The first episode of the series “The secret lives of quilts” of this Summer is out on Patchworkvictim blog, on its YouTube channel, and here above! This episode talks about the quilt “Heat map” and the fabric I’ve used to make it.
Most of my quilts refer to happiness, beauty, and the delight of nature. But last Summer, for the first time, I had very strong and opposite feelings. Anger, and pride. My quilting practice could not avoid embedding some of it. These days, while I was making a quilt aimed for the SAQA challenge “Color in context: Red”, I marched in the biggest parade experienced by my city in years: 15.000 persons joined from so many different communities. The tv showed for days videos including my position in the front line of the parade, while I was waving the flag of my labour union; its color was red.
Thanks to SAQA Exhibitions Committee and to juror @judykirpich: I’m honored that my quilt “Heat map” created in that period, has been selected for the SAQA global exhibit “Color in context: Red”! For this quilt I tried for the first time the longarm service by Giulia Molon @quiltlovestudio: thank you Giulia for finding the perfect thread solution to match with my work.
In this detail picture below, it can be gained a sense of the different red fabrics I’ve used. It was the first time for me to piece red on red, and I discovered that I have some preferred and favorite red among others. Do you have a favorite red too?
I visited Verona Tessile, a festival set up to give impetus and visibility to textile art in Italy. Organized by the Ad Maiora Association, in collaboration with the Verona Municipality, it took place in museums, churches, in the city center. Its title was “Impavide” which means “fearless”. And it was a great experience.
I had the honor to be part of a group exhibit, in the Fresco Museum Giovanni Battista Cavalcaselle, and to get to know in person the other invited artists. Here above you can see a quilt by Giovanna Nicolai displaying colors similar to the fresco painting. Here below there is a view of one of my quilts, hanging in front of the fresco painting representing emperor Carlo V and pope Clemente VII as knights.
The main venue was the Gran Guardia Palace, outstanding building hosting several exhibits, including the show by textile artist Margaret Fabrizio (see her green and purple kawandi here below) and by the Swiss guild PatCHquilt. The first red quilt here below is titled “There is no grey”, by Lisa Hofmann-Maurer, Swiss, and is part of the “Red shoes” gallery by PatCHquilt guild. It has a strong meaning: there is no grey area when talking of violence against women. It has to be condemned straight.
My favorite memory of those days is the lunch with quilters, in some cases met for the first time in person, after long time of virtual contact sharing our common passion. With Giovanna Nicolai, Mattea Jurin and Ally Ryde I felt in my natural element: we could freely talk about our creative process and ideas for hours!
Verona has its beauties, and Ally guided me among those. I discovered the modern architectural approach by Carlo Scarpa, in the renovation of Castelvecchio museum: you may notice modern glasses in ancient windows here below. Celebrating Verona’s buildings was also part of of the show, as in this impressive quilt titled “Romeo” by Laura Armiraglio.
The floor of Verona pathways reveals red shells of the type “Ammonite”, embedded in the ancient pavement stone: when you start noticing them, they appear bigger and bigger under your feet!
Red curves were also the inspiration for the quilt “Flamenco” by Brigitte Rossetti, Swiss, part of the “Red shoes” gallery by PatCHquilt guild. Brigitte explained me how she started freeform cutting of fabric several years ago, and this quilt clearly demonstrates it!
Verona Tessile has an international reach. This gave me the opportunity to meet in real life quilters from distant places. It was the case of Pasqualina Barazza from Switzerland, part of the “Red shoes” gallery with her “Turmoil of red shoes goes to court” (here below), and of Tatyana Vlasenko from Ukraine, who loves the subject of rivers like I do, as shown by her work “River islands on Dnepr” part of the gallery by Ukraine Patchwork Masters.
Isn’t it better to hear quilt stories directly from the voice of their authors? Such as for the work “Blue and green music”, described by Mattea Jurin in the photo here below.
This biennale textile art festival displayed more than 300 quilts. The collective work “The starry night” alone was made by 185 panels created by a multitude, inspired by Vincent Van Gogh painting, during the lockdown period.
Women from the past were celebrated by the contest “Fearless, female artists in history”, such as in the work “Heartist (artist with the heart)” by Aurora Calvet from Slovenia, rainbow picture here below.
The festival continued in many locations, including windows in the city center, where a nice match was found among the product and the quilt, such as in the window shown here, displaying the black and white work by Agostina Zwilling and Maria Teresa Sansotta, president of Ad Maiora. I wish to say thanks to Ad Maiora Association for having made all of this real!
Verona Tessile is a festival set up to give impetus and visibility to textile art in Italy. Organized by the Ad Maiora Association, in collaboration with the Verona Municipality, it takes place in museums, churches, in the city center, in beautiful and evocative locations.
