Week Three at the Benefit Auction!

The final week of the 2019 SAQA Benefit Auction -- Section Three selections -- kicks off this afternoon.  Congratulations to Karen Johnson, Linda Ingham, Marie McEachern, Susan Selby and Terry Rammel, all SAQA Western Canada members whose work sold in Section 2.  Unsold quilts remain available for purchase in the SAQA Store through December -- and there's a great selection, perfect for holiday gifts!

This third section includes work by these Western Canada members:

The selection also includes pieces by a number of well-known artists, among them Margaret Abramshe, Susan Shie, Deborah Boschert, Jean Wells Keenan, Judith Trager, Jane Dunnewold, and Katie Pasquini Masopust.  What wonderful company we get to keep when we participate in SAQA's fund-raising auctions!  Our next opportunity to contribute will be the Spotlight Auction for MoSAiQA, the 2020 Conference in Toronto.  Submission forms will be available November 1. Stay tuned!

The 2019 Benefit Auction Rolls Along!

First off, congratulations to SAQA WC members Judy Leslie, Debbie Plett and Nancy Riemersma, whose pieces were sold in Section 1 of the bidding!  (Pieces that aren't sold during the auction are still available for purchase in the SAQA store, at $100 USD plus shipping.)

Section 2 is now open for bidding.  Again, it's getting off to a slow start (only 1 piece purchased as of this writing at 4:40 p.m. Mountain Time) but...as Yogi Berra used to say, "It's never over till it's over!" 

One hundred and six quilts have already been sold, for a total of $20,850 USD (That's over $27,400 CAD!)  That's a lot of funding for education about art quilts, and for shipping!  With postage costs destined to increase now that the U.S. appears to be pulling out of the international Universal Postal Union, this is valuable support from our members to keep our work "out there" going forward.

And who in the Western Canada region is showing in Section 2, you ask?

What a variety of styles, palettes and compositions!  Prices on these pieces decline daily through Saturday, September 29.  For details on how to bid, or how the auction works, click HERE. 

And thanks to everyone whose contributions will make this auction successful!  😊

Following the Auction...

The Annual SAQA Benefit Auction got underway on Friday, with three pieces selling on "Diamond Day"...but NOW the fun really starts, as the first section is up for bid for this week.  With the starting price of $750 from noon (Mountain Time) on September 16, dropping to $550 at noon today and so on...it's off to a slow start.

I'm thinkin' folks are waiting to see "how low will they go?" before putting in a bid.  That's what makes this sort of gamble rather fun.

Looking through the pieces up for sale in Section One, who's there from SAQA Western Canada?  I found...

and

and 

and 

A diverse and interesting selection!  If one of these would suit you -- or be the perfect gift for someone you know, take note...and keep your eye on the auction to get in at the right time, the right price!  Prices drop daily through September 21.  For more information on pricing and other Benefit Auction details, check the Guide & FAQs -- and have fun!

Is it in the Mail Yet?

Or were you able to deliver it at the Conference in San Jose last week?

To what am I referring?  Your 2019 SAQA Benefit Auction quilt -- that's what!  😊

Yes, it's that time of year again.  The Call for these pieces seems to arrive earlier every year, but that's due in part to the fact that opportunities to show them at Houston or other special venues have earlier deadlines.

There's only one deadline left now, though: the June 1, 2019 received by date.

Looking through the quilts collected so far, I see that in SAQA WC, Jaynie Himsl is an early bird, with her piece, Pansy Patch:

And Karen Johnson is too -- with her piece, Skinny Strips #6:

Then there's our Rep, Jennie Johnston's piece, Ragged Soul, featuring one of her signature ravens:

while Judy Leslie has submitted her work, The Open Door:

Karlie Norris McChesney has contributed another one of her colourful geometrics, MO 4:

And Debbie Plett has submitted Moon Birds Dance, evoking West Coast native heritage:

Terry Rammell's piece -- for me, resembling sun and shade -- is entitled Traces:

Nancy Riemersma has chosen to remember those who have died in war, with her piece, We Remember:

Susan Selby has created this colourful and textural autumn piece:

Nine early contributions!  That's a great start!

Mine went in the mail this morning; it's from my Scotland Series:

Mac's Garden: A Tribute
to Charles Rennie Mackintosh
Margaret Blank   (c) 2019

There's still time -- one whole month -- but remember: it's a received by deadline and there is that Customs and Border Patrol to consider. 

