The New Quilt 2024 Preview: Jessica Wheelahan

Life in The Anthropocene is a commentary of global warming by Jessica Wheelahan. It is made from reclaimed scraps of fine silk, wool and cotton from the fashion industry here and overseas.

Jessica is a Sydney-based artist and educator. She has created using textiles as her primary medium for the past ten years and has exhibited original work worldwide. Since the acquisition of her MMXX Quilt in 2021 by the Powerhouse Museum, Jessica has worked mainly on the creation of large- scale text based compositions which are laboriously constructed and stitched from found materials. Jessica is also inspired by traditional quiltmaking conventions and enjoys using scraps via improvisational piecing methods. Alongside this practice, she regularly collaborates with fashion designers ‘Romance Was Born’ to create one off couture patchwork pieces for catwalk shows and is a high school educator of visual art and design. In 2022 she authored a book of designs with French publisher Quiltmania. Follow Jessica on Instagram at: @birdie_beetle

Join Jessica for Artful Stitching with Sustainable Materials, a workshop on 1 June at Hawkesbury Regional Gallery with a focus on hand stitching techniques and processes for the sustainable use of materials. Book your workshop place!

Plan an art excursion!  

The New Quilt 2024, on exhibition at Hawkesbury Regional Gallery, Windsor, NSW from 4 May to 23 June 2024. Official opening and awards ceremony from 6pm on Friday 3 May 2024. RSVP to the gallery.

Gallery hours: Open 6 days a week Monday, Wednesday-Friday 10am-4pm Saturday-Sunday 10am-3pm. Closed on Tuesday and public holidays.

The New Quilt 2024 Preview: Lisa Walton

Tidal Flow by Lisa Walton is composed of layered felt, enriched by free-motion quilting.

Lisa has been awarded many prizes for her quilts including major international and Australian quilt shows. She teaches internationally and was awarded the Jewel Pearce Patterson Scholarship for Quilting Teachers by the International Quilt Association Houston USA. Lisa’s quilts have been exhibited in solo and joint exhibitions and her work is included in collections in the USA, Australia and the UK. Her book – Beautiful Building Block Quilts was published by C&T Publishing. She has appeared on Quilting Arts TV and The Quilt Show. Lisa was a Board Member and then President of Studio Art Quilt Associates (SAQA). She is now teaching and lecturing virtually online as well as producing a series of Quilt Stories on her YouTube Channel. See more of Lisa's artwork at: 

• www.lisawaltonartist.com
• Facebook: lisawaltonart
• Instagram: @lisawaltonartist 
   

Plan an art excursion!  

The New Quilt 2024, on exhibition at Hawkesbury Regional Gallery, Windsor, NSW from 4 May to 23 June 2024. Official opening and awards ceremony from 6pm on Friday 3 May 2024. RSVP to the gallery.

Gallery hours: Open 6 days a week Monday, Wednesday-Friday 10am-4pm Saturday-Sunday 10am-3pm. Closed on Tuesday and public holidays.

 

The New Quilt 2024 Preview: Alan R Tremain

Alan R Tremain made Every Dog Has Its Day from dog food plastic sacks and a blue tarpaulin as a commentary on the plight of rescued dogs, especially in the aftermath of the pandemic.

Alan is a professional textile artist from the Central Coast of New South Wales with over 40 years’ experience. He co-ordinates the design of exhibitions, projects, workshops and classes using textiles as a common medium. In past years he has been a frequent tutor at popular local, national and international residential craft schools. Alan’s is passionate about sharng his knowledge and techniques including quilting, dyeing, and creative heirloom work.   Hisinspiration is driven by a natural eye for colour and frequently involves using daring bright nonconventional combinations and placement of colours within his dynamic design. See more of Alan's artwork at:

• www.ozquiltdesign.com
• @alanrtremain70
  

  

Plan an art excursion!  

The New Quilt 2024, on exhibition at Hawkesbury Regional Gallery, Windsor, NSW from 4 May to 23 June 2024. Official opening and awards ceremony from 6pm on Friday 3 May 2024. RSVP to the gallery.

Gallery hours: Open 6 days a week Monday, Wednesday-Friday 10am-4pm Saturday-Sunday 10am-3pm. Closed on Tuesday and public holidays.

 

The New Quilt 2024 Preview: Jeanne Treleaven

Symmetry is created by Jeanne Treleaven of Adelaide, South Australia.

Plan an art excursion!  

