Koi

My August 2006 Journal Quilt (see the 2006 Journal Quilt section on the gallery page) was of one koi, and was designed as a study in complementary colors. It turned out so well, I instantly wanted to make a larger quilt.

As I worked on other projects and deadlines, this quilt evolved in my head into a two-sided piece: from the front, you look down onto the koi pond. From the back, it is as if you were underwater, looking up to the sky. To see the other side, see "Koi, Second Side" in the Gallery.

The fish are made from my own hand-dyed cotton, then painted with a wash of irridescent textile paint. I free-motion embroidered/quilted them before appliqu�ing them to the surfaces of the quilt. The fins are made from multiple layers of fused synthetic sheers in three pale colors. I carefully aligned the under side and top side of the fish and fins so that the quilting in the background and of the fins/tails would work. Finally, I beaded the ripples on the surface of the pond caused by the movement of the fins and tails.

The back side of the koi quilt is the second detail image. Imagine that you are lying on the bottom of the pond, looking up at the kois' bellies and through the surface of the water to the sky! The koi on this side are ever so slightly smaller than the ones on the surface. Like the ones on the top of the quilt, they were machine quilted / free-motion embroidered before being machine appliqued, and fused the fins and tails. When I hand-applique the koi on the top, I made sure to cover the machine stitching lines, and quilted the fins and tails that are on the water in one pass.

2015:  Featured artwork for the "Out of the Blue" exhibit at the Whistler House Museum of Art, Lowell, Mass.  Sold at this show.  Thank You to both buyer and the Whistler for this opportunity!

Size: 41" wide by 57" long.

Sold. In a private collection.