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Tuesday 16 November 2021

Melbourne Malaise

 I can at last show my latest quilt called Melbourne Malaise


The theme for this years AQIPP art quilt competition was 'Where in the World'. AQIPP stands for Australian Quilts in Public Places and it is on every two years.

I was going to do a quilt about Japan and the ideas were going about my head but I just couldn't get started on it. All I could think about was Covid and all our lockdowns. I really wanted to try a more collage style quilt after I had been playing around with it earlier this year.

I was absolutely thrilled to have my quilt accepted, I thought they might want something more exotic than our home town.

The quilt was supposed to be about me and my Covid experience, going for a walk every morning. On a whim, I asked my daughter Bec, if I could take a photo of her in a mask. Here is the photo and it was my starting point. I thought the quilt would be improved with a younger version of me!!

Photo of my daughter

I started on the face first, it made it a bit easier with a mask.

Making the face

Then I added the clothes using different black batik fabrics.

Making the clothes.


I am really sorry that I deleted all the step by step photos as I made the quilt. I took so many but thought they were clogging up my phone and deleted them. To tell you the truth I was really concentrating and out of my comfort zone making this quilt and I couldn't think much further than actually trying to make it work. 

I used my photos that I took on my walks around the neighbourhood and at the closed up shopping centre. Even the 3 kookaburras at the top were from a photo on my walk.

For the background, I used a large piece of white PFD fabric that I painted with my Sun Dye paints in various greens and sun-printed it. I also used stamps and stencils, applique, hand and machine embroidery and digital printing.

I am happy with the result and really must try it again before I forget how I did it. I wish that I hadn't deleted those photos though.

Here is a detail photo.

Melbourne Malaise detail

The Exhibition is on at the moment at the Box Hill Town Hall in Melbourne, Australia.

The opening times are Tuesday to Friday10am-4pm and Saturday 12-4pm. It is open until the 24th December and because of the restrictions the exhibition has been extended and is also going to be on January 11th to February 12th 2022.

Unfortunately, there was no opening night last week and so I don't know who won any prizes but the organisers are hoping to be allowed to have one in early December. I haven't seen the exhibition myself yet but I am looking forward to going soon.

Bye for now,

Linda

6 comments:

Ruth said...

Congratulations, Linda! Loved seeing your photos and how Melbourne Malaise came to be. I was inspired by your post about AQIPP so I made an entry too. It was accepted also. Mine was also inspired by Covid, I called it Pathways to Hope. Covid has certainly been on all of our minds for far too long and it’s not over yet. I found your quilt in the virtual gallery before I found mine. It is a shame that I can’t make a trip down to see them in person, though January could be different by then for Qld. I did pay to get a book of the exhibition so that will have to do.

Linda Steele said...

Thank you Ruth, I will certainly look out for your quilt when I get to the exhibition and I'll take a photo of it. What a coincidence that we both had the Covid theme.

Magpie's Mumblings said...

Well done Linda! I haven't mustered enough courage to attempt doing a figure but maybe one day. Your piece is certainly appropriate for these times and it's not the least bit surprising that it was accepted for the exhibition.

Linda Steele said...

Thanks Magpie Mumblings, I enjoy the challenge of doing figures but haven't done another since, the time flies so quickly. I must start another.

Robbie said...

Wow, wow, wow...this is a fantastic piece!!! So very nice and what a visual impact. Thanks for sharing....

Linda Steele said...

Thank you Robbie, It was a very different style for me and I was way out of my comfort zone but really happy with the result.