What are you waiting for?!  😉

Catching Up with Our Members

It's a busy time for members all over our Western Canada Region!

First, several of our contributions to the 2018 SAQA Benefit Auction have sold, including those from Terry Aske, Margaret Blank, Jaynie Himsl, Karen Johnson, Judy Leslie, Karlie Norris McChesney and Marie McEachern  Approximately 50% of the donated pieces have been sold to date, raising over $55,000 USD for SAQA, enabling the organization to continue to fund its exhibitions (at least 15 touring, excluding the Trunk Shows!), publications and ongoing education -- of artists (SAQA Seminar being a key component here) and the public re: art quilts.

In other news, B.C. member Karen Cummings, as mentioned in an earlier post, is currently exhibiting at the Okanagan Art Gallery in Osoyoos.  Recently, she was given larger wall space in which to show her work.  Way to go, Karen!

Do you have your SAQA Journal for Quarter 3 of 2018 yet?  If so, be sure to look for Katie Stein Sather's Mondrian Paddlers on page 23 -- part of the collection for the SAQA Member Gallery this issue.  Congratulations, Katie! 

And here's a shout out to Wendy Klotz of Calgary, and her colleagues with the group Articulation.  The group has a new exhibit opening later this month and running through November at the Sidney Museum, Sidney, B.C.  Quite a change of pace from their focus on landscapes, this exhibit's theme pays tribute to war -- in time for the marking of the Centenary of the Armistice that ended World War I:

Undoubtedly this will be a compelling and heart-felt exhibition, worth seeing if you are in the area.  Wendy writes about the piece she's created for this show on her blog HERE.

Meanwhile, in Manitoba, member Val Wilson will be teaching her 'Portrait Fibre Art' class -- a two-day affair -- October 20 and 21 -- at Keystone Quilts in Winnipeg.  If you've ever wanted to learn how to render portraits in fabric, now's your opportunity to learn from a master at the process!

For full details and registration, click HERE!




Happy Thanksgiving to all our Canadian readers.  I know yours truly is thankful for this SAQA Region and the organization as a whole, which has brought us so many friendships, and so many opportunities for ongoing education, exhibiting and artistic development.  Have a great weekend!

Congratulations are in Order!!

Over the past few months, I've posted the pieces contributed by SAQA WC members to the 2018 SAQA Benefit Auction.

Today...congratulations are in order, because Karen Johnson -- member from British Columbia -- has found that her Auction piece has been sold very quickly in the first full week of this online event.

Well done, Karen!!

Moving into September...

Lots to see -- and do -- in Western Canada and beyond!

Let's start in Manitoba, where member Valerie Wilson has  just launched her first Online Workshop: "Facial Expressions -- Portraits in Fabric".

To get this project underway, she reported on her blog last week that she "[is] looking for people to be part of her Workshop Launch Team" folks who'll participate but be rather like tech editors for yarn patterns or proof-readers and sample stitchers for embroidery designers -- providing feedback so she can edit and "fine tune the content".  If you're interested in this Workshop -- whether as part of the Launch Team or as a future student, you can find more information HERE.

Moving west to Alberta...

There are five -- count 'em! -- opportunities to enjoy textile art all through September, courtesy of the Fibre Art Network (FAN), the Calgary-based textile art group, Spectra; a touring SAQA Trunk Show; and an exhibit by the Sheep Creek Weavers.  For details -- dates and locations -- see the poster below, sent to us by Marie McEachern.  Thanks, Marie!

Several SAQA WC members are participants in the FAN exhibits.  "Conversations" includes work by Katie Stein Sather, Karlie Norris McChesney, Janet Bednarczyk, Cathie Ugrin, Jaynie Himsl, Susan Selby, Joyce Brown, Marie McEachern, Linda MacKay, Terry Aske, Diana Bartelings, Victoria Gray, Janet Scruggs, Judy Leslie, Robin Fischer, Mary Wilton, Karen Johnson, Janis (Jan) Clark, Linda Ingham and Bonita (Bonnie) Rozander.

"From a Tiny Seed" includes several of the above-mentioned members, plus Donna-Fay Digance, Shel Hein, Pippa Moore, Judi MacLeod, Theresa Shaw, Paulette Cornish, Karen Cummings, Dianne Firth, Terry Rammell and Sandra Lounsbury.

