March 2016 Lectures, Skits, quilters Journey Presentations

Presenting: an Off the Wall, rib tickling, event.

Quilts, dyed Fabrics, lecture, skits, stream of quilters consciousness, oh dear.
Get ready to be entertained, educated, wowed, and terribly impressed when Ms. V lets loose, and not her quilting seams.

March 5, 2016
Greater Hartford Quilt Guild

Scout Hall Youth Center

28 Abbe Rd, East Windsor, CT 06088

Presenting: A Quilter's Journey

A Lecture and a Trunkshow.

44 years in the making. No really there are at least two sewing projects scraps She will one day put in a quilt.  How does one go from bed quilts to art hanging in museums across the country. And still keep her sense of humor, find her sharp scissors, create a layout for one hundred and fifty quilts, serve on the board of a museum, teach, and represent 100 Massachusetts Art Quilter's. 

March 17, 2016

Thimble Pleasures Quilt Guild

http://www.thimblepleasures.org/

Goss Hall of the Unitarian Universalist Church at 13 Maple Street, Mendon, MA (click here for directions).

Presenting: 

March 29, 2016 

Nimble Thimbler’s Guild  

Reading, MA

Speaking Engagements Fall 2016

Well, we are off and quilting new stories and sharing them hither thither and yon...gotta love spell check. I do try to limit my lectures to four times a year, but lately a few others have squeezed under the door.

That gave me time to participate in my guild activities, travel to see my offspring and theirs, rest, sew, rest, sew, oh and eat and exercise, did I mention sketch, stop-sew-buy-fabric-sew, and the most important part, finding stashed fabric in the most unlikely places at home?

Booked November 8, 2016 - update soon

Booked November 17, 2016 - update soon

October 25, 2016

7:00 pm 

Rising Star Quilt Guild , Lexington, MA
Lecture, trunk show, slide show

October 19, 2015

Farmington Valley Quilt Guild, Simsbury, CT

Lecture: How to Promote Your Work Without Appologizing

September 14, 16, 2015

Monday 9:00 am 09/14/2015     

Hanna Dustin Quilt Guild

http://hannahdustinqg.org

Program: “Promote Your Work Without Apologizing” 

Meetings are held at the Hudson Community Building (formerly the Lions Hall) on Lions Avenue in Hudson, NH.

From Route 93, Exit 3 – West on Route 111 approximately 8.5 miles. Turn right at the light just past Burger King. Turn left after the Dairy Queen onto Adelaide St. Turn right onto Lions Avenue.

From Route 3, Exit 5 – East on Route 111 to Hudson. Continue straight on 111 and turn right at the Dairy Queen onto Adelaide St. Turn right onto Lions Avenue.

 If you’d like to get directions: click here!

~~~~~~~~~

Wednesday, 7:30 pm  09/16/2015  

RHODODENDRON NEEDLE QUILTERS GUILD

http://www.rnqg.org

Program:  Ms. V’s Solo Act:  A Quilter’s Life, a rib tickling informative trunk show, and performance.

RNQG "guild members hail from 37 towns in southeastern Massachusetts and northern Rhode Island. Experience levels range from beginner to professional." 

New Location:  

Walpole VFW Hall108 Robbins Road, less than a mile NW of their former site.

~~~~~~~~~~

October 13, 2015

Tuesday, doors open at 6:30, 10/13/2015

Cocheco Quilters Guild

http://www.cochecoquilters.com

Program:  New Work, Collections, & Skit

Located at the McConnell Center, 61 Locust Street, Dover, NH.  

• Park behind the library and enter through the door marked #2 (handicapped entrance: door #7).  
• Doors open at 6:30 pm, meeting begins at 6:45 pm. 
• Included in the business portion of the meeting are officer and committee reports, Show & Tell, and a fat quarter and door prize drawing.Each meeting features an interesting program, often with nationally recognized quilt teachers and artists offering lectures and trunk shows of their work.

Each meeting features an interesting program, often with nationally recognized quilt teachers and artists offering lectures and trunk shows of their work.

~~~~~~~

December 8, 2015

Social time 6:30, Meeting 7:00-9:00

Tewksbury Piecemakers Guild 

Tewksbury, MA 01876

*Please note: members only, not open to the general public*

~~~~~~~

December 8, 2015

Social time 6:30, Meeting 7:00-9:00

Tewksbury Piecemakers Guild 

Tewksbury, MA 01876

*Please note: members only, not open to the general public*

Speaking Engagements Fall 2015

Well, we are off and quilting new stories and sharing them hither thither and yon...gotta love spell check. I do try to limit my lectures to four times a year, but lately a few others have squeezed under the door.