The New Quilt 2024, on exhibition at Hawkesbury Regional Gallery, Windsor, NSW from 4 May to 23 June 2024. Official opening and awards ceremony from 6pm on Friday 3 May 2024. RSVP to the gallery.

Gallery hours: Open 6 days a week Monday, Wednesday-Friday 10am-4pm Saturday-Sunday 10am-3pm. Closed on Tuesday and public holidays.

 

The New Quilt 2024 Preview: Tania Tanti

Today we highlight Get Down In Green by Tania Tanti that incoporates painting, free motion embroidery and quilting.

As a contemporary artist specializing in textile art, Tania utilizes a diverse range of mediums such as dyeing, painting, thread painting, and stitching to construct my pieces. She is particularly drawn to bold and contrasting colors, allowing shapes, characters, and imaginary landscapes to organically emerge and intertwine within my artworks. Occasionally, a glimpse into her thoughts on life can be found, often conveyed with a touch of humor. 

Tania's objective is to challenge the conventional perception of quilting and to encourage others to appreciate the uniqueness, excitement, and intricacy inherent in textile works. The countless hours, honed skills, and challenges faced while working with textiles as a medium are not widely recognized, and she believes it is crucial to emphasize in our modern era, the part that the textile medium plays in our contemporary art space and the distinctiveness of such unique artful creations. See more of Tania's artwork at:

• www.taniatanti.com.au
• Facebook: colorcodeddreams
• Instagram: @tania_tanti_artist 
  

 

Plan an art excursion!  

The New Quilt 2024, on exhibition at Hawkesbury Regional Gallery, Windsor, NSW from 4 May to 23 June 2024. Official opening and awards ceremony from 6pm on Friday 3 May 2024. RSVP to the gallery.

Gallery hours: Open 6 days a week Monday, Wednesday-Friday 10am-4pm Saturday-Sunday 10am-3pm. Closed on Tuesday and public holidays.

 

The New Quilt 2024 Preview: Tamara Stunnell

Tamara Stunnell of Moonee Ponds, Victoria created Still Life in response to the Modern Quilt Guild's (MQG) 2024 Super Scrappy Challenge. Many fabrics have been used to make the quilt including recycled cotton work shirts, modern prints, and solids.

Tamara’s quilting journey started when she saw a magazine cover featuring a quilt of rectangles in red and yellow fabrics. In the last couple of years Tamara has started to branch out into creating her own quilt designs, usually in response to MQG design challenges. Tamara has been a member of Melbourne Modern Quilt Guild since 2016 and the President for several years. She has had quilts at Quiltcon 2023 and 2024, Victorian Quilters Showcase 2023, the ‘To There and Back’ quilt show in Deniliquin 2023 and MPavilion 2023-2024. See more of Tamara's artwork on Instagram at: @tstunnell

 

 

 

Plan an art excursion!  

The New Quilt 2024, on exhibition at Hawkesbury Regional Gallery, Windsor, NSW from 4 May to 23 June 2024. Official opening and awards ceremony from 6pm on Friday 3 May 2024. RSVP to the gallery.

Gallery hours: Open 6 days a week Monday, Wednesday-Friday 10am-4pm Saturday-Sunday 10am-3pm. Closed on Tuesday and public holidays.

The New Quilt 2024 Preview: Brenda Gael Smith

 Forza Vitale: Breathe by Brenda Gael Smith is inspired by the ocean view at Copacabana and the news of a life-changing diagnosis.

Brenda creates textile paintings and sketches made from a rich palette of hand-dyed fabrics complemented by extensive, textural stitching demonstrating the transformative power of stitch. Abstraction is a persistent and insistent force. Working improvisationally, she captures the essence of her subjects to impart a sense of wonder of the natural world and a strong affinity to place. See more of Brenda's artwork at:

• www.brendagaelsmith.com
• Facebook: Serendipity Patchwork & Quilting
• Instagram: @brendagaelsmith 
  

Plan an art excursion!  

The New Quilt 2024, on exhibition at Hawkesbury Regional Gallery, Windsor, NSW from 4 May to 23 June 2024. Official opening and awards ceremony from 6pm on Friday 3 May 2024. RSVP to the gallery.

Gallery hours: Open 6 days a week Monday, Wednesday-Friday 10am-4pm Saturday-Sunday 10am-3pm. Closed on Tuesday and public holidays.

 

 

The New Quilt 2024 Preview: Jane Rundle

 Nurturing the Pod is an improvisationally pieced quilt by Jane Rundle of Wakerley, Queensland.