Well done, everyone!


The SAQA Trunk you'll see is only one of eight trunks that were created in 2017 and have been touring ever since.  Each trunk contains 57 or 58 pieces (459 were submitted and divided up); each piece is mounted on a 12" x 9" backing board and encased in an envelope, on the back of which is information about the artist that created the piece.

Alas, not knowing which trunk will be on exhibit in Alberta, I can't tell you who the artists are -- or if any of our WC members' work is in it -- but I can tell you that if you've never seen one of these Trunks before, it's a fun, interesting and unique experience -- as Jennie reported in her August Regional Newsletter, referring to her visit with the Trunk to the Chilliwack Piecemaker's Guild meeting in June.

What of news from British Columbia?  Congratulations are in order for member Karen Johnson, who has had five (count 'em, too!) pieces accepted into the Pacific Northwest Quilt and Fiber Arts Festival to be held in Everett, WA, October 12-14, 2018.

She very graciously included photos of each piece in her e-mail to me with this news, so if you cannot manage to get to the event, you can enjoy them here:

Grid Play #4

Variations on a Grid

Variations on a Grid #2 - Paper

Streamside Stillness*

Circling the Blues**

Karen added the following notes:
* Streamside Stillness was awarded 3rd Place in the Abstract category at CQA;
** Circling the Blues was entered into CQA, but not accepted.

BRAVO, Karen!!

Finally, what about beyond our Region's borders?

SAQA's Annual Benefit Auction begins online two weeks from today!  Are you ready for the fun of watching the bidding?  Do you have your eye on one or two pieces -- perhaps by one of your favourite artists?  Did you create a Dream Collection to share with our international members...or maybe even just in your own mind?

The curating of a Dream Collection is, for me, one of the most fun aspects of the annual Auction, because it's affordable, and I don't have to find wall space in my tiny home for all the pieces I'd love to collect!  😉  This year my Dream Collection is entitled "Pet Project" -- and you can see it -- and all the others posted thus far -- HERE.

***   ***   ***  ***   ***

This weekend marks Labour Day which, for some, marks the end of summer for another year.  For others -- dare I say, for many? -- it's always thought of as the start of a new year, in that it is for those who have children going back to school.   The end of this school year (June 2019) will mark 50 years since I graduated high school, and 45 since I graduated university.  Although I'm gob-smacked by how that happened so quickly, I'm still looking forward to "going back to school" -- creatively, of course. 

To this end, I've enrolled in the SAQA Seminar series for the third year in a row, and am excited about all I can learn, all I can add to my creative tool-box, with these wonderful online (view any time) sessions.

I hope I'll encounter some of you in the live sessions -- and I look forward to where our collective creative journey takes us in this next year. 

Happy Labour Day, everyone!

Update to SAQA WC Donations to the 2018 Benefit Auction

As promised, here's a wee update to the list of artists from our Region who've contributed to the 2018 SAQA Benefit Auction that goes online in September.

Added to those listed in the post of May 11 are...

Thanks so much for your contributions!  Mark your calendars to watch the bidding when it begins online -- September 14!

SAQA Benefit Auction 2018!

The June 1 deadline for members' contributions to this year's Benefit Auction is looming large -- mainly because it's a received by deadline.  Whoa!

Yours truly will be sending hers out today -- and paying a pretty penny to ensure delivery.  That's what happens when you aren't inspired until almost the last minute -- something I'm sure has never happened to any of you!  😉

Several SAQA WC members, however, have managed to get their works finished well ahead of schedule.  Congratulations to these artists -- and thank you for making your contribution to ensuring SAQA's mission to educate the public about art quilting endures!

You can see all of the Benefit Auction donations HERE -- it will be up-dated regularly until all have been received and documented.  Soon mine will join the group...

Margaret Blank (c) 2018
When I Look Up in the Spring

Please note: it is never my intention to miss someone -- I took care to ensure I "caught" all the SAQA WC members to date...but if I've overlooked you (perhaps because I need to update our list of members again!) please let me know.

More exhibition news is forthcoming as summer approaches...stay tuned!  And be sure to share with me any in which you are involved.  You can e-mail me directly -- and thank you!

Now get busy and get your Auction piece in the mail!  😉