2012 Special Exhibits

All That Jazz: Improvisational Quilts The improvisational quilts featured in this exhibit highlight the best of the best from “free spirit” quilters around the world.  What is an improvisational quilt?  It is any quilt that is started without a predetermined pattern or plan and evolves throughout the construction process.  Each quilt in this exhibition emerged from the seed of an idea without fully knowing what the finished piece would look like.  Curated by Ricky Tims.
Bridges: A juried exhibit by Quilts on the Wall: Fiber Artists BRIDGE has many meanings.  This exhibit portrays the various personal visions of the artists encompassing but not limited to: A: a structure carrying a pathway or roadway over a depression B: a time, place, or means of connection or transition C: the upper bony part of the nose; also: the part of a pair of glasses that rests upon it D: a piece raising the strings of a musical instrument E: the forward part of a ship's superstructure from which the ship is navigated
Crazy Patch From her first crazy quilt completed in 2001 until the present, this exhibit shows some of the major work created by Allison Aller.  Allison takes crazy quilt to a higher level of such richness – in color, in embellishment, and in construction using small bits of beloved fabrics and different weights and types of threads.
Faculty Showcase We salute the members of our distinguished Road to California faculty in this exclusive collection of their work.  In quilts that are as diverse as their talents, our faculty members offer attendees a host of inspiring design concepts and techniques.
Hoffman Challenge Started in 1988, the Hoffman Challenge has a long, rich history of encouraging and rewarding creativity.  Many talented fiber artists have taken part using a recognizable amount of the chosen fabric.  An added incentive is the addition of Sulky Threads as a sponsor offering prizes for the best use of their threads. While the majority of the entries come from the United States, a wide variety of international entries are received.  Road is proud to display entries from each of the three categories; quilts, wearable art and dolls.
Klamath Basin Vistas Twenty quilt artists from Oregon and California recreated three of Jeremy Franklin’s photographs of regional points of interest.  Each photograph was enlarged and divided into eight sections for the artists to reproduce using fabric, threads, embellishments, and special techniques.
Nancy Mahoney Nancy Mahoney has been making traditional style quilts using updated techniques for over 25 years.  The quilts in this exhibit show how her use of color has evolved while still paying tribute to the time tested styles of quilt making’s past. Use Peony Garden for picture
Next Generation An exhibit of quilting’s future: featuring quilters from 7 through 16 years of age.  In order to promote and encourage this ‘Next Generation’ of quilters, they were invited to submit their works in a non-competitive environment.
Noble Seasons – Winter 2012 We all seem to carry a mental image of Winter as a blanket of white, devoid of color, much like a blank canvas.  These artists have used this canvas to showcase their artistic talents and provide us with their visions of Winter, from the soft silver of moonlight in Winter to the season that begins a new year. Photo credit Artist: Patricia Charity, Winter
Southern California Wearables The Southern California Wearable Art Connection members are showing a juried selection of one-of-a-kind wearable art garments and accessories crafted over a 20-year period.   Garments created by Southern California Artists for the Fairfield and Bernina Fashion Shows will also be on display.
Susan Else – Featured Artist Susan Else grew up in a family of artists who shaped her personal vision.  After “fooling around” with fabric and fiber for twenty years in the art quilt movement, she started making quilted sculpture in 1999.  She is one of the few artists exploring the sculptural qualities of the quilt medium.  The exhibition highlights the expansion of the boundaries of quilt making as quilting takes on a new dimension, literally, with the three-dimensional figurative work of our featured artist. Her engaging, vibrantly colored work includes freestanding figures as well as three-dimensional dioramas.  Built around armatures of foam, wire and fiberfill, the work incorporates both hand-treated and commercial cloth as well as paint and embellishment. Susan is a pioneer in the unique niche of making quilted sculpture.  We hope that you enjoy her work as much as we do.
Two by Two A Challenge designed to stretch the creative talents of the participating fiber artists, members of the Mason Dixon Quilt Professionals Network.  They were asked to think about ordinary things that come in twos and construct a quilt to reflect Combinations, Couples, Duos, Twosomes, or Partners.
Two Patch Quilts Quilts from Pat Yamin’s new book, “Two Patch Quilts” are featured in this exhibit.  The simplicity of piecing two patches together has a timeless appeal to the modern quilter.  Whether made in two colors, planned color schemes, or scrappy, these quilts bring fond memories of grandmother’s quilts.
You are not Getting Older; You’re Getting Better The McLean Chapter of Quilters Unlimited of Northern Virginia were challenged to “re-design” history. See what happens when quilters are given free rein to do whatever they want with a vintage block.