Jane has been quilting since 1980, originally making traditional quilts, she now concentrates on constructing original art and modern improvisational quilts, some often with a twist on traditional design. Early traditional patchwork classes gave her a solid base to be able to construct anything she sets her mind to. Often, new quilts start with a piece of fabric on the design wall, and grow from there, mostly the quilt tells her what comes next! She is inspired by colour, shape and of course the texture of machine quilting. Machine quilting is her passion, she can often be found just doodling machine quilting designs. See more of Jane's artwork on Instagram at: @janemadlyquilting

Plan an art excursion!  

The New Quilt 2024, on exhibition at Hawkesbury Regional Gallery, Windsor, NSW from 4 May to 23 June 2024. Official opening and awards ceremony from 6pm on Friday 3 May 2024. RSVP to the gallery.

Gallery hours: Open 6 days a week Monday, Wednesday-Friday 10am-4pm Saturday-Sunday 10am-3pm. Closed on Tuesday and public holidays. 

The New Quilt 2024 Preview: Jill Rumble

Jill Rumble of Erina created Petrichor from wool blend fabric, machine and embroidery threads. Growing up in the country has always influenced Jill's creativity having fibre, colour, line and stitch as a means of expression.

Plan an art excursion!  

The New Quilt 2024, on exhibition at Hawkesbury Regional Gallery, Windsor, NSW from 4 May to 23 June 2024. Official opening and awards ceremony from 6pm on Friday 3 May 2024. RSVP to the gallery.

Gallery hours: Open 6 days a week Monday, Wednesday-Friday 10am-4pm Saturday-Sunday 10am-3pm. Closed on Tuesday and public holidays. 

 

 

The New Quilt 2024 Preview: Lisa Reid

 Far Meadow by Lisa Reid is made from linen. silk. cotton and recycled fabrics.

Plan an art excursion!  

The New Quilt 2024, on exhibition at Hawkesbury Regional Gallery, Windsor, NSW from 4 May to 23 June 2024. Official opening and awards ceremony from 6pm on Friday 3 May 2024. RSVP to the gallery.

Gallery hours: Open 6 days a week Monday, Wednesday-Friday 10am-4pm Saturday-Sunday 10am-3pm. Closed on Tuesday and public holidays. 

 

 

The New Quilt 2024 Preview: Val Nadin

A Fractured Landscape - After the Flood by Val Nadin considers the destructive power of nature and, in particular, when the Nepean River burst its banks in 2022 and inundated the Yarramundi bridge.

Val’s interest in quilts began in 1980, while she was living in Singapore. She developed her skills and technique in both traditional and art quilt-making over 40 years. She has taught many classes, judged exhibitions, and worked on Valuation Committee for 25 years. Many of her works are in Australian-themed series, for example, ‘Convicts & Soldiers’, ‘Bushfires’, ‘Drought’, and more recently, ‘Floods’. Val’s quilts have been exhibited across Australia and internationally. Her favourite techniques include strip piecing, and the inclusion of her own hand-dyed fabrics and found objects such as teabags, plastics, and beads. She is currently working on a series of small quilts, using fabrics identified with specific cultures, such as Australia’s First Nations, Indonesia, France, England, and Africa.

 

Plan an art excursion!  

The New Quilt 2024, on exhibition at Hawkesbury Regional Gallery, Windsor, NSW from 4 May to 23 June 2024. Official opening and awards ceremony from 6pm on Friday 3 May 2024. RSVP to the gallery.

 

The New Quilt 2024 Preview: Kay Murray

What’s going on with this weather? is by Kay Murray of Eastwood, New South Wales and features Botanical gel plate printing.

Kay Murray is a textile practitioner, artist and educator. She has worked with both young people and adults for over 40 years. Her inspiration takes an experiential form, often based on places or events that she has encountered, particularly related to her early life on a working Merino property. Nature and the environment has provided layers of inspiration and lead to a concern with climate change and its effects on all aspects but especially food security and the decline of bees. Having experience with a range of textiles under the guidance of female family generations, and through tertiary studies in textiles, Kay is proficient in, and enjoys, many techniques including embroidery and quilting as means to express her ideas. Cloth colouration through dyeing, gel plate printing and deconstructed screen printing are amongst her preferred methods, often using the actual materials such as foliage to create her designs for printing. These techniques allow her to capture an idea and then enhance it with more traditional techniques with hand and machine embroidery, and quilting being familiar methods of embellishment. Kay is fully immersed her daily textile practice, creating a wide variety of functional and decorative textiles in her well equipped sewing room. She is a member of QuiltNSW, Eastwood Patchwork Quilters and ATASDA (Australian Textile Arts & Surface Design Association Inc). 

