Broderie perse is French for Persian embroidery, but through the decades it also came to refer to artists cutting out fabric to applique onto a background fabric. This technique was also called “cutout chintz applique.” Recently experts have come to avoid using broderie perse unless the textile also includes embroidery, favoring instead “cutout chintz applique.” However, if there isn’t embroidery present and not all the fabric used is actually “chintz” what should you call it then? When you are as talented as these artists, whatever you want. As Shakespeare reminds us, “a rose by any other name would smell as sweet.” This is one of the exhibitions in which I had a hard time selecting which photos to include. Even though I divided the blog post into 2 parts, it still only allows eight quilts. However,...

As promised our next blog focus is the exhibition curated by Cynthia Collier. But it is important to note that Cynthia did more than curate the exhibit, she was one of the amazing artists. She had 11 of her fabulous quilts in “Applique, The Timeless Beauty of Broderie Perse”. Sometimes when we feature an exhibit, I have trouble selecting from the hundreds of photos to narrow it down to the 4 quilts we will display. Even when I divide this exhibition into two blogs: one which focuses on other quilt artists in the exhibit and one for Cynthia’s quilts, I still have a hard time choosing between her 11 fabulous quilts. Besides acting as curator for the exhibit, she also donated her time to give gallery talks. She isn’t teaching anymore, so this was a rare...

The 45th anniversary of the Houston Quilt Festival occurred this year and was very memorable for multiple reasons. The multi-level display of beautiful blue and white quilts was an amazing way to honor the accomplishments of all those workers, vendors, and quilt artists who have contributed to this event for 45 years. The two founders of the festival Karey Patterson Bresenhan and Nancy O’Bryant Puentes continue to be involved in the festival and share their love of quilts. I was pleased to teach 8 classes, 2 demos, and provided 3 gallery talks for our special exhibition. “Antique Quilts from the Poos Collection” exhibited 25 quilts from our newest book “Hidden Treasures, Quilts from 1600 to 1860.” Besides our special exhibition, there were many other special exhibitions, which will be our focus in an upcoming series of...

What do you do with a treasured petticoat, cloak, or dress? Make a quilt, of course! Frequently we think of clothing being cutup into small pieces to re-use the fabric in pieced patterns to create a quilt, such as the center of this mathematical star made of dress taffeta. This method creates art from what fabric you have available or to preserve the legacy of a lost loved one through their clothing. Sometimes coats or other pieces are used to create stuffed animals to pass onto children in the family. However, there are other reasons and ways to use clothing in a quilt. In the case of the Revolutionary War Cloak, the cloak had a long time meaning to the family. Family lore stated that the ancestor had killed a British soldier and claimed the cloak...

Our first adventure in October was a trip to Lincoln, Nebraska for the American Quilt Study Group Seminar. While attending the seminar we visited the International Quilt Museum (now IQM< formerly the International Quilt Study Center and Museum.) Shapeshifters was a new exhibition which showcased acquisitions that had never been exhibited at the museum before. This first in a series of exhibitions focused on applique and the center medallion format is heavily represented. Each quilt uses a different approach to make the design original in the quilt artists own way. The quilts in this exhibition range in date from 1830’s – 1930’s. The gazelle quilt was made by Bertha Stenge, dubbed “Chicago’s Quilting Queen” by the Chicago Daily News. The quilt was originally purchased from the Chicago Art Institute, then later it was donated to IQM....