That gave me time to participate in my guild activities, travel to see my offspring and theirs, rest, sew, rest, sew, oh and eat and exercise, did I mention sketch, stop-sew-buy-fabric-sew, and the most important part, finding stashed fabric in the most unlikely places at home?

October 25, 2016

7:00 pm 

Rising Star Quilt Guild , Lexington, MA

October 19, 2015

Farmington Valley Quilt Guild, Simsbury, CT

Lecture: How to Promote Your Work Without Appologizing

September 14, 16, 2015

Monday 9:00 am 09/14/2015     

Hanna Dustin Quilt Guild

http://hannahdustinqg.org

Program: “Promote Your Work Without Apologizing” 

Meetings are held at the Hudson Community Building (formerly the Lions Hall) on Lions Avenue in Hudson, NH.

From Route 93, Exit 3 – West on Route 111 approximately 8.5 miles. Turn right at the light just past Burger King. Turn left after the Dairy Queen onto Adelaide St. Turn right onto Lions Avenue.

From Route 3, Exit 5 – East on Route 111 to Hudson. Continue straight on 111 and turn right at the Dairy Queen onto Adelaide St. Turn right onto Lions Avenue.

 If you’d like to get directions: click here!

~~~~~~~~~

Wednesday, 7:30 pm  09/16/2015  

RHODODENDRON NEEDLE QUILTERS GUILD

http://www.rnqg.org

Program:  Ms. V’s Solo Act:  A Quilter’s Life, a rib tickling informative trunk show, and performance.

RNQG "guild members hail from 37 towns in southeastern Massachusetts and northern Rhode Island. Experience levels range from beginner to professional." 

New Location:  

Walpole VFW Hall108 Robbins Road, less than a mile NW of their former site.

~~~~~~~~~~

October 13, 2015

Tuesday, doors open at 6:30, 10/13/2015

Cocheco Quilters Guild

http://www.cochecoquilters.com

Program:  New Work, Collections, & Skit

Located at the McConnell Center, 61 Locust Street, Dover, NH.  

• Park behind the library and enter through the door marked #2 (handicapped entrance: door #7).  
• Doors open at 6:30 pm, meeting begins at 6:45 pm. 
• Included in the business portion of the meeting are officer and committee reports, Show & Tell, and a fat quarter and door prize drawing.Each meeting features an interesting program, often with nationally recognized quilt teachers and artists offering lectures and trunk shows of their work.

Each meeting features an interesting program, often with nationally recognized quilt teachers and artists offering lectures and trunk shows of their work.

~~~~~~~

December 8, 2015

Social time 6:30, Meeting 7:00-9:00

Tewksbury Piecemakers Guild 

Tewksbury, MA 01876

*Please note: members only, not open to the general public*

~~~~~~~

December 8, 2015

Social time 6:30, Meeting 7:00-9:00

Tewksbury Piecemakers Guild 

Tewksbury, MA 01876

*Please note: members only, not open to the general public*

Gallery Shots, Postcard, Painting on Fabric, Weaving, Show & Tell

I call this Three Pregnant Ladies.  My two daughters were pregnant with children and I was pregnant with grief.  It was made from my hand dyed then painted fabrics, the center was drawn then painted on muslin, the chair and animal appeared in the picture so I painted them in.  The brown is a commercial fabric just the right color that I found a few years later, and was then able to complete the quilt.

This quilt was made in answer to a call for quilts that included birds or other wild life John James Audubon drew and painted.  The celebration was the 200 anniversary of his landing in Kentucky.  The piece was on display for three months in a gallery there.

Original print by John James Audubon.

This quilt was made from my hand dyed fabrics, scraps, reverse applique method on the hand and arm, beaded nose, eyes and bracelet, painted nails, sheer fabric over the background and hand and painted leaves echoing the leaves in the original print.  it is also my second overall machine quilt.

Great Grandmother Willie Cratic Finch and E. Finch Morris   

Postcard Swap, Great Grandmother Willie (born before the end of Slavery) & Great Aunt Eunice her daughter walking on Market Street in Philadelphia. This photo was taken before 1945. The building was Tuskegee Institute, now University where three of the youngest, of my great-grandmother's nine children attended school.  Eunice or E. Finch Morris, as she like to be called was one who attended.

This was drawn as one of a series, done immediately following a GYN appointment.

