrait was chosen to represent my contribution to the history of the Art Quilt in the 2018 hard-covered tome edited by Sandra Sider, Art Quilts Unfolding: 50 years of innovation. 

The book is organized into 10 year sections, (1970's, 1980's, 1990's, 2000's, 2010's).   I am proud that it is given it's very own page (103) opposite Northern Ireland's Irene MacWilliam's 1988 Vision of the World.   By the way, the cover image on Art Quilts Unfolding is Swimming, 1986, by Tim Harding.  

Self Portrait was re-photographed by Nick Dubecki in 2024, and his photos are in this post.    

quilt seventeen

Most of November

cotton, variety of fabrics, embroidery floss, metallic threads
layered fabrics, hand stitching,
two sided hangings,
part of the millennium journal series
1999

sixteen

Between the leading note and the tonic

cotton, embroidery floss, buttons
machine pieced, hand applique
hand quilted with chain stitch embroidery
1998

fifteen

When asked, she replied

wool, cotton,recyecled jeans and t-shirts, buttons, yarn
hand pieced, hand appliqued, hand quilted
1997











fourteen

quilt of quotes

hand made paper (by moi)
type writer ink
cotton print
thread

This is a paper quilt that gathers together the
reading I did in the mid 80's when I was a mom to
four young children. Quotations by
women artists were typed onto
hand made paper and made into
a quilt. The piece was purchased by an artist in Thunder Bay. I hope that she is still enjoying it.

"My work is emotionally based. There isn't a theory, but there is a language of emotions." Joyce Wieland

1988

thirteen

Sonnet XIV

cotton, silk, satin, photo transfer, sequins
machine pieced, hand pieced, hand quilted

This quilt was made to celebrate our 25th wedding anniversary.  There is text by Margaret Atwood along the bottom that reads:

"when you are in the middle of a story, it isn't a story at all but a roaring a blindness"

and there are sections from sonnet XIV by Elizabeth Barrett Browning on the back.  One of the 44 sonnets that she wrote for her husband Robert Browning.

1998

number 12

Blue-eyed satin journal

Satin, silk, taffeta, antique beads
personal journal pages, found magazine paper
Machine paper pieced, papers left in
1999




eleven

Hearth rug for Hestia

over dyed cottons
machine pieced, hand quilted
1998








ten

I saw a butterfly, there can be more to life

80 x 68 inches

made by Judy Martin in 1988

mended by her in 2022

I saw a butterfly, there can be more to life.

This text was embroidered with black embroidery floss onto the quilt in 1988, and most of it remains.  (see the top photo)

It is a quote from the book by Trina Paulus  Hope for the Flowers - first published in 1973

The book has been reprinted in 2023 for its 50th anniversary.

"In this book, two caterpillars get caught up in the fallacy of competition and struggle to reach the top of a caterpillar pile. By journey's end, however, they learn that their true nature is not one of winning and being at the top, but of going within and emerging as beautiful butterflies who were born to soar."
--Deepak Chopra

New batting and a new cotton back were laid over the existing worn out quilt, and quilted with red embroidery floss.

The butterflies were painted with a batik method in 1988 when the artist used them as teaching samples for her Painting Fabric for Quilting class during the Northern Arts Council Conference in Kenora.  She met Ontario Arts Council officer, Walter Sunahara at that conference, which was a lucky break because he supported her and asked her to be a juror for the Ontario Arts Council in Toronto in 1989. 

1988

number 8   (edited Feb 2023)

Old photos that show the original colours of quilt are below:  

Emily Carr visited me

rayon, cotton, fabric paint, embroidery floss
machine pieced, hand painted, hand appliqued
hand quilted with blanket stitch embroidery
2005








seven

September

family photos, found paper from nursery rhyme books, thread, cotton
1990








six

Fragile as a Leaf in Autumn

shibori dyed linen, cotton, embroidery floss
machine pieced, hand appliqued, hand quilted
2004

details of this piece
It sold into private collection almost immediately, and has not been exhibited since 2005.
It will be included in the book Abstracts, thirty contemporary quilt artists by Martha Sileman in 2016, published by Schiffer

five

Cooper Cup

The Cooper Cup

Dr. Stephen Cooper commissioned a quilt from me that would be awarded as a prize for a sailing race held annually in the North Channel.  

He told me on the phone that he loved seeing a mass of white sails against the blue sky and water.  Hearing him say that poetic description made me say yes to creating a small quilt for him.   

It took me two attempts to create something that I was pleased with myself. 

This is the best photo that I have.

The Cooper Cup

shibori dyed cotton, machine pieced and hand quilted with embroidery floss using chain stitch embroidery.

As the years went along, the idea was to record the winners of the race through photo transfer on the back of the quilt.  I'm not sure what happened to that idea - but we did get as far as 2006 winners.

See this blog post for dates and names.

 

number 4

Completed in 2006

Cry Me a River

Cotton, satin, photo transfer, beads
machine pieced, hand quilted
2001








three

In the Centre of the Body is the Soul

Cotton, buttons, embroidery floss, fabric paint
Hand pieced, hand quilted
1996






two

Order Belies Chaos

Cotton, silk, buttons, embroidery floss Hand Pieced, hand quilted 1990 one