Fall Exhibits feature Kaffe Fassett, “Lights,” Millefiori!”

The Texas Quilt Museum presents three exciting exhibits for this fall, including one by a legendary artist and innovator. The exhibits will run October 4 through December 23, 2018. Museum curator Dr. Sandra Sider describes the trio as “a magnificent array of quilted art bursting with originality, color, and luminosity.”

 

Kaffe FassettKaffe Fassett’s love of color imbues his designs in knitwear, needlepoint and patchwork, as can be seen in the exhibit Bold By Design: Kaffe Fassett Quilts. It will feature 23 of his works from his prolific library of patchwork and quilting publications.

 

Born in San Francisco, Fassett settled in London during the 1960s, where he pursued painting as a studio artist. Inspired by the colors of Shetland woolen yarns, he learned to knit, and his multi-hued creations were soon sought after by fashion designers and celebrities alike.

 

Famous worldwide as a textile and quilt artist as well as a teacher of design and color theory, Kaffe Fassett has published more than 30 books, sharing his craft with quilters around the globe.

 

“I am very happy with the curator’s bold choices of quilts that make up Bold By Design,” Fassett notes. “And I am delighted to see my quilts at the Texas Quilt Museum in La Grange, a charming Texas town.”

 

Fassett will also give a lecture titled “Glorious Colors” at the Museum on Tuesday, October 30, from 6-8 p.m. Admission will be $25 and tickets are limited. The talk is designed to inspire and motivate quilters to see their creative world through the harmonies of brilliant colors.

 

​Round and Round by Kaffe Fassett. From the exhibit Bold By Design: Kaffe Fassett Quilts. Photo courtesy of Debbie Patterson.

 

The presentation highlights work from his latest projects, including his patchwork quilt, fabric, needlepoint, mosaic, painting, and knitting designs. A tremendous amount of Fassett’s inspiration comes from his continual travels. His lecture is designed to empower and inspire listeners to develop their creative “mind’s eye.”

 

The presentation will be followed by a question and answer session and book signing for Fassett’s new book, Quilts in America. Tickets include a discount on the book and will be available for purchase on the Museum store site soon.

 

 

Next, Selections from Light Show by the Contemporary Quilt Art Association demonstrates that the quality of reflected light from textile sources can provide a special type of luster, with the finishing process of the fabrics imparting a subtle sheen. Quilting stitches often enhance the nuances of light seen in textile art, and the 12 works in this exhibit are no exception.

 

​Seeing the Light by Melisse Laing. From the exhibit Selections from Light Show by the Contemporary Art Association.

 

Founded in 1986 for makers in the State of Washington, the Contemporary Quilt Art Association is the oldest art quilt organization in the United States.

 

As a group, CQA members are diverse in their design styles, choices of media, and working techniques. The only constant is that CQA members continue to expand the definition of the art quilt, especially as new materials and techniques are developed.

 

And finally, traditional quilters have long utilized hexagons in their creations. Our juror for Dazzling Millefiori Quilts, Museum Registrar Vicki Mangum, comments “there has been a resurgence of interest in this single-shape style. The Texas Quilt Museum is featuring a unique selection of colorful hexagon-based quilts in this exhibit.”

 

​Thoroughly Modern by Sharon Camping.
From the exhibit Dazzling Millefiori Quilts.

 

All of the 14 works on display are based on designs from Katja Marek’s project book, The New Hexagon: 52 Blocks to English Paper Piece, with the artists hailing from California, Missouri, Nevada, and Texas.