Yesterday my friend Alyson and I ventured to Lowell to see the
New England Quilt Museum's exhibit of quilts from the 2012 Quilts Japan competition.
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| detail from Streamline by Yoko Komatsuno |
What a treat to see a beautiful and varied selection
without crowds, and
with information in English. Taking photos was A-OK too.
Here are a few, starting with
Streamline by Yoko Komatsuno:
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| Streamline by Yoko Komatsuno |
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| detail from Streamline by Yoko Komatsuno |
This one - Forever More - House - Forever More by Sashiko Nishiyama - knocked my socks off and I can't believe I neglected to get a photo of the whole quilt. Scrappy at its very best, and the details were amazing:
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| detail from Forever More - House - Forever More by Sashiko Nishiyama |
Look at this exquisite binding:
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| detail from Forever More - House - Forever More by Sashiko Nishiyama |
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| detail from Forever More - House - Forever More by Sashiko Nishiyama |
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detail from Forever More - House - Forever More by Sashiko Nishiyama
Here's a superb example of a Japanese "taupe" quilt - The World of Flying Geese by Yoko Suzuki:
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The closer you get, the more color and detail you see. The borders were just stunning!
I can't even imagine the levels of patience and precision necessary for making this quilt.
The competition is open internationally. Here is a shimmering, beautiful piece from an Italian quilter:
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| Tile Lines by Teresa Gai |
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| detail from Tile Lines by Teresa Gai |
And this one from Switzerland:
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| Vibrato by Marianne Haeni |
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| detail from Vibrato by Marianne Haeni |
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| detail from Vibrato by Marianne Haeni |
At first I glossed over this next one, because the color scheme isn't my favorite really. But... upon closer look, wowsa, what a masterful quilt, all hand pieced, appliqued, and quilted, just beautiful. Surrounded by Lily Bouquets by Mitsuko Kazama:
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| Surrounded by Lily Bouquets by Mitsuko Kazama |
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| detail from Surrounded by Lily Bouquets by Mitsuko Kazama |
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| detail from Surrounded by Lily Bouquets by Mitsuko Kazama |
I have photos of a few more to share in my next post...
For now I am enjoying the last night of a week's worth of no one asking me "what's for dinner?" ... but I am ready for "the boys" to get home! They have been in Japan for the week - David for business mostly, and Tommy to see friends, visit his old school, explore his old haunts, etc.
Back here on the ranch, there's been this outside:
And this inside:
Soooo ready for spring!