Follow Kay on Instagram: @stitchaday

 

Plan an art excursion!  

The New Quilt 2024, on exhibition at Hawkesbury Regional Gallery, Windsor, NSW from 4 May to 23 June 2024. Official opening and awards ceremony from 6pm on Friday 3 May 2024. RSVP to the gallery. 

Gallery hours: Open 6 days a week Monday, Wednesday-Friday 10am-4pm Saturday-Sunday 10am-3pm. Closed on Tuesday and public holidays.

The New Quilt 2024 Preview: Alison Muir

Alison Muir of Cremorne, New South Wales created 'disillusion' a protest as a commentary on capitalism and corporate greed. She writes:

The devastating images of Antarctic glaciers collapsing into the sea around the frozen landmass are the inspiration for the work. The pale indigo blue of an expiring vat and the density of cotton sheeting allowed these two materials to further develop the concept into a larger than human scale wall image.

View more of Alison's artwork at: www.muirandmuir.com.au

Follow Alison on Instagram at: @textile_expressions

Plan an art excursion!  

The New Quilt 2024, on exhibition at Hawkesbury Regional Gallery, Windsor, NSW from 4 May to 23 June 2024. Official opening and awards ceremony from 6pm on Friday 3 May 2024. RSVP to the gallery. 

Gallery hours: Open 6 days a week Monday, Wednesday-Friday 10am-4pm Saturday-Sunday 10am-3pm. Closed on Tuesday and public holidays.

 

The New Quilt 2024 Preview: Jill Miglietti

Do you really need this? by Jill Miglietti  of Frankston South, Victoria is made from torn, glued, stitched and stitched privacy envelopes. 

Using an array of fibre and textile techniques, Jill constructs two- and three-dimensional artworks that portray her responses to the physical, external world and her inner, emotional being. Her work expands ideas about memory, identity and the passing of time by manipulating materials and forms into embodied narratives that feel instinctive and familiar. The processes of reduction, abstraction and repetition build surfaces and structures that evoke the essence of place, of lived experience and of memory. Physical and metaphorical layers are assembled from cloth along with found objects, text and other media to expand the dynamic space between two and three dimensions. With work in public and private collections, Miglietti has been exhibiting since completing a Diploma of Textile Art in 2012. Her work has also appeared in Australian and international publications. 

View more of Jill's artwork at: 

• www.jillmiglietti.com
• Facebook artist page
• Instagram: @jillmigliettitextileart 
   

 

Plan an art excursion!  

The New Quilt 2024, on exhibition at Hawkesbury Regional Gallery, Windsor, NSW from 4 May to 23 June 2024. Official opening and awards ceremony from 6pm on Friday 3 May 2024. RSVP to the gallery. 

Gallery hours: Open 6 days a week Monday, Wednesday-Friday 10am-4pm Saturday-Sunday 10am-3pm. Closed on Tuesday and public holidays.

The New Quilt 2024 Preview: Barbara Mellor

Today we highlight Winter Weeping with Moon by Barbara Mellor of St Helens, Tasmania.

Barbara was educated in Scotland and grew up in the country with a love for people and open spaces. She moved to Australia as a home economics teacher and after a successful career in Secondary education as a school principal, she retired to Tasmania and indulged her love for beautiful textiles.  Tasmania's wonderful landscapes and natural beauty drew her to the Island. Barbara loves the Japanese style and often discovers elements coming through in her quilts. She often uses Japanese silk in her traditional quilts. Barbara’s main work is in art quilting and is often pictorial.  She likes to research how to achieve different effects in textiles using different media. She usually applies paint on fabrics when she works and has recently experimented with the use of paper and loose threads.

Plan an art excursion!  

The New Quilt 2024, on exhibition at Hawkesbury Regional Gallery, Windsor, NSW from 4 May to 23 June 2024. Official opening and awards ceremony from 6pm on Friday 3 May 2024. RSVP to the gallery. 

Gallery hours: Open 6 days a week Monday, Wednesday-Friday 10am-4pm Saturday-Sunday 10am-3pm. Closed on Tuesday and public holidays.

 

The New Quilt 2024 Preview: Suzanne Laird

Truth Decay by Suzanne Laird of Lawson, New South Wales considers some of the tactics used against truth.

