On the Edge at Oregon Historical Society Opening May 3

On the Edge
An Exhibition by SAQA Oregon Artists

May 3 – August 11, 2019

Oregon Historical Society Pavilion1200 SW Park AvePortland, Oregon 97205

Tillamook
c 2016 Bonnie M. Bucknam
Photo by Mark Frey

Standing at the edge of the precipice is a precarious position; teetering between defeat and victory, we feel both anxious and exhilarated. We must move forward; there is no turning back or staying on the edge.

In Oregon, we live on the edge of the continent in a volcanic zone, an earthquake fault line, and a tsunami zone. Whether staring down from the top of a mountain or standing on a beach, we watch as the sun dips below the same horizon. We are all on the edge—be it physically, geographically, emotionally, philosophically, in personality, or in style.

SAQA Oregon artists were invited to interpret, either in a representational or abstract way, a response to On the Edge. The selected works are part of this two-gallery juried show at the Oregon Historical Society.

About SAQAStudio Art Quilt Associates (SAQA) is an international non-profit organization dedicated to promoting the art quilt and the artists who create them. They are an information resource on all things art quilt related for their members as well as the public. Founded in 1989 by an initial group of 50 artists, SAQA members now number more than 3,400 artists, teachers, collectors, gallery owners, museum curators, and corporate sponsors.  

Shifting Tides Opens at Works/San Jose April 19

Shifting Tides: Convergence in Cloth

Shifting Tides

This exhibit focuses on the current state of the Pacific Ocean ecosystem, its marvelous
natural diversity, and the human activities that both sustain and threaten oceanic life.

Venues:

Works/San José

San Jose, California
April 19 - May 5, 2019 Artists Reception April 20, 1-3pm

Pacific Northwest Quilt and Fiber Arts Museum
La Conner, Washington
June 26 - September 29, 2019

Chehalem Cultural Center
Newberg, Oregon
March 3 - April 25, 2020

CityScape Community Art Space
Vancouver, BC, Canada
May 15 - June 13, 2020

Wailoa Center
Hilo, Hawaii
July 10 - 30, 2020

International Gallery of Contemporary Art
Anchorage, Alaska
September 4 - 30, 2020

Pratt Museum

Homer, Alaska
October - November 2020

Visions Art Museum

San Diego, California
January 16 - April 4, 2021

Pacific Grove Museum of Natural History
Pacific Grove, California
July16- September 12, 2021

Prior to attending it is always best to
check the exact exhibition dates with the venue.

Vancouver SDA at Aurora Gallery

The Vancouver Branch of the Surface Design Association will be featured at Aurora Gallery for the month of April. The opening reception will be April 5, 2019 5-9pm on First Friday Art Walk. SDA will show a diverse range of fiber-based art including fiber vessels and wall hangings. Members showing their work include: Mary Arnold, Bonnie Bucknam, Maris Cavanagh, Donna Joslyn, Sally Sellers, Sharon Svec, Karen Turner and Marie Murphy Wolfe.

The Surface Design Association is a national organization dedicated to promoting awareness and appreciation of textile-inspired art and design. The Vancouver Branch formed in 2016 and has been meeting bi-monthly ever since to share, inspire and grow an appreciation for surface design and textiles. This will be the premiere exhibition of their works.

Bonnie Bucknam's new work Papyrus will be part of the exhibit at Aurora Gallery.

First Local Donation to Providence Center for Medically Fragile Children

The first local donation of "Guatemala Quilts" went to the Providence Center for Medically Fragile Children. A friend contacted them and was told that all but 6 children there already had quilts. So six quilts were sent over. Here they are. Above is from Pat in Idaho. The first two below are from Pat in Anchorage.

This one is from Marta in Palm Desert:

This is by Jo in Portland:

And this one is mine. I pieced it in 1980 (!!) and it had been sitting in a closet ever since. I finally got around to quilting it. After 38 years, I still like it.

Last Shipment to Mayan Families

I sent off the last shipment of quilts to Mayan Families two weeks ago. With a new executive director and board in place, they have decided not to receive and distribute the quilts any longer. They are in the process of streamlining all their programs and reevaluating priorities.

So thanks to so many who have contributed over the years. One hundred quilts went to the orphanage at Santa Apolonia. Two hundred and nine quilts went to the Kids in Need program at Mayan Families. What an accomplishment! Thanks so much for your participation and generosity. We had a good run.

Here are the quilts in the last shipment.  The first three are from Pat in Idaho.

Take Heart is from Chris in Vancouver.

Mary in Vancouver made these nine quilts.

And these are mine.

Geology Quilts at Ridgway Colorado 610 Gallery

Geology: Bonnie Bucknam Art Quilts opened yesterday at The 610 Arts Collective in downtown Ridgway, Colorado. The opening will be First Friday evening, September 7th, at the gallery. Ridgway is a quaint little town with an active arts community. It's about 25 miles from Telluride. Stop by if you're in the area.

Guatemala Bound Retreat in Waldport

This past week, six of us from the SAQA/High Fiber Diet group spent 4 days in Waldport, Oregon.  We made 5 tops for my Guatemala Bound project!

We all brought scraps, sewing machines, and supplies to our wonderful on-the-beach rental house in Waldport. We literally could walk onto the sand from our deck.  The first night we took inventory of what fabrics we'd brought and identified 4 possible projects. We set up and dove in.

This was our first project. It started with several pieced blocks and a jelly roll that Pat had brought.We made 30 wonky blocks, then sized them all up with solid greens and yellows log cabin style.

Mary and Jill took on these pieced blocks with the black tic-tac-toe strips. They found fabrics to coordinated and made a stripy quilt.

Jo made a bright rail-fence-inspired kid's quilt from her various scraps.

Mary and Jill were on a roll and made another lap-size top from some precut squares.

Pat, Susan and I made this stripy quilt starting with some square-within-a-square block that I had brought with me. And Susan finished the hand binding on another quilt.

It was a productive 4 days and a wonderful opportunity to get to know one another a bit better.