Virginia A. Spiegel

Home by Virginia A. Spiegel

An exhibition of surface design fiber art, Watershed was be held at the Textile Center in Minneapolis, MN in June  and July. I just received word today that my artwork, Home, won Best of Show and a $500 prize. The juror was Pokey Bolton, Editor-in-Chief of Quilting Arts magazine.

Part of my artist statement: The first time I sat on a rock in the Boundary Waters Canoe Area Wilderness, my life and art totally changed. Here was a place where I could most truly be myself and feel a power that continues to drive my art making. I now plan my year and my life around the journeys my sister and I take to this quiet and wild place.

The artwork was required to be 18″ x 12.”  This artwork is obviously part of my ongoing Boundary Waters series and proves to me, once again, that the best art comes from the heart.

Boundary Waters 51
Photo by Deidre Adams

Sandra Sider has announced the artists to be included in The Studio Quilt, no. 6:  State of the Art and I’m thrilled that Boundary Waters 51 will be featured in this upcoming book.

Sider is currently serving as president of Studio Art Quilt Associates and is a well-known artist, critic, and curator.  The book will be available on Amazon.com

Mysteries of Horseshoe Rock 2

Studio Art Quilt Associates is having their  annual benefit auction of small fiber artworks. I’m donating one of the new Mysteries of Horseshoe Rock artwork and really should ship it out soon.

Which one of the six Mysteries do you think should go forth and hopefully help finance the good work of SAQA?

Rock, Tree, Sky, Water (Boundary Waters)
White cotton cloth, textile paint, oil paint, black duck cloth, polyester cloth,velvet fabric, tree warp, silk organza inkjet printed with artist’s photos, rice paper, ink, foil, rayon thread. Placed in under 12″ square mat with an 8″ square opening.

Selected artwork from the Meet the Artist: SAQA 20th Anniversary Trunk Show have been chosen to be archived in the permanent collection of the International Quilt Study Center at the University of Nebraska – Lincoln. They will be available to researchers and students as a record of the art quilt in 2009.

Each artist was asked to create a piece of artwork for the traveling trunk show that showcased a process, technique, or style that represents her/his artistic voice. Of course, I wanted to show my layering of materials, use of typography, and the Boundary Waters as subject matter.

If you own my book, a detail of this artwork is shown on page 8.

Boundary Waters 44

This is the third of three related Boundary Waters pieces. It features one of my all-time favorite photos of me in the Boundary Waters taken by my sister, Nancy.  I know that I have some coffee in my red mug, I have on my lucky blue bandana, and I’m just sitting there with a blank mind seeing what there is to see. If I’m wound up about something in life, I take out that photo and try to be there again in that calm and silent spot.

Boundary Waters 44 is a 13×12.25″ art quilt mounted to a custom-made 16×16″ stretched canvas.  Materials include white cotton fabric, acrylic paint, artist’s photos inkjet printed on silk organa, ink, colored pencil, graphite, and rayon thread.  It is collaged, colored, lettered and stitched.

Boundary Waters 44 – Detail

Boundary Waters 43

The eagle is, of course, a powerful totem.  But it holds additional meaning for me as it has more than once appeared at a special moment in a Boundary Waters trip and seemed to add a type of blessing to our voyage.  Boundary Waters 43 is also available; see my website for details.

Boundary Waters 42 – Collection of Mary Wise

These three artworks contain some of my favorite images from the Boundary Waters.  You can see some of their other incarnations here.