Suzanne made her first quilt in 1978 for her daughter without realizing that this would become the focus of her stitching for years to come. Family, work and career generally took priority, however she didn’t stop sewing, collecting fabric and ideas along the way. Through the 80’s and early 90’s her learning focus was on technique and design rather than replicating given patterns. Her career took over until retirement, when she revisited her awareness of more recent quilting developments, making small quilts to explore possibilities. Engagement with small and large quilt groups were significant in re-energising her passion. Several entries in the annual QuiltNSW Exhibition were well received to her surprise and pleasure. Never one to mince words, nor fail to express an opinion about a personal passion, she has more recently seen the possibilities of quilts in response to societal challenges. Collections of notes, quotes and clippings inspired her first foray into this area, and then led to the sometimes tortuous development of Truth Decay, her entry in The New Quilt. Suzanne’s design process is fluid, each step evolving rather than planned. Colours emerge first from her notes, then design possibilities requiring exploration on a design wall where changes, rejections, and more ideas respond to her intent. Her topical notes and quotes are growing, instigating ideas for more quilts to come. 

 Follow Suzanne on Instagram at: @suzanne.laird

Plan an art excursion!  

The New Quilt 2024, on exhibition at Hawkesbury Regional Gallery, Windsor, NSW from 4 May to 23 June 2024. Official opening and awards ceremony from 6pm on Friday 3 May 2024. RSVP to the gallery. 

Gallery hours: Open 6 days a week Monday, Wednesday-Friday 10am-4pm Saturday-Sunday 10am-3pm. Closed on Tuesday and public holidays.

 

The New Quilt 2024 Preview: Judy Hooworth

Secret Correspondence by Judy Hooworth of Morriset, New South Wales features spidery 'writing' on scribbly gums suggesting a clandestine correspondence.

Judy’s main body of work is influenced and inspired by Dora Creek and the surrounding Lake Macquarie area near her home. Her work encompasses drawing, mono printing, painting, and discharge techniques and is extensively stitched and quilted. Judy has maintained a studio practice for over thirty five years, and has been involved in in quilt textiles as a teacher, lecturer, exhibition organiser and author. She has exhibited and been published widely; her work is held in collections here and overseas, including the Powerhouse Museum, Tamworth Art Gallery, Wangaratta Art Gallery, the Museum of Arts and Design New York USA, San Jose Museum of Quilts & Textiles USA. 

View more of Judy's artwork at:

•  www.ozquiltnetwork.org.au
• @judyhooworth1
  

Plan an art excursion!  

The New Quilt 2024, on exhibition at Hawkesbury Regional Gallery, Windsor, NSW from 4 May to 23 June 2024. Official opening and awards ceremony from 6pm on Friday 3 May 2024. RSVP to the gallery. 

Gallery hours: Open 6 days a week Monday, Wednesday-Friday 10am-4pm Saturday-Sunday 10am-3pm. Closed on Tuesday and public holidays.

The New Quilt 2024 Preview: Emmanuelle Holmes & Others

On 14 October 2023 Australians voted in the Referendum to recognise Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people in our Constitution through a Voice to Parliament. The Voice Quilt was created by Emmanuelle Holmes as a community textile project in the lead up to the election. It embodied the positivity, joy, colour and collaborative nature of working together with a common goal to support a yes vote in the Referendum. Emmanuelle’s work in mental health convinced her that the Voice would support better health outcomes for First Nations People by giving them more say and agency on matters that affect them. The idea grew organically after Emmanuelle, wondering whether she could express her support through her art, put out a call on social media, and to family and friends in July 2023. People were invited to make a quilt block of a certain size, using any textile technique and combination, whether that be piecework, machine or hand applique, fabric printing or dyeing, embroidery or collage. Sewing expertise was not a prerequisite and individual block design was determined by each maker. Emmanuelle received 25 blocks over a couple of months from 14 makers and textile artists living on the Sunshine Coast in Queensland. The project was time limited so it could be completed by Referendum Day on October 14. Emmanuelle writes: "Despite the heartbreaking referendum outcome, the Voice Quilt stands as a permanent reminder of who we are today."

Plan an art excursion!  

The New Quilt 2024, on exhibition at Hawkesbury Regional Gallery, Windsor, NSW from 4 May to 23 June 2024. Official opening and awards ceremony from 6pm on Friday 3 May 2024. RSVP to the gallery. 

Gallery hours: Open 6 days a week Monday, Wednesday-Friday 10am-4pm Saturday-Sunday 10am-3pm. Closed on Tuesday and public holidays.

 

The New Quilt 2024 Preview: Lynne Hargreaves

Of cabbages and kings by Lynne Hargreaves of Legana, Tasmania celebrates her father and his veggie patch.