My Dear Professor Haymaker.  He encouraged me to enlarge my work from 8 1/2" x 11" to 8x10 feet.  The weaving behind us is one of three I made during our time together.  I often start small but end up five to ten times larger.

 

Bad hair day, not anymore.  I created the square behind the face, of paper, thread, crystals, glue and fabric.  Later this mask required a backing and the cream fabric square felt just right.  As I completed the appliquéd of face, hair, then necklace I realized it needed to be larger so I added the boarders.  The quilting is the first overall machine quilting I completed after I got over the fear of machine quilting.  Oh yes, I was nervous about it for years, finally taking the plunge after a session with Juanita Yeager.  So it doesn't matter if you can draw, sew, paint, or fussy cut. There are things that have us stumped...until we gird up our loins and punch through or pop the bubble.

Show Tell partner.  I use this piece to demonstrate the way some quilters show their work.  After the demonstration we all laugh at ourselves and having gotten the point do a much better job at introducing ourselves and sharing one of our art works with our audiences.

Journal Quilt Project, hand dyed fabrics, the plants were drawn into the surrounding pink area mocking the printed fabric and drawing the eye out from the central figure in three directions.

Journal Quilt Project, detail of hair and hand/

This was embroidered using a simply zigzag stitch, straight stitching, on a commercial fabric that I reworked with fabric paints then digitally enhanced so that the colors matched a PowerPoint presentation theme.

These are some of the faces I create out of scraps. This project was part of a round robin.  Below is the fourth of five rounds.  It is now being hand quilted by the luck owner.

 

One of the faces on  my 2011 Self Portraiture. Acrylic and oil sticks were used to enhance the faces after the whole cloth had been soy waxed, dyed, and stitched.

This is an old fashion bush comb from Ghana.  My parents purchased it during a trip.  I wanted that comb but Mother still has it on display at her home.  So I did the next best thing, I sketched it and painted it on fabric, then enhanced it with stitching.

This is the wrong side of the 2011 self portrait some of the other faces showing some of the trapunto and stitching process.

Thanks for stopping by, Ms. V

SAQA New England News...Colchester, VT Event

Dear Reader,

I had the great pleasure to attend the Workshop Event in Colchester, VT this weekend. Margaret Sheehan was the hosting SAQA Rep and Alexandra Nickerson was the event planner and hosting SAQA member.

March 25-27, 2011 


It was an exciting opportunity for SAQA members.


Two workshops were offered:


Approaching Galleries - Rae Harrell, owner of Rae Harrell Gallery, and
From a Juror's Perspective Valerie Poitier, guest curator/juror and SAQA Co-chair of the "No Holds Barred" exhibit at the NE Quilt Museum and SAQA MA/RI co-rep.


I must say that Alexandra did an excellent job selecting the speakers, location, and studio's for the event. As both presenter and participant I felt we all came away with a reminder or much better view of what it takes to put on an exhibit. What it takes to participate in an exhibit. Whether or not we were in the game, or wanted to be in that particular game.

Friday night's dinner was great, even if I couldn't eat. The company and discussion was worth the trip. Saturday was packed from morning to late night with the two workshops and an opportunity to share our work with each other, simply smashing quilts were unpacked and unrolled. The works of art and techniques were very different.

Here are some of the areas discussed:
- The decisions and choices the curator, juror, gallery owner is faced with.
-What a gallery owner or representative is looking for and what you/we as artists need to provide that person so that we may be represented at the highest level of professionalism.
-Bio, Artist statement, Artist Statement, CV, Education.
-Pros & Cons of Exhibiting.
-Personal development, build courage by doing.
-Where you are now, where you see yourself going.
-How to get the best out of the resources available to you.
-SAQA site, we took a short on-line tour.

Sunday was an extra-ordinary day. We rode further up into the hills of VT. The trip took us to the most, and I mean most wonderful studio. Dianne Shullenberger, fabric artist shared her gallery and studio spaces with us in a gracious and melodious manner. Yes it was a pleasure to the ear and the eye. Her work and space was for me, like a grand banquet. Everything I would wish to see, crafted by a master, with the proper spaces to put them in. What more could this artist want, I got to see a working gallery and a working studio! That my friends... is one of my dreams...and it feels closer after this weekend.

All in all this was another spectacular New England Weekend. The weather favored us by being sunny, crisp, and a bit snappy with cold. We travelled back to Massachusetts having experienced the best of VT, the best of SAQA, and the best times.

Regards,
Ms. V

No Holds Barred – at the New England Quilt Museum Grand Opening Event was held today.