I am honored to be part of the 5th edition, taking place from April 30th to May 3rd 2023, in one of the many historical settings in the city where the festival is finding place. My works will be part of a group exhibit, in the Fresco Museum Giovanni Battista Cavalcaselle, and the names of the other invited artists are a sufficient reason to look for this venue!
In this occasion, the quilts I made in parallel with Giovanna Nicolai (in a period when we agreed to try an identical palette of fabric) will be hanging together with the works made by her at that time. Our modern quilts will be in a dialogue with the fresco painting from year 1580 representing emperor Carlo V and pope Clemente VII as knights, permanent exhibit in the same room.
More than ten locations, internationally recognized artists, quilting challenges and social themes will be part of this edition: all good reasons to visit the event!
This month I visited for the first time the European Patchwork Meeting (EPM). The opportunity to be there was offered by having one of my quilts, “East”, part of the SAQA Exhibit Wide Horizons: I spent one afternoon together with Giovanna, in the role of hosts for the visitors coming to the SAQA gallery: what an honor!
Paola and Giovanna at SAQA standSAQA pins at EPM gallery
I spent the first two days with quilting friends from Quilt Improv Studio: you can find this part of the story in the article published on Quilt Improv Studio blog.
I took a third day by myself, and I continued the tour in the other villages of France where more exhibits were displayed. There, I found inspiration in the works by Priscilla Bianchi and her sense of composition with bold colors.
I could appreciate the real appearance of quilts by Alicia Merret and Betty Busby, which I always admired for the capability to create textures.
“Fishing for colour” by Alicia Merret in EPM“Fly away home” by Betty Busby in EPM
I discovered the skills in creating subtle variations by Misik Kim: I really spent long time observing all the details of her work “The connection”.
“The connection” by Misik Kim“The connection” detail by Misik Kimlabel “The connection” by Misik Kim at EPM
I could learn not only from improv and abstract quilts, but also from figurative and representational art. I could not resist to check close up view of the multiple fabrics used by Denise Labadie: she brought me back in time, to the year of my visit to Ireland with school mate friend Ambra!
Finally, the possibility to talk with Scott Culley made my day. You would be astonished by the accuracy he puts in his quilts! And with a strong message! Seeing in person his work was really a good example to keep in mind. I can go down the rabbit hole as much as I wish, with my piecing work: I am not alone in loving so much the quilting practice.
The second episode of the series “The secret lives of quilts” is out on Patchworkvictim blog and its YouTube channel and here above! Like a spy story, we may call it mission Goldfinger. Do you remember the scene when James Bond emerges from the sea, unzips his submarine gears and appears perfectly suited in his smocking, equipped with a fresh flower ready for its place in the white jacket? The same happens to travelling quilts, hidden in small packages, ready to surprisingly pop out from their mystery box, to reach their destination in fully elegant settings.
This episode indeed features works by Quilt Improv Studio participants, such as the wonderful mini quilt “Delirium” made by Carla Beretta shown in the pictures below, which I had the opportunity to see in person after its travel to the venue for the gallery “The tales of the needle and the brush“: it perfectly unfolded from its tiny shipment pack, without showing any crease thanks to its incredible thick free motion quilting fill. Carla is a founder of Quilt Improv Studio together with Giovanna Nicolai and myself, and even if we collaborate by remote, I still remember the wonderful sensation of keeping first time among my fingers her masterful creation in the shades of gold.
One of the secret powers of quilts is the capability to connect people from all around the world. Since two years ago, Quilt Improv Studio launches its games online: the Instagram gallery of works made by game participants nowadays displays more than 160 quilts, showing how varied can be the ideas emerging from improv process adopted by quilters who were inspired by the same game prompt. Quilts made for the game include excellent examples such as the works selected for QuiltCon2022 and aired last February in Phoenix, Arizona, by @aquilterstable, @quiltcreation and @kathycookquilts; @sakuraquilting was awarded at Gramado Brasil quilt festival with her quilt “Emergiendo” created during Orange Summer challenge and @hollygrovethreads was awarded at Greenville quilt festival with her work “Mod Mondrian” created for Primary Improv challenge. If you want to join such adventures, you are still in time to participate to the latest game Pop Improv challenge!
To conclude with funny anecdotes, I add a bonus track here below: my favorite parodie of James Bond reiterating his name, by the great couple of Italian comic actors Lillo and Greg!
Did you know that my quilting practice influenced my drawing habits? That my bigger love for spirals during free motion quilting turned into my favorite ink and pen color transition mark?
If you are curious to see my most recent works, where I transform the photos taken while strolling in my hometown by using all sorts of ink on paper, feel free to join my birthday drawing gallery titled “Dreamscapes”: Friday April 15th, exhibit inauguration at 17.30 in “SpazioTrieste” room of via Donizetti 5/A in Trieste. I will bring you through my dreamy visions that appear in my mind during daily walk in the ancient streets. It will follow a party drink, confirmation of your presence is appreciated for booking arrangements.
