Two by Twenty is two exhibits in one. The first is a pairing of two art quilts by the same artist. Some are variations on a theme. With the same technique and subject matter, the artists explore subtle variations in line, color or texture to fully understand the material. Some pairs have a narrative element between them. The time of day has changed, or the viewpoint has shifted. These little differences invite the viewer to engage with the work in a kind of “first — then,” or “spot the differences” game. The second exhibit is the variety overall amongst all the artists.
The pieces as a whole demonstrate the wide range of approaches in the quilt art genre. From bold and graphic to subtle explorations of texture and nuance, there is plenty to explore in this collection.
This exhibition features SAQA artists whose work has not appeared in a SAQA exhibition which premiered in the past three years (this does not include regional exhibitions).
Open European Quilt Championships, Maastricht, Netherlands – October 29 through November 1, 2015
Creativa, Brussels, Belgium – March 10 through March 13, 2016
Quilt Expo Beaujolais at ParcExpo in Villefranche sur Saône, France - April 13 through April 16, 2016
Road to California, Ontario, CA, USA - January 19 through January 22, 2017
Original Sewing & Quilt Expo:
Atlanta, Georgia • March 9 - 11, 2017
Lakeland, Florida • March 16 - 18, 2017
Cleveland, Ohio • March 30 - April 1, 2017
Raleigh, North Carolina • July 20 -22, 2017
Arlington, Texas • August 24 - 26, 2017
Schaumburg, Illinois • September 28 - 30, 2017
Fredericksburg, Virginia • October 5 - 7, 2017
Minneapolis, Minnesota • November 9 - 11, 2017
Dr. Jacqueline M. Atkins, former Chief Curator and Kate Fowler Merle Curator of Textiles at the Allentown Art Museum in Pennsylvania, is a textile historian and independent curator who has organized and curated numerous museum and other exhibitions. She lectures and writes extensively on Japanese and American quilts, early modern Japanese kimono and textiles, and American textile history and has authored books and articles in those areas.
Dr. Atkins was a SAQA Board member from 2008-2014 and served as juror for Sense of Adventure, a 2011 SAQA exhibition. From 2004 to 2011 she was the only western judge for the Japan Quilt Grand Prix contest, part of the annual Tokyo Great International Quilt Festival. She holds a Ph.D. from the Bard Graduate Center and was a recipient of a Fulbright Research Award to Japan, where she studied the impact of Western-style quilting in Japan.
