QUILTERS HALL OF FAME CELEBRATION 2016 – Around The Frame

This year’s QHF Celebration will be held July 14-16 at the Quilters Hall of Fame the former home of quilt designer/maker Marie Webster, located at 926 S. Washington, Marion, Indiana.

This year’s inductee is Dr. Carolyn Mazloomi: a master fiber artist, exhibitor, curator; author, researcher, quilt historian; mentor, groundbreaker, and former aerospace engineer.

Dr. Mazloomi’s fiber art/quilt themes include family life, women’s rights, and political freedom. Her quilts have been exhibited extensively in the United States and internationally in over 70 exhibits. She has curated 17 exhibits of quilts made by members of the Women of Color Quilters Network.

Dr. Mazloomi has published nine books highlighting African American-made quilts. Her defense of solid research has disrupted long-standing myths about African American quilts.

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Founder of the Women of Color Quilters Network in 1986, she was concerned that a traditional African American art form was dying out. Now over 1,700 members have brought quilts of African Americans, Native Americans and other cultures into the mainstream of quilting. Over the past 30 years Dr. Mazloomi has advanced the voice of quilt storytellers with a leadership style laced with innovation, enthusiasm, intellectual curiosity, high expectation and a keen sense of humor.

Dr. Mazloomi’s quilts will be on display at the Marion Public Library in an exhibit entitled A Piece of My Mind: The Narrative Quilts of Carolyn Mazloomi. She also will curate an exhibit for Celebration: Stitching Our Stories: Quilts by the Women of Color Quilters Network also at the Marion Public Library.

Each day Dr. Mazloomi will conduct a walk through of her exhibit and share her thoughts on her quilts.

Besides Dr. Mazloomi’s induction on Saturday night there are more activities to enjoy including a trip to the Indianapolis Museum of Art to view an exhibit of 25 quilts either designed and/or made by Marie Webster from 1909-1925. Last year’s inductee Mimi (The “Hon”) Dietrich will be back to host “Show and Tell” so bring your latest creation to share. Quilt exhibits by Sisters of the Cloth (Fort Wayne), Trish Williams, Pat and Arlan Christ, Bernice Enyeart (Huntington) who is receiving the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Indiana State Quilt Guild and the Marie Webster Quilt Guild will provide plenty of eye candy for all to enjoy.

As they do every year, an opportunity quilt was made in order to raise funds for the QHF. This year’s quilt
Trip Around Baltimore was pieced by Jocelyn Smith and Debbie Ackley and quilted by Deb Geyer. The fabric is Baltimore Museum of Art by P&B Textiles and was donated by Mimi Dietrich.

Marion, Indiana is only an hour’s drive from Waynedale. So round up some friends and go down for a day or two or three and enjoy this celebration of quilts. For more information including the class and lecture schedule, go to: quilterhalloffame.com/ and click on the Celebration 2016 tab.  You will leave inspired by all of the creativity and good vibes of the quilters you will meet.

Lois Levihn is the owner of Born Again Quilt Restoration Studio and Quilt Gallery located at 4005 South Wayne Ave, Fort Wayne.  Contact her at bornagainquilts@frontier.com.