From the President

I was sorry to miss last month's meeting for our private tour of Art Quilts at the Sedgwick. It's always better seeing it with our guild. But I did get an opportunity to view the first annual International Quilt Festival to be held in Chicago each spring.

This is an offshoot of the annual Houston show and never having been to Houston, I was pretty well dazzled. There were a myriad of exhibits and a show within a show, "Embellishment" featuring beads, buttons, jewelry and polymer clay.

Some of the exhibits that I particularly enjoyed were "Pressing Matters", art quilts that fea-tured fused pieces, "Antique Indigo Quilts" that combined indigo dyed fabric and undyed cotton and "1933 Chicago World's Fair Quilts". (The 1933 World's Fair looms large in our family legend. That's where my mother, aged 6, got lost while Grandpa was watching Sally Rand, the fan dancer. Grandma never let him forget it.)

A special exhibit of 9/11 quilts called "The Day the World Changed" made me realize how this event has spawned a whole genre of art quilts. It will be interesting to see how these works will be valued in the years to come.

Three exhibits were particularly interesting because they featured small art quilts, "The Journal Quilt Project", "Tarot Card Quilts" and "Small Works by Kansas Art Quilter". It was a good reminder that works of art don't need to be created on a heroic scale. Small pieces are perfect for trying out new techniques and give a sense of accomplishment in a much shorter period of time.

My only disappointment was forgetting my camera and having to use a disposable. But then again, photography was prohibited for most of the pieces that I wanted to photograph.

I did get a chance to see the Sedgwick show and was duly impressed as usual. It's always a joy to behold and an inspiration as well. Con-gratulations to all of you who made it possible.

See you at the meeting.

Janet