Feb. 27, 2013
CHARLESTON, W.Va. – The West Virginia Division of Culture and History invites West Virginia quilters to enter the annual Quilts and Wall Hangings Juried Exhibition. This year’s exhibition will open Friday, May 24, with an awards ceremony at the annual Vandalia Gathering at the Culture Center on the State Capitol Complex. The free summer-long exhibition will be displayed through Sept. 2, 2013.
“The quilt exhibition in the Great Hall is one of our most popular and colorful exhibitions,” said Commissioner Randall Reid-Smith of the Division of Culture and History. “Visitors from around the country enjoy the fine handiwork of West Virginians whose creativity and appreciation of tradition are showcased in the quilts and wall hangings we feature.”
Beverly Fine, a National Quilting Association Certified Judge from Haymarket, Va., will be the juror for this year’s exhibition. She made her first quilt for a friend when she was in high school, and became a dedicated quilter in 1996. Fine focuses her work on monoprinting, or using an etching press and/or fabric marbling, as well as dye-painting and shibori techniques. Her work has been exhibited in juried shows, including the Fitchburg Art Museum and the Johsonia Gallery in Fitchburg, Mass.; the Whistler House Museum of Art, the Brush Art Gallery and Studios and the New England Quilt Museum, all in Lowell, Mass. She recently co-authored the book Guide to Judged Quilt Shows, available through www.nqa.org or Amazon.
Fine will lead a workshop titled “A Judge’s Guide to a Professional Finish” at the Culture Center from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., on Friday, May 10. Students will learn a step-by-step process for making bindings and facings that will win praise from a quilt judge. The resulting pieces will be flat, smooth and square.
Quilts, handmade or machine made, by West Virginia residents are eligible for the exhibition. Quilts and wall hangings shown previously in a Division of Culture and History Quilts and Wall Hangings juried exhibition are not eligible.
Awards are presented for first- ($750), second- ($400) and third-place ($300) in the following categories: pieced quilts, appliqued quilts, and quilts made with mixed/other techniques. Wall hangings will receive $400 for first-place, $300 for second-place and $200 for third-place. In addition, a Best of Show prize of $100 may be awarded by the juror. Honorable mention or other non-monetary awards are given at the discretion of the judge. The Division of Culture and History will provide two Purchase Awards and add the purchased quilt and wall hanging to the collection of the West Virginia State Museum. Quilters may sell their quilts during the exhibition, however quilts may not be removed until the close of the show.
This year, entries must be shipped or mailed no earlier than April 8 and must arrive at the Culture Center no later than May 3, 2013. Hand-delivered entries will be accepted between 10 a.m. and 4 p.m., on April 25-26. Each entrant may submit one quilt and one wall hanging, which must be accompanied by a non-refundable fee of $20 for each entry.
The workshop is limited to 25 participants. There is a $20 fee per person and registration is required. Contact Betty Gay, exhibits coordinator for the Division, at (304) 558-0220, ext. 128, to register for the workshop and to receive a supply list.
Guidelines, applications and more information about eligibility, jurying and shipping are available on the Division’s website and can be downloaded at www.wvculture.org/museum, or by calling Gay to have an application mailed.
The West Virginia Division of Culture and History is an agency within the West Virginia Department of Education and the Arts with Kay Goodwin, Cabinet Secretary. The Division, led by Commissioner Randall Reid-Smith, brings together the past, present and future through programs and services focusing on archives and history, arts, historic preservation and museums. For more information about the Division’s programs, events and sites, visit www.wvculture.org. The Division of Culture and History is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer.
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