Santa....Mela...Mela...Poppy

Last night I accompanied Melissa, Dave, Sophia and Mela to St Nick's night. Mela wasn't sure what to make of the big guy in the red suit and I have pics of her crying to prove it! If only poppy could have assured her she was in good hands....his.
Sophia was responsible for telling Santa what Mela wants for Christmas. Apparently Mela wants balls. Yep. She does. Too late.

Our wonderful little Fiberistas group trekked to Auburn today to see the Q=A=Q exhibit. 6 of us + 2 art quilt cohorts met at Schweinfurth to share our thoughts and favorites and not-so-much-for-me pieces. Fluttery excitement came over me when I saw 6 of the pieces. (the flutter is indicative of seeing an interesting piece that allows me to glimpse a thread of kinship with the artist.)

     1. "Barcelona" by Lumila Aristova of Brooklyn. Stunning. Silk, organic  paper and cotton.
         Look closely at her work to note the tiny prairie points made from organza ribbon. So cool.
     2. "Interwoven" by Patricia Kennedy-Zafred of Murrysville, PA. Loved the her silk screened images,
         the colors and the way she handled the entire composition. Her other work is equally inspired.
     3. "Pink Leaf 4" by Pat Pauly of Rochester, NY. I love Pat's work. When you look at her piece, you
         know it is hers and, if you know Pat, they represent HER in cloth.
     4. "Head Two" by Diane Siebels of Charlottsville, VA. I was thrilled when I saw this! It was very
         different from some everything hanging in the gallery. I felt like I wanted to try my hand at this one.
         Mostly all handwork, I was hooked. It looked good far away and made me scurry to get up close.
     5. "Alinea" by Kathleen Probst of Meridian, ID. Simple. Effective. I understood why. I need to try
         simple.
     6. "Secrets" by Betty Busby of Albuquerque, NM. (scroll down to her piece). I thought it was a
        manipulated image on fabric until I read that she painted this. The colors are delicious.

These were worth seeing up close.
One niggling bother about this Q=A=Q exhibit is the fact that each year many artists get 2 pieces accepted into the show. I realize artists submit multiple pieces, happy to get 1 work in, so it's not on them. The team of jurors...the gallery itself not having a policy of one piece per artist would be responsible for changing that outcome. This show receives hundreds of possibles. I am sure there were at least a dozen other pieces that could have been chosen. Share the wealth so to speak.
Lunch at Curly's with good conversation to round out a great day.

I have learned:

1. Ace, Michael & Jenn's puppy, was castrated yesterday. 
2. I joined ROCO. 
3. If I were to make an art quilt with a cause (this came up today at lunch)......what do I feel very strongly about?....mostly I have opinions and beliefs about  political/religious issues. No STRONG emotions that I feel compelled to have people hear my plea and be swayed by it.. BUT, there is one thing I consistently, with escalation,  view as the bane of our society. Reality TV. Yes, I said it. There it is, out on the table. 
4. Does anyone want to be nominated for President or VP in charge of Workshops for my Museum Quilt Guild? We have no takers. 
5. IKEA. So much coveting.