Quilt National '83

Quilt National '83

At about the same time that the entries for Quilt National '83 were arriving at the Dairy Barn, Hilary Fletcher assumed the responsibilities of Project Director. The Dairy Barn now had indoor plumbing and the number of flies had been reduced.
This was the first show to go on tour. Selected works were shown in New York at the American Craft Museum, in Houston at the International Quilt Festival, in Goldendale, Washington, and several other venues.
The entire collection is documented in The Quilt: New Directions for an American Tradition published by Schiffer Publishing, Ltd.
Three hundred fifty artists submitted 746 works. Jurors François Barnes, Virginia Jacobs and Paul Smith selected 79 quilts by 72 artists. The exhibitors represented twenty-six states and two foreign countries. There were five awards granted. First time awards were the Domini McCarthy Memorial Award for Exceptional Craftsman and the People's Choice Award. Newcomers to the show included Pauline Burbidge, Ardyth Davis, Nancy Erickson, Therese May, Miriam Nathan-Roberts, Ellen Oppenheimer, and Pam Studstill.

Best of Show
Pam Studstill
Quilt #21, ©PS
51 by 54 inches. Hand painted cotton. Machine pieced. Hand quilted by Bettie Studstill.
Artist's statement: I like to play with color gradations, using hand-dyed and commercial fabrics. The surface paint not only creates a random pattern but also helps ease the transition from color to color. I am inspired by landscape views and vistas, fields of anything, all the quilts I've ever seen, and looking at my boxes of colored material.

Award of Excellence
Pauline Burbidge
Cubic Pyramid, ©PB
86 by 80 inches. Hand-dyed cottons. Machine pieced and machine quilted.
Artist's statement: This quilt was designed on a theme of three-dimensional illusion, using flat pattern to create a 3-D effect. I took the idea of the traditional Tumbling Blocks design and took it a few stages further. Almost all the fabrics are hand-dyed, and the use of colour and tone are equally as important as the shapes.

Most Innovative Use of the Medium
Terrie Hancock Mangat
Fishing Hats Over Rose Lake, ©THM
82 by 75 inches. Cotton blends, rose appliqués, sequins; hats embellished with plastic and rubber artifacts. Quilted by Sue Rule.
Artist's statement: All of the shapes floating in the sky over Rose Lake are the parts of a fishing hat which I was duplicating for a friend. The shapes are done in five different sizes to give the feeling of depth. The roses are feminine in feeling and the grasses are masculine. Above the quilt are the real fishing hats. As I continue working with the fabric, shapes and figures begin to suggest themselves.

Domini McCarthy Memorial Award
Jean Hewes
Sticks, ©JH
79 by 67 inches. Rayon, silk and brocades. Machine appliquéd.
Artist's statement: I first assemble fabrics onto background cloth. The background is secured to the batting and then pinned to a wall. After additional fabric pieces have been added, I mark the design to be machine stitched.

People's Choice Award
B. J. Elvgren
The Twelve Days of Christmas, ©BJE
100 by 108 inches. Cottons, blends, velvet, silk and satin. Hand pieced, hand appliquéd and hand quilted.
Artist's statement: The Twelve Days of Christmas is based on the traditional song. The quilt was conceived as a joyful celebration of gift-giving, with the greatest gift of all being the Holy Child.

Most Innovative Use of the Medium, Honorable Mention
Therese May
Monster Quilt #1, ©TM
51 by 46 inches. Muslin treated with gesso and acrylic paint. Machine appliquéd.
Artist's statement: This quilt shows a braided rug pattern surrounding some rather ambiguous figurations. In appliqueing the fabric pieces I let the threads hang loose to form a kind of network that starts to reveal the sewing process. I have added paint not only to enhance the surface but also to bring my quilting techniques and painting techniques closer together. The intent is to help confuse the issues often raised about "art vs craft."

QN '79 QN '81 QN '85
QN '87 QN '89 QN '91 QN '93
QN '95 QN '97 QN '99 QN '01
QN '03 QN '05 QN '07
QN Prize Winners Home

	Best of Show Pam Studstill Quilt #21, ©PS 51 by 54 inches. Hand painted cotton. Machine pieced. Hand quilted by Bettie Studstill. Artist's statement: I like to play with color gradations, using hand-dyed and commercial fabrics. The surface paint not only creates a random pattern but also helps ease the transition from color to color. I am inspired by landscape views and vistas, fields of anything, all the quilts I've ever seen, and looking at my boxes of colored material.
Award of Excellence Pauline Burbidge Cubic Pyramid, ©PB 86 by 80 inches. Hand-dyed cottons. Machine pieced and machine quilted. Artist's statement: This quilt was designed on a theme of three-dimensional illusion, using flat pattern to create a 3-D effect. I took the idea of the traditional Tumbling Blocks design and took it a few stages further. Almost all the fabrics are hand-dyed, and the use of colour and tone are equally as important as the shapes.
	Most Innovative Use of the Medium Terrie Hancock Mangat Fishing Hats Over Rose Lake, ©THM 82 by 75 inches. Cotton blends, rose appliqués, sequins; hats embellished with plastic and rubber artifacts. Quilted by Sue Rule. Artist's statement: All of the shapes floating in the sky over Rose Lake are the parts of a fishing hat which I was duplicating for a friend. The shapes are done in five different sizes to give the feeling of depth. The roses are feminine in feeling and the grasses are masculine. Above the quilt are the real fishing hats. As I continue working with the fabric, shapes and figures begin to suggest themselves.
Domini McCarthy Memorial Award Jean Hewes Sticks, ©JH 79 by 67 inches. Rayon, silk and brocades. Machine appliquéd. Artist's statement: I first assemble fabrics onto background cloth. The background is secured to the batting and then pinned to a wall. After additional fabric pieces have been added, I mark the design to be machine stitched.
	People's Choice Award B. J. Elvgren The Twelve Days of Christmas, ©BJE 100 by 108 inches. Cottons, blends, velvet, silk and satin. Hand pieced, hand appliquéd and hand quilted. Artist's statement: The Twelve Days of Christmas is based on the traditional song. The quilt was conceived as a joyful celebration of gift-giving, with the greatest gift of all being the Holy Child.
Most Innovative Use of the Medium, Honorable Mention Therese May Monster Quilt #1, ©TM 51 by 46 inches. Muslin treated with gesso and acrylic paint. Machine appliquéd. Artist's statement: This quilt shows a braided rug pattern surrounding some rather ambiguous figurations. In appliqueing the fabric pieces I let the threads hang loose to form a kind of network that starts to reveal the sewing process. I have added paint not only to enhance the surface but also to bring my quilting techniques and painting techniques closer together. The intent is to help confuse the issues often raised about "art vs craft."