getting ready for Baltimore

Ah--so much to do before the Baltimore Show February 24-26. I sure wish it would quit snowing so I could get down to the studio and make more quilts. Oh well. Soon I will be there--I'm Booth 1308. If you want to save on tickets, you can prepurchase one day half price tickets by going to Craft Council 
and using this code BWI2017GUEST


And to cheer up those like me dealing with a snowy Thursday, here's a sneak preview of some of my new quilts--I just got new images from my wonderful photographer John Polak. (My DH drove me to the local Post Office this morning as the snow was just starting so I could get them. Thanks!!!)  How lucky I was that it only snowed a bit last Thursday when I got the images taken.

Anyway, I call this one August moon--don't you love the rich warm colors of the sky against the brown of the ripening fields. Can you tell I grew up on the prairie where the sky stretched seemingly forever?

august moon--40x40 inches--2016--copyright Ann Brauer--image by John Polak

This is its companion quilt--autumn sun. I love how intense the rich brown colors of autumn are with hints of the deep blue sky.

autumn sun--40x40 inches--copyright Ann Brauer 2016--photo by John Polak

And one more. Those who follow me on Facebook or Instagram have seen hints of this triptych but it sure looks better in its formal portrait, doesn't it?  Each of these quilts are about 12 x 60 inches and I will sell them separately or as a set. Just think of the many different ways you could display them.

marsh moon--12x60 inches--copyright Ann Brauer 2016--image by John Polak

Well, I hope that gives you a sense of some of my new quilts. I'll try to post more in a few days. Meanwhile tomorrow is the studio when I try to get more work done!!!

new quilts to brighten a winter day

OK--it is grey and raining here. I keep telling myself that at least I do not have to shovel and we probably do need the rain but I miss the bright sunny days we had been having so I decided to show off some of my latest quilts. I just got the images back from my wonderful photographer John Polak.

This quilt I call "pluto is a planet." I made it this past summer as NASA was beginning to release some of the images of Pluto. Call me old fashioned but I do believe that they were wrong to declare that Pluto is a planetoid or whatever they are calling it. Oh well.

pluto is a planet--40x40 inches--quilt--Ann Brauer--2015

"Sunrise" is a hard quilt to display in my booth or even in my studio but I love the shape and colors and think it would be perfect over a sofa or bed. It was a challenge to keep the lines straight and the the two sides balanced but alive with differences.

sunrise--30x80 inches--quilt--Ann Brauer--2015

"Distant fire" reaches up to the sky. It was fun to make three panels which had to be similar but different and then see the effect of joining them together. I love this quilt and vertical quilts are actually easier to display in my booth.

distant fire--80x37.5 inches--quilt--Ann Brauer--2015

I will be bringing them to the Holiday Morristown Show next week-end in Morristown, NJ as well as lots of smaller items. This is the show where you need to download and fill out one pass for each person and you can get complimentary admission. Some great work--some fun crafts--and plenty of items to have on hand as stocking stuffers, hostess gifts or just because. Here is the link to get your pass:

https://artrider.wufoo.com/forms/holiday-craftmorristown-2015-comp-admission-coupon/

And of course I am slowly getting the new work listed on my Etsy shop as well as filling the holes as work sells.
http://www.etsy.com/shop/annbrauer 

Here's hoping the sun is shining where you are.

it's summer--time for bright colors

I don't know if it's just me, but I frequently find that the hotter the weather, the brighter the colors that I want to use. Last summer  I made quilts of my garden. It had rained a lot and my daylilies were brilliant reds and purples, pinks and yellows. And so were my quilts.

This summer it has been very very dry and hot. Now I grew up on a farm in Illinois and if there is one thing I do not like--it is having no rain. As a child I learned to look at the sky and hope the distant rain clouds would come and relieve the shriveled corn. We would hang the wash out, leave the windows open and even mow the hay just to tempt the rain gods. (As farmers you have to do everything.)

So I couldn't make quilts the colors of dry grass and dust. Instead I dreamed of rainbows and clear skies. Blue lakes and brilliant green moss. Lush hills. 

I just got images back from my photographer, John Polak. What do you think? Are these the quilts of summer?

This is rainbow of summer--99x99 inches. The color progressions were difficult since there are always some fabrics that you want that are not "in style" this season.

 Rainbow hills is 45x45 inches. I love the curves in this design.

Blue rainbow hills is also 45x45 inches. This was actually made as a test sample for a custom order. Such a wonderful simple design. Very calm.

And midnight ocean also 45 x45 inches. Again those deep rich blues and purples. I love the idea that these three quilts could be hung together or separate.

 Do you find that your colors change with the seasons? What colors do you use in the summer?

juried craft shows--oh those slides

It's July--that means among other things--that it's time to start thinking about shows for next winter and spring. I know--it seems far too early. But deadlines are deadlines. And I for one--don't want to miss applying for the American Craft Council shows.

Now you would think that after 29 years in business this would be a snap. But I always have new quilts to show--and just like everything else--one new slide means that the others may not work. Besides jurors like to see that you have new work and are pushing yourself. Moreover, as you may remember, this year I got wait listed for one show that I felt I should have been in.

OK--I need five consistent images--the jury will see thousands of images. I do know I have great photographs--my photographer John Polak is among the best. But I want mine to create a clear consistent statement in the few seconds they have to observe my work both when they run through it quickly the first time and then when they vote the second time. First hills and shadows.

 

I am intrigued by this piece--but it is busy. And I worry that the jury will think I can't make a flat quilt will they understand that the illusion of depth is much harder than keeping it flat?  I wonder if this will be the first quilt in my series. Maybe with just other earth tone quilts. That would be consistent. Will it pop? I try dreams of the dawn--wonderful piece though slightly strange colors.

I like it--but I'm not sure. Autumn afternoon is a good stand by--calming while making a statement.

But  this is getting rather dull. And hills and shadows seems out of place with the simpler color studies. I have also not included prairie sky--another major piece that right now I have been using for branding on social media. Is this a mistake? For this show, jurors will know my name. I look at it again.

The application is on Zapplication--the images are square. This quilt is not so there will be some black around the piece--will it look less significant?  And it is blue--does not go well with all the other earth tones. However, I love this quilt--it may be worth it just that. What about a close-up? Two blue pieces, one multicolor, one pure color. I decide that colors of autumn will add diversity.

It does go with hills and shadows in terms of colors and feeling. Dreams of dawn feels like the odd quilt out. The close-up of prairie sky is adding too much blue--but maybe a close-up of hills and shadows will convey the idea that the quilt really is flat. Amazing how much effort can go into making five images that all go together. And Zapplication is easy to use--just follow the directions and upload the images--then play.

I play some more and then decide like the British royal family that I need an "heir and a spare" so I apply for another show as well.  I reread the directions and realize the jury is instructed to read the description of the first quilt. I go back in and make sure I have used my 255 characters wisely. Time to send it off and cross my fingers. Will I regret my decision when I look at it again? Not sure. What do you think?

hills and shadows--TA DA!!!!

I love getting the images of my quilts taken--the first time I get to see a big piece in its entirety. And my photography John Polak is great. Here are the images--the curves are indeed there. What a relief--no pun intended. Yes this quilt is hanging straight!!!  Now to decide which way to hang it.

 Or this way.
 

So many design possibilities.  I can't wait until I get a chance to make another one. What do you think?