Selection for The New Quilt 2008

Selection for The New Quilt 2008 took place at the Manly Art Gallery on 22 October. Christina Sumner, Principal Curator, Design and Society at the Powerhouse Museum, and Therese Kenyon, Director of the Manly Art Gallery had the difficult task of jurying 28 quilts from the 74 entries. This year for the first time, selection was made from digital images provided by the artists. Successful applicants are:

Kerrie Bowles, Susan Cunningham, Helen Ducker, Michele Eastwood, Dianne Firth, Cherry Johnston, Camille Lord, Glenys Mann, Barbara Macey, Deborah McArdle, Thelma McGough, Alison Muir, John Parkes, Cath Phillips, Clare Plug, Gail Putz, Beth and Trevor Reid, Elizabeth Rose, Alison Schwabe, Carolyn Sullivan, Sarah Tucker, and Rosie White.

Congratulations to everyone and, if you missed out this time, don’t give up! Keep working on what you are doing and next time you may be successful. Remember that non-selection is not a criticism of your work; all chosen pieces are considered in the context of the entire exhibition. It will always happen that good work misses out, and largely because of restrictions in the number of quilts that can be hung.

The New Quilt exhibition at Manly Art Gallery will run from 25th January to 24th February 2008. This will be the 12th show, an initiative of the Guild in collaboration with the gallery in which many of our country’s finest quiltmakers have shown their work since 1991. As part of the programme, curator Christina Sumner will give a floor talk on Sunday 3rd February at 3pm.

Concurrently in the small gallery there will be an exhibition of quilts of former guild member, the late Judy McDermott, curated by Sarah Tucker, titled Judy McDermott: Speaking for Themselves. Sarah will deliver a lecture during the exhibitions tracing the development of Judy’s unique work in relation to the work of other Guild members in the period 1989-2004.The lecture is scheduled for Sunday 10th February at 3pm.