No birthday gifts needed, but if you really wish to do something, in the gallery room you will find a free offer box, aimed to fundraising for Ukraine refugees by Médecins Sans Frontières, also directly possible through the donation details at this link.
Looking forward to see you at the party: a selection of postcards based on my drawings will be available. And if you are too distant to attend, but you wish to feel the party atmosphere anyway, write me your postal address and I will send a signed postcard to you!
I choose my daily walk time, when possible, based on its proximity to the sunset hour. The marvel of the light nuances, from the sky to the sea, evolves at every moment. The water in front of my town is usually calm, due to moderate sea depth and closed coast around the gulf. In windy days, salt and pepper tint the waves.
Twenty years ago, when University studies allowed noon time breaks, I went swimming every day, and I checked light rays from the underside of the water surface. One of my happiest memories from that period is the friendly behaviour of sea breams, who liked to swim together with me!
“Sealights” is a quilt that includes and abstracts many viewpoints on the above subjects. It will be travelling with MQG exhibit through the US, together with representative works from QuiltCon 2022. Already on the schedule this year, the quilts will be traveling to Sisters Outdoor Quilt Show, the “Airing of the Quilts” in Iowa, as well as shows in Texas, Virginia, and Tennessee. If you have the opportunity, catch it at the shows, because after the tour “Sealights” will land to its new home… not too distant from another coastal line!
I first met Giovanna @jonikquilts on the verge of new year 2020, thanks to the common interest for improv modern patchwork.
After noticing her on the web thanks to common attendance of an on-line workshops, where the sneak peeks of our works in progress suggested we had a similar taste for color choice, I decided to break the ice inviting Giovanna to start a joint project. During the first phone call, while Giovanna was on the mountain enjoying family holidays, I proposed her to meet in person. A new year was starting: the best moment to fill our agenda with new plans! Even if this required to take the train, Giovanna liked the idea of travelling, and started to fill her luggage.
In February 2020, Giovanna took the train from Mestre, near Venice, and reached me in Trieste. What was the content of her suitcase? A bundle of quilts! All the quilts she had sewn in the recent years. Large quilts, small quilts, mini quilts, top to be finished, flying thread…
Received in my home, the quilts popping out from Giovanna’s bag seemed to be endless. It was the first chance we had to see each other in person, and to look at all the quilting work done by both of us until that day. We started to plan a weekend in Prague together, to visit an international patchwork fair. We didn’t know that this one was the last occasion for us to meet, in years.
Until today.
Technology helped us to pass the difficult coming months: sometime crises create new opportunities. We met virtually, we tightened the connection with another Italian improv quilter, Carla Beretta @falcolupo, and ideas started to take shape: the construction of Quilt Improv Studio project.
Now, one of our old ideas took shape.
This Saturday we had the first occasion to meet physically again. It’s been a great experience to be in person, for the first time after almost two years, during the inauguration of the gallery The tales of the needle and the brush. A great occasion to meet quilters earlier known only through the web, and to appreciate the beautiful details of their quilts in a way that photography cannot express. Thanks Giovanna for passing through all plan changes we had in these complex times, and to continue with enthusiasm in promoting our initiatives together with Carla! Remote ways of working will remain our main tool: our quilting community reaches whatever distance.
On the back of this photo: the quilts Giovanna and myself made with identical palette, jointly purchased just in time before everything was closing down. Now they have finally been put one at the side of each other, in a real exhibit where we could be together.
When it was time for me to propose a palette for the month of October, I immediately thought of the pumpkin color and to the works I have done with orange fabric. I chose my quilt made for the first Quilt Improv Studio game, and I listed the colors used at that time to share its juicy palette: my favorite oranges, white and a well contrasting dark blue.
You can find the resulting fabric selection made in collaboration with Patchworkvictim, at the following page of their blog.
In this video you can see how nice prints using orange blue and white we could find, to match with the solids chosen at the start.
If you wish to see with your eyes the orange quilt which was created following this palette, you can soon come to visit the quilt+painting gallery The tales of the needle and the brush, opening on October 23rd in Trieste (Italy) and displaying not only orange quilts, but also blue quilts and black and white quilts, all stemming out from the fantasy of improv quilters who followed Quilt Improv Studio game prompts. And much more!
Two of my quilts are part of the juried show Quilts Unlimited, on display since Saturday, October 02, 2021 to Saturday, December 04, 2021 in Old Forge, New York.
The organizers made a great job in creating previews and event related material, collected in the online reception page. I can feel like being there, in good company of beautiful works from Australia to US, even if I’m not travelling there. My quilts travel more than me!
In this video you can find a selection of hanging quilts. It’s nice to see that my yellow “Grasshopper path” stands near to a blue quilt, getting contrasting colors effect in the sequence of the display, while my “Landing” mates with a quilt having similar repetitions and symmetry scheme. Thanks to View Center for Arts and Culture for this awesome exhibit!
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