Born in the UK, Lynne worked as a graphic designer moving into design training in 1978. 20yrs in vocational and tertiary education followed. Joining the cultural sector and arts management in 1998 she retired to Tasmania in 2017 from the position of Director of Exhibitions & Collections at the Art Gallery of WA. She has worked in partnership with institutions such as the Louvre, Tate, V&A, St Petersburg State Theatre and most recently the MoMA, New York to present renowned artworks in Perth. Entering a new chapter of her career she now has a focus on her own textile art practice. 

Art quilting draws upon her design background and she is excitedly discovering the wonders of thread and fabric. Her current experiments feature combinations of thread-painted photographs with varying contemporary and traditional piecing techniques. Working from her own or family photographs images are manipulated, printed in large scale then pieced and over worked with machine and hand stitching.

 

Plan an art excursion!  

The New Quilt 2024, on exhibition at Hawkesbury Regional Gallery, Windsor, NSW from 4 May to 23 June 2024. Official opening and awards ceremony from 6pm on Friday 3 May 2024. RSVP to the gallery. 

Gallery hours: Open 6 days a week Monday, Wednesday-Friday 10am-4pm Saturday-Sunday 10am-3pm. Closed on Tuesday and public holidays.

 

The New Quilt 2024 Preview: Margery Goodall

Future Proof Suite (quartet) by Margery Goodall reflects a traditional formal garden design and is designed to raise awareness of how our consumer choices affect the natural world.

Margery is a prize-winning Western Australian textile artist whose work has been exhibited in selective exhibitions in Australia and internationally since 1999, including the Alice Craft Award, the City of Joondalup Art Prize and the York Botanic Art Prize (2020, 2023). Margery has a longstanding creative practice focusing on stitched cloth, with a more recent addition of assemblages of found objects and waste materials. 

Since 2020 a focus of Margery’s work has been in response to the increasing fragility of the Australian landscape, and the challenges around use of packaging and subsequent disposal of packaging materials. While Margery continues to stitch scraps and discarded fabrics, she currently transforms waste materials, such as plastic bottle lids and plastic packaging, into stitched works which reflect on the web of connections between our relationships with modern living and the natural environment. Follow Margery on Instagram at:  @margery.goodall.about_art

Plan an art excursion!  

The New Quilt 2024, on exhibition at Hawkesbury Regional Gallery, Windsor, NSW from 4 May to 23 June 2024. Official opening and awards ceremony from 6pm on Friday 3 May 2024. RSVP to the gallery. 

Gallery hours: Open 6 days a week Monday, Wednesday-Friday 10am-4pm Saturday-Sunday 10am-3pm. Closed on Tuesday and public holidays.

The New Quilt 2024 Preview: Fiona Gavens

 Today we highlight Ghost Blanket IX, the artwork of the second juror/judge Fiona Gavens. This work is made from felted woven alpaca, wool, wool blend yarns, silk and organza.

Fiona Gavens is a textile designer based in Melbourne. She has broad experience developed over a lifetime of involvement with textiles, particularly patchwork, quilting, embroidery, knitting and dressmaking. Her multiple careers include being a freelance quilt artist, exhibitor and teacher for many years; manager of a regional conservatorium; and university and arts administrator. As a self-taught artist she embraced the opportunity to develop formal design skills in her studies of B.A. (Textile Design), RMIT University, graduating in 2018.

Plan an art excursion!  

The New Quilt 2024, on exhibition at Hawkesbury Regional Gallery, Windsor, NSW from 4 May to 23 June 2024. Official opening and awards ceremony from 6pm on Friday 3 May 2024. RSVP to the gallery. 

Gallery hours: Open 6 days a week Monday, Wednesday-Friday 10am-4pm Saturday-Sunday 10am-3pm. Closed on Tuesday and public holidays.

 

The New Quilt 2024 Preview: Jan Frazer

Today we highlight Waratahs in White by Jan Frazer of Elwood Victoria which incorporates hand screen printed cottons designed by Reece Scannell.

Plan an art excursion!  

The New Quilt 2024, on exhibition at Hawkesbury Regional Gallery, Windsor, NSW from 4 May to 23 June 2024. Official opening and awards ceremony from 6pm on Friday 3 May 2024. RSVP to the gallery. 

Gallery hours: Open 6 days a week Monday, Wednesday-Friday 10am-4pm Saturday-Sunday 10am-3pm. Closed on Tuesday and public holidays.

