Thrilled

The Front Range Contemporary Quilters (FRCQ) is a Boulder area group of people who create art quilts.   Such quilts generally are original designs created by the maker of the quilt (as opposed to working from a commercial pattern) and the quilts often feature fabrics that have been manipulated --dyed, stamped, hand stitched, painted, or the like --by the artist.  The resulting quilts are one-of-a-kind original works of art.   FRCQ has been in the forefront of promoting this kind of work through meetings,  hands-on workshops, and exhibitions since 1989.  Although I was on the east coast I followed its work and met some of its members on the many trips that Ben and I made to Boulder over the years. 

You would think that when we moved here in June 2014 I would immediately join FRCQ and get involved in its activities.  But no, I was a bit scared of the famous and fabulous artists that make up FRCQ.   They were all so excellent and I was, basically, just getting my feet wet again.  I felt way out of my league. 

 But last year, with the encouragement of an art quilter friend who was a long time member, I began going to meetings.  What I found was a friendly and supportive group of like-minded quilters, a place to talk about the quilting that I enjoy, to show my work, and to learn from the work of other members. I found kindred spirits, which is always a good thing. 

When FRCQ announced that it was sponsoring an juried exhibit with the theme of "diversity" I challenged myself to enter some pieces.  It was going to be shown at the NCAR, the National Center for Atmospheric Research, a famous building by architect I.M. Pei at the base of the foothills, and I couldn't resist the opportunity to be included.  

Wikimedia Commons/Public Domain

Entering meant doing a lot of tedious and tricky steps that really have nothing to do with creating a quilt.  Steps like taking high-quality photographs of each piece, filling out entry forms, completing insurance and permission forms, and --the most dreaded task of all-- writing a statement about your pieces that links them to the theme of the show, not always an easy job.  

And after all that your work might not be accepted; yikes!  Rejection is never easy.  

And if your work is accepted there are more tasks,  like preparing it to hang in the exhibit, labeling it, and getting it to and from the venue.  

The whole process can be time consuming and emotionally risky, but I hung in there and got it all done and much to my surprise three pieces were accepted into the show!  

The exhibit opening was on Friday and I was thrilled to be included.  

 Here I am with one of the pieces, Balancing Act I.  I look happy, don't I? 

The juror also chose Balancing Act 2.   But interestingly, she didn't choose Balancing Act 3, which I thought was the best piece of those that I entered.  You never know what goes on in the minds of the juror! 

Here's Balancing Act 3, in case you'd like to compare it to the others.

Also in the show is Sunflower, a small piece, just 12" square.  (It's mounted on canvas, not shown in this photo.)

It was an exciting night for me and I was happy to share it with friends who were kind enough to stop by and with Ben and Paul.  I had volunteered to help set up for the reception and was glad I did since I made some new friends while we worked together.

And so now here it is Labor Day!  We had a record high of 97 degrees yesterday but the squirrels are very busy gathering acorns, so you know fall and winter are on their way.

My quilter friend LeeAnna and her husband Drew are relocating from Maryland to Colorado and came into the area to look for houses near Denver.  Yesterday they found "the one" and their contract was accepted!   We enjoyed a delicious dinner on the deck and celebrated.

LeeAnna is an art quilter as well; see her work at her blog.  It will be fun to have her so much closer.

Soon I'll be picking up my nephews and heading to the pool for an end-of-the-summer swim.  Then we'll meet up with Ben and John and Paul here for grilled hamburgers and hot dogs and yummy corn on the cob.  We'll be missing Dawn, but it's only a few more months until she'll be here with us!