SAQA Global Exhibition StitchPunk

I work on website updates almost every day, but somehow, I never get around to updating my own website. Although I am late in announcing, I am thrilled that my piece, EcoSarra, has been juried into the SAQA Global Exhibition StitchPunk.

The Call for Entry asked the artists to “reimagine a world through an alternate, extraordinary timeline. Imagine our bodies merged with our devices or a world shared with sentient robots or other life forms.

What would a refrigerator, a clock, or even a lawn mower look like if it ran on steam power?

What sort of people would live on the streets of a decaying metropolis, starkly divided between haves and have-nots, with police drones patrolling above and neon lights cutting through the thick, dirty air?

Will science and technology free us from mundane daily chores, or enslave us to a global corporate master?

The opportunities are endless. Artists are invited to explore the science fiction worlds of cyberpunk, steampunk, dieselpunk, biopunk, atompunk, clockpunk, nanopunk, and more!” (SAQA Global)

The title EcoSarra is a nod to Sarraceniaceae in my vision of Forest/Bio Punk.

EcoSarra

I gave up friends, family, and the outside world to create a future for my plants – my bioengineered family. The constant negative backlash over bioengineering forced me into my safe place, my world inside Green Lab. Along with my carnivorous babies, I grew, changed, and thrived as the outside world destroyed itself. My latest experiment, becoming a part of the chain, both absorbing carbon and creating my own form of oxygen may be the only way to survive the destruction. I look into the mirror and wonder if I will ever leave or want to leave. I become more and more like my babies every day. For now, we are safe inside Green Lab. Thankfully cockroaches did survive the disaster. Yum! Lunch!

Materials: Wire and mixed media armature, salvage army surplus, ice- dyed silk organza, various threads
Techniques: Armature building, assemblage, ice dying, hand-stitching

The first venues scheduled for the exhibition tour are:

New England Quilt Museum, Lowell, Massachusetts: April 30 - July 13, 2024
Festival of Quilts, