In 2008, Nancy Crow, a world-acclaimed artist, curator and teacher, began inviting art quilt makers from North America and Europe to improvise on the topic of color. I accepted her invitation – and challenge – in the spring of 2010.
The invitation was to design and piece three to five quilt tops. The challenge was to make each quilt 6- to 9-feet square. Using photographs of our entries, Nancy selected the quilt tops she thought we should continue to work on. We then finished the quilts; all of the artists used machine quilting except one, who hand-quilted her entries. At the end of the process, Nancy selected 50 pieces by 26 artists, including 2 of my quilts, for Color Improvisations, a special exhibition of contemporary quilts presented in venues around the world.
The exhibition opened July 11, 2010, at the Haus der Wirtschaft in Stuttgart. I was fortunate to be among the 23 artists who attended the gala opening. My husband and I used the opening as an excuse for an extended vacation in Europe, traveling to Luxembourg, Austria, Switzerland and other parts of Germany before arriving in Stuttgart for the gala. More photographs of the opening, plus information about the participating artists, can be found on the show’s website.
A gorgeous hard-bound, 144-page catalog with photos of every piece was produced for the exhibition. The catalog, printed in German and English, includes full and detail shots of the pieces in the show and information about each participating artist. If you are interested, you can purchase the catalog through the SAQA website.
Color Improvisations traveled to European museums and exhibitions through 2012, including the venues listed below. We would like to bring it to the United States but have not yet secured any venues. I’ll keep you posted on the show’s progress and any U.S. dates on my blog.
I am thrilled to be a part of this international exhibition. It has inspired me to design even more large quilts and to continue to improvise and work with color.
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Color Improvisations – which includes two of my pieces, “Seeing the Light” (77”w x 74”h – $7.450.00) and “Out on a Limb” (75”w x 80”h – $7,830.00) – has appeared at the following venues:
- Royal Dublin Society in Dublin, Ireland, November 2012
- Alexandra Palace, London, England, October 2012
- European Patentamt, Munich, Germany, September 2012
- Regierungspräsidium Karlsruhe am Rondellplatz, Karlsruhe, Germany, May–June 2011
- Museum of Fine Art, Verona, Italy, March 2011
- Haus der Wirtschaft, Stuttgart, Germany, July–August 2010
- European Quilt Festival, St. Marie aux Mines, Alsace, France, April–May 2010
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Melisse Laing 