 

The New Quilt 2024 Preview: Dianne Firth

Inspired by Canberra's Floriade, Dianne Firth created Floriade #4 from handcut pieces of felt assembled between layers of net.

Dianne Firth is an artist, landscape architect and academic and is Adjunct Associate Professor with the Centre for Creative and Cultural Research at the University of Canberra. Her minimalist layered and stitched textile art is informed by her desire to portray landscape qualities that she finds in urban and rural environments. Form and colour are important in her compositions and she likes to use non-traditional materials such as net, felt, paper and foil in a symbolic manner. 

Dianne exhibits regularly in solo and juried exhibitions in Australia and internationally. Her work is held in major public and private collections.View more of Dianne's artwork at:  www.ozquiltnetwork.org.au

Plan an art excursion!  

The New Quilt 2024, on exhibition at Hawkesbury Regional Gallery, Windsor, NSW from 4 May to 23 June 2024. Official opening and awards ceremony from 6pm on Friday 3 May 2024. RSVP to the gallery. 

Gallery hours: Open 6 days a week Monday, Wednesday-Friday 10am-4pm Saturday-Sunday 10am-3pm. Closed on Tuesday and public holidays.

 

The New Quilt 2024 Preview: Rachaeldaisy Dodd

Scraps Devine by Rachaeldaisy Dodd of Wallace, Victoria transforms fabric remnants, strips and small pieces that might normally be discarded, to create a graceful dancing vine.

Rachaeldaisy Dodd has been lucky to follow a creative path, from delving into crafts as a child and then working as a creative florist for more than 20 years. She discovered patchwork and quilting in the early 2000’s, and that was it, she was hooked! 

Since then, Rachaeldaisy has become synonymous with bold, colourful, eye popping quilts. Whilst honouring the tradition of quilting she continues to find fresh ways and new techniques to interpret conventional designs. Her use of 3D elements such as folded and gathered fabric techniques, YoYo puffs, prairie points, RicRac, wool felt and denim come together to create beautifully, unique textured work. 

Rachaeldaisy’s fresh interpretation of the art of quilting has seen her quilts exhibited in quilt shows and galleries and featured in many publications both nationally and internationally. They have received many prizes including awards for Best in Show at both the 2015 and 2016 Australian Modern Quilt Show, Best in Show at the 2016 QuiltNSW Members Quilt Show. Most Innovative at 2017 Dare to Differ Contemporary Textiles Exhibition, Houston Quilt Show 2018, Runner-up Pro-Hart Outback Award 2019, Best Use of Colour and Viewers Choice Awards. 

Her book 'Whizz Bang! Adventures in Folded Fabric' published with Quiltmania, focuses on the techniques that create her folded fabric quilts. 

When she isn't travelling to teach, Rachaeldaisy resides on the traditional lands of the Wadawarrung people, surrounded by a garden of dancing trees. 

See more of Rachaeldaisy's artwork at: www.rachaeldaisy.com

 

Plan an art excursion!  

The New Quilt 2024, on exhibition at Hawkesbury Regional Gallery, Windsor, NSW from 4 May to 23 June 2024. Official opening and awards ceremony from 6pm on Friday 3 May 2024. RSVP to the gallery. 

Gallery hours: Open 6 days a week Monday, Wednesday-Friday 10am-4pm Saturday-Sunday 10am-3pm. Closed on Tuesday and public holidays.

 

The New Quilt 2024 Preview: Ruth de Vos

Today we preview A New Thing, a botanical artwork by Ruth de Vos, one of juror-judges on The New Quilt 2024 selection panel. Ruth is an award winning artist, a quilt-pattern designer, and a published picture book illustrator. She loves to focus on the beauty of ordinary every day things, including the flora that forms her local streetscape. "There is so much beauty in the sturdy, slender gum leaves, and the verdant clusters of fibrous eucalyptus blossoms bursting from their wooden shells." View more of Ruth's artwork at www.ruthdevos.com

Plan an art excursion!  

The New Quilt 2024, on exhibition at Hawkesbury Regional Gallery, Windsor, NSW from 4 May to 23 June 2024. Official opening and awards ceremony from 6pm on Friday 3 May 2024. RSVP to the gallery. 

Gallery hours: Open 6 days a week Monday, Wednesday-Friday 10am-4pm Saturday-Sunday 10am-3pm. Closed on Tuesday and public holidays.

 

The New Quilt 2024 Preview: Sue Dennis

Today we highlight Tempest by Sue Dennis of Brisbane. Sue's passion for surface design in the quilt medium is evident in this work which was handprinted with plant matter.

