Another Full Day- Day 4

We started today with a long walk up the "lasagna" to the Ad Maiora Studios for a fabric dyeing class with artist Marina Tavella.

She taught us several African techniques, in particular from Mali.

We worked till lunch and then walked up to the sanctuary for an amazing view of the city with the Adige river hugging the historical centre.

The official opening was this evening at the Castel Vecchio courtyard

I love the reflection in the window of the museum

and we got to see the exhibit of antique quilts from Jen Jones' collection.

We had a relaxed dinner at home.

Being Together

I need to be around artists, I've decided.

In fact, about 5 years ago I made a list of Toronto artists and was planning to start a dinner group with these creators of different kinds- a photographer, a painter or two, a mixed-media artist, a filmmaker, a writer...

Encaustic painter Kevin Ghiglione at work

The idea was to meet with these friends once a month for a pot luck dinner and discuss our direction, our new projects, our frustrations with our work. It was to be inspirational to all which is why I wanted to include artists working in different mediums and not necessarily visual artists and definitely artists at different stages of their art paths.

detail: The Backward Stars
by Cass Reimer
mixed media on tyvek

That idea got pushed aside because I had too much on my plate at the time. It came up again when I took a course 2 years ago with artist Iris Häussler . She mentioned she meets with art friends regularly.

Artwork by Cybèle Young,
 a present to me from years ago.
2 .5 " x 3.25 "
Leaf with Strainer, 1999
1/1

Having Judy Martin for dinner last week, while she was in town for her workshop with Sandra Brownlee, confirmed that I want to be around others who create. For artists working alone it is important. I suppose those sharing a studio regularly experience a type of exchange. Those working alone learn to figure things out themselves.

Painting by Toronto artist,  Kim Rodenkirchen

I am preparing to go away (Italy, of course) so when I get back in late September that will be first thing on the list.

The Gladstone Hotel

The Gladstone on Queen Street in Toronto is an art hotel. I was there last week to see Amanda McCavour's installation in their cafe. (my pictures are not as nice as the real thing-go see it if you can)

I love her thread work.

I hope she can participate in the France exhibit that I am curating of Canadian quilts and textile art in September 2012.

A Special Visit

I found out last minute and only by chance that Judith Martin was coming to Toronto. I saw it on her blog. Turns out she was speaking very close to my house! So I called a neighbour and off we went!

It took me ten minutes to drive there and it took her hours to come in from Manitoulin Island.

I had seen all the pieces she talked about, either exhibited or in images on her blog. The thing I wanted to do was TOUCH everything.

Her biggest news is that one of her pieces got into the QUILT NATIONAL! She was so happy about that. It had been her goal for a very long time.

page 37 in the Quilt National Catalogue. There it is!

She shared her life for forty-five minutes.

I know so much about Judy from her visits, her classes I have taken and from talking to her at several of her exhibits. I remember many things about her because she and I are similar in so many ways.

We both have 4 children. We both made quilts and art about our kids. We both have a favorite red sweater we wear around the house. We both fussed about getting the kids on the school bus on time. We both forgot our cameras last weekend when we went to see textile at museums, her in Toronto and me in Montreal. We both use paper, fabric, stitch in our work.

One of Judy's early works-
a log cabin made from family photographs and paper
 stitched on fabric. The words are nursery rhymes.

She continues to be my most favorite contemporary textile artist.

Everything was so beautiful. Thank you Judy!

Making Sense

I have been asked by the 18th Carrefour Europeen du Patchwork to curate a show of textile, contemporary and traditional, that would demonstrate what is going on in textile in Canada at this time.

Judith Tinkl is one of the artists that has agreed to be part of the exhibit in France for September 2012. Her work was part of the exhibit, Making Sense, (900 Bay Street, Toronto, closes July 22). I went to see it today.

"Thanks to Mr Ammann" work by Judith Tinkl
71"x84"

There was a daycare group that was in the gallery while I was there. The teacher said, "Oh look. There is a blanket on the wall," and Megan, who looked about 4, corrected her and said, "It's a quilt."

I heard this little Megan say at the end of the visit that the quilt was her favorite.

Piece by Piece by Judith Tinkl, masonite

There is my foot to give the piece some scale

Both pieces are for sale.

Dijanne Cevaal

Dijanne is an Australian textile artist and my new friend.

Dijanne and I at Italia Invita in Parma

She was exhibiting at the Parma textile forum in May.

exhibition space for Dijanne Cevaal's works

detail of "All the Perfumes of Arabia"

detail of "Sentinals of the Earth" 

detail of Sentinals #1

you can view her work and read about her Sentinal series at
origidij.blogspot.com

I served with her and two others as juror for the Herbarium national contest and learned so much from her comments.

All teachers were asked to participate in the FIRST and LAST exhibit. Embarrassing!!-but I agreed.

amazing that she could go from this to what she is doing now!
The exhibit was meant as an INSPIRATION
to all quilters and textile artists to keep going forward

It would not be fair if I did not put in MY first work (left) YIAKS!
entitled: "Sampler renamed Was'n Me!"
because I copied a pattern and the teacher chose my fabrics.
My last piece , Course Correction (right),
silk screen, paint, paper, thread, foil, netting, linen, cotton
At the moment, this piece is hanging at the wine event, Cantine Aperte,
at the Villa Monteleone in the Valpolicella.

I bought one of Dijanne's smaller pieces as a reminder of our time together. I'll bring it when I teach my free motion classes, seeing as I always show her book at the end of the class. She has just written another free motion idea book, published in french by Les Editions de Saxe, entitled "Le Pique-Libre - 72 nouveaux blocs". I have purchased it as another resource for my students.


We hope to be able to exhibit together in the near future. Thanks Dijanne for mentioning me on your blog!

I am still here

Well, I am still in Italy doing lots of wonderful textile things but am having some trouble posting pictures.

I just returned from Parma where I taught (Using Paper in Textile Art) at their textile forum, Italia Invita. I was part of the jury for the national contest, Herbarium, along with Gabriella Manara (Italy, vice president of Quiltitalia), Philippa Naylor (artist, England) and Dijanne Cevaal (artist, Australia)- those of you who have taken my free motion class may remember Dijanne's book which I show at the end of class. I participated in the First and Last exhibit showing, of course, my first quilt and my last and also translated (english to italian) for two of Dijanne's classes.

It was a busy weekend seeing old friends and setting up more teaching and exhibits.

I have lots of great pictures to show you and as soon as I can I will post them!

Don't give up on me! Check back later.