No Holds Barred – at the New England Quilt Museum Grand Opening Event was held today.                      

Well the time came and went for the opening celebration.  What an amazing experience! There was the sun shining and a clear highway to drive on on the way to Lowell, MA.  We had standing room only at the Exhibition.  Twelve of the artists were present hailing from Connecticut, New Hampshire, Maine, Vermont, and Massachusetts. Five of the current SAQA (Studio Art Quilt Associates) Representatives from the New England States and one former Rep were also in attendance.  


The support of the Reps, exhibiting artists, artists who answered the Call for Entry, museum staff and volunteers, the team that worked on the proposals, jurors, and the SAQA staff and volunteers all working together in various capacities over the past three years has resulted in a wonderful collection of Contemporary Quilts.

When you look at the exhibit you see the latest techniques being used today across the country, in fact, by art quilters not only in SAQA here in the states but around the world.  There was hand quilting, machine quilting, dyed fabrics, stenciled and silk screened marks on fabric, commercial and whole cloth works, paint acrylics and oil stick, yarn, metallic and cotton threads, shibori and other techniques used.  Whatever is considered leading edge was found in the exhibit today.  There are also two quilts that are part of the permanent collection by artists who were juried into the exhibit on display.

In two other galleries you will see two different displays of antique quilts.  There is so much to see…both antique and contemporary quilts.  


I hope you will take an opportunity to go to the museum to see the show and on Feb. 5^th (***storm warning***date moved to February 19th!...to see the lecture: My Journey by Celeste Janey; Feb 12^th to see the lecture “Art Quilts by SAQA’s Exec. Director, Martha Sielman; and on March 5^th to a workshop followed by a trunk show by Wen Redmond.  On March 19^th there will be an all regions all call SAQA meeting that will be open to the public.  The artists have all been invited and they will be there to share one on one about their work and their SAQA experiences.

Thank you all for your contributions to this local exhibition!

Fondest regards,

Ms. V

Valarie Poitier
Curator, Co-Chair SAQA-NEQM-2011 Project "No Holds Barred"

Guest Speaker Grand Opening January 29^th @ 1:00pm – Smashing!
SAQA Rep MA/RI

 http://www.saqa.com  - Studio Art Quilt Associates

http://saqane2011news.blogspot.com/2010_07_01_archive.html - No Holds Barred News

http://msvpoitier.blogspot.com/

Member: Quinobequin, Quilters Connection, Sisters in Fiber, Boston Weaver's Guild
Life Coach, Life Skills Trainer

New England Quilt Museum - Saturday November 6th at 1:00 pm

Great Day in the morning, or so the saying goes.

It has been a long and wonderful journey sourcing an upcoming exhibition for the New England Area to be exhibited at the New England Quilt Museum in Lowell Ma.  "No Holds Barred", is coming this January 2011.  Lots of lessons learned, lots of wonderful people met, lots of traveling, lots of giving and receiving.  Receiving is harder than you might think, at least for me.  I began the journey thinking what I could share of the gifts I have amassed over the years.  At the conception I was hale and healthy.  Midway I was hospitalized and immobile, unable to walk, be touched, and even barely lift myself.  Here and now I am so close to hale and healthy even I can see it on the horizon.  By God miracles do exist.

Great day in the morning, well I would say so!  To those who shared their strength, their ideas, their support, themselves and never once doubted my recovery would be possible, my hat is off to you.  My thanks knows no bounds and I am a better stronger person because you dared to jump into the frying pan along side me and have greatly contributed to my life and longevity.

In fact in addition to working on that project our critique group 'Sisters in Fiber' presently all residing in Massachusetts, will be presenting this weekend at the New England Quilt Museum.

Oh yeah! My co-pilot, voice of experience, and world traveler Celeste Janey, Michele David, and Brenda Jones will all join me in presenting a trunk show for the current exhibit AFRICAN-AMERICAN 
QUILTS TODAY: A Celebration of Motherhood, Sisterhood & the Matriarchs 

We will display quilts we have been creating, embellishing, worrying over, swapping fabric in and out of over the past 20 years.  We will have music, stories, quilts in various stages of completion, not to worry most finished, dyed fabrics, and other fiber items that we will share with you.  The process is what is important to me and what I learn along the way, finishing is important to one of us, starting another, and finding time is a bug in all our bonnets.  Well I hope you can join us, we guarantee a wonder filled, moving, heartfelt time!

Warmest Regards,

Ms. V