Sue has had a long and varied career in quilting, beginning in Mt Isa Queensland in 1990. Having learnt the basics of patchwork, she began teaching classes for beginners using rotary cutting, machine piecing and machine quilting, which was in its infancy. Thirty years on and she has been a writer for quilt magazines, national and international tutor, exhibitor and prize winner. Sue has taught in Australia, the USA, New Zealand, China, South Korea, Taiwan and Mongolia. The dramatic Australian landscape influenced her early designs, which were rich in colour and texture. Hand dyeing her fabric and adding meaning via printing, rubbed surfaces and stitch are dominant features of her work, which has been well received in national and international exhibitions. 

Plan an art excursion!  

The New Quilt 2024, on exhibition at Hawkesbury Regional Gallery, Windsor, NSW from 4 May to 23 June 2024. Official opening and awards ceremony from 6pm on Friday 3 May 2024. RSVP to the gallery. 

Gallery hours: Open 6 days a week Monday, Wednesday-Friday 10am-4pm Saturday-Sunday 10am-3pm. Closed on Tuesday and public holidays.

The New Quilt 2024 Preview: Susan Cunningham

Today we highlight Baranbali 1 by Susan Cunningham of Stawell, Victoria. Susan's latest body of work has resulted from her acquisition of old family textiles. She tells stories using these textiles to embody her reactions to the world around her: matters of social and environmental importance nationally and internationally, and also to explore her personal background. Baranbali 1 focuses on the use of recycled materials at the family level. Used work-a-day items reflect the hard working and thoughtful life of her parents on a dairy farm, along with their plans for a new house, and her mother’s CWA interests which extended to teaching knitting and embroidery.

 

 
Plan an art excursion!  

The New Quilt 2024, on exhibition at Hawkesbury Regional Gallery, Windsor, NSW from 4 May to 23 June 2024. Official opening and awards ceremony from 6pm on Friday 3 May 2024. RSVP to the gallery. 

Gallery hours: Open 6 days a week Monday, Wednesday-Friday 10am-4pm Saturday-Sunday 10am-3pm. Closed on Tuesday and public holidays.

 

The New Quilt 2024 Preview: Vivienne Crisell

Today we highlight A Walk in a Park by Vivienne Crisell of Coffs Harbour, New South Wales. This artwork features hand dyeing, screen printing, machine piecing, applique and quilting and embroidery.

Vivienne teaches fashion design, patternmaking and textile art practices. She has a Diploma in Fashion and Technical Teaching, with over twenty-five years experience within the fashion industry as a patternmaker and designer, and taught Fashion at TAFE for over twenty years. She has a Diploma in Colour and Design, and completed post-graduate work. Exhibiting since 1989 in solo and group shows.

Plan an art excursion!  

The New Quilt 2024, on exhibition at Hawkesbury Regional Gallery, Windsor, NSW from 4 May to 23 June 2024. Official opening and awards ceremony from 6pm on Friday 3 May 2024. RSVP to the gallery. 

Gallery hours: Open 6 days a week Monday, Wednesday-Friday 10am-4pm Saturday-Sunday 10am-3pm. Closed on Tuesday and public holidays.

 

The New Quilt 2024 Preview: Sandra Champion

For the purposes of The New Quilt exhibition, a quilt is defined as "stitched and layered materials using any technique".  In the case of a rare and strange wattle by Sandra Champion of Tasmania, the artwork is made from recycled paper and cardboard, vintage Japanese kimono silks, scrim, gauze, acrylic mediums, inks, stencils and cottons

Sandra first explored the medium of paper textile while at Art School in the 1980s. She draws on ordinary recycled papers and cardboard to explore their capacity to meld together in unexpected ways. Papers are soaked in water, sometimes for months, to deconstruct them. They are then reconstructed in a variety of ways, exploiting their resulting shapes and texture while retaining their inherent familiarity. Used in conjunction with a range of textiles, such as vintage kimono silk remnants, scrim and butter muslin they inspire the paper textile design process. 

See more of Sandra's artwork at: www.ozquiltnetwork.org.au/gallery

 

Plan an art excursion!  

The New Quilt 2024, on exhibition at Hawkesbury Regional Gallery, Windsor, NSW from 4 May to 23 June 2024. Official opening and awards ceremony from 6pm on Friday 3 May 2024. RSVP to the gallery. 

Gallery hours: Open 6 days a week Monday, Wednesday-Friday 10am-4pm Saturday-Sunday 10am-3pm. Closed on Tuesday and public holidays.