2019 October - More Sharing and 2020 exhibit

So, the decision has been made, our 2020 theme is TEXT and we can use it in so many ways.  We came up with a tentative name for this collection, "The Writing is on the Wall" or something along those lines.

The brewing of ideas is starting and Kathy has even started playing with fonts, sizes, different inks and paints.  Here is what she showed us:

Kathy's text experiments

Diane showed us her scrap piece which is part of our MIX 18"x18" on-going challenge.  This Scrap challenge encourages us to work with only scraps from our MIX bins:

Diane's scrap piece

Since we were at Diane's house, we also got to peek in her studio and see what was on her design wall.  This is part of what we saw:

Diane's design wall

Hilde showed her latest 8x8 tile.  It represents a portion of one of her larger pieced quilts but this time using fusing techniques and then heavily stitched to disguise the raw edges.  It is faced and then mounted on to black painted stretched canvas:

Hilde's 8x8 tile

See you in November!

2019 September - Full Steam Ahead

September was a chance to review the decisions of our new body of work.

The color pallet was revisited and the decision to include one common color was decided. And the winner....was lime green. It could be just a smidgen or the whole enchilada. Each artist gets to choose. All other colors are also welcome.

We also decided to go bigger. the dimensions would grow by 10 inches to 40 x 40 inches. Each artists can use this space as they wish with one or more pieces but the height of each piece must be 40 inches.

On to shared work.

Betty showed some table runners that she has been working on.  She used some vibrant solids on one side that are picked up in the Guatemalan fabric she used on the back.  Her hand stitching matched beautifully with the native fabrics. She also had a long runner of a series of houses that had strong black lines on the roofs of the houses. This line made with a sharpie marker really popped the piece.

Valri showed some books she has made, some with commercial fabrics and one with a hand-dyed fabric. They are truly lovely and she offered to teach a workshop for us. 

Elaine showed painted canvas works that she has been doing.  She uses acrylic paint on flat canvas. This is a multi layered process beginning with a wash of pant and texturing with varying found objects. Then over painting until she get s the look she wants. And, finally adding a layer of  shapes that then become the focal point.

2019 July & August - Decision Time

Visiting the Sisters Outdoor quilt show was in lieu of a July meet up. Many of us were able to participate in this, as always, very fun day. The weather was delightful and our Weather themed quilts were on display.

August was decision time for our next body of work. Many ideas were thrown out but the one that most of us were smitten with, was the idea of Text. Is that text messaging or the zip codes where I've  lived or Dear Diary or a graffiti under the Burnside bridge.

We were also interested in choosing one or more colors from a predetermined color palette. A piece of art in Betty's home that appealed to all was selected and the palette then pulled from this work. It was the intention of the group that one or more of these colors, left up to the individual artist, would be used in the new work.

The last decision was dimension. We discussed the unifying effect a similar size brings to the exhibit. Our tendency is to stay with the 40 x 30 dimensions we have used in the past.

2019 June - Show and Tell and planing ahead

Our June meeting was attended by a few of our members while others were either vacationing, visiting family or teaching.

Annette and Kathy did Show &Tell.  Annette showed a colorful table runner she made for some friends:

 Kathy showed her new set of 8"x8"cubes:

Our WEATHER exhibit (except Hilde's piece) will be shown in Sisters during the Sisters Outdoor Quilt Show on July 13, 2019.  This time they will be displayed at Bedouin, a women's clothing store.

Ideas for our next collection of quilts have started to come up ... we will keep you posted.

2019 May - WHAT GOES AROUND ... Exhibit and opening luncheon

We opened our "WHAT GOES AROUND ..." exhibit at the United Methodist church in Portland with a special luncheon ingenuously designed and prepared by members of the church.  With approximately 160 people in attendance, our MIX group shared inspiration, process and stories related to our work.  Click HERE for a closer look at the exhibit.

We thank you all for attending this fundraiser organized by the United Methodist Women to improve the lives of children, women and youth.
It is an honor for us to be part of this event every year!

Exhibit is up and lunch is ready!

Thank you all for your participation

Our MIX group

2019 April - Show & Tell

Today was fine-tuning day of our May exhibit at the First Methodist Church in Portland, and our July exhibit in Sisters, OR.  We are also looking for other venues to exhibit our newest collections.  We'll keep you posted ...

Kathy shared her new piece "Pollen Buzz", very appropriate for the season

Kathy and Betty shared their new work as part of MIX's series examining the concept "scraps."  These pieces are all rendered at 18" square, include any or all techniques, and incorporate materials beyond fabric and thread.

Kathy's MOSAIC GARDEN

Betty's THE WRATH OF PLASTIC

2019 March - Our Exhibit is coming together

We are ready for the show on May 2!

Circles and Cycles!  Our lives are full of these two things from marbles to polka dots to peas to the seasons and even a life itself.  And so our group decided to take on these two concepts and see where our imaginations might carry us.

It was decided that either or both ideas could be used, and so there is a piece about the moon which can be round at one point in its phase, or many other shapes throughout its cycle.  And then there is a tongue-in-cheek bicycle because after all, you can’t cycle if you don’t have circles!  Some abstracted tulips show their life cycle with dramatic changes of color, and tiny bubbles become something else entirely as they are enlarged and playfully arranged in color swoops.  And that’s just the beginning.  We hope you enjoy this theme and the ways we have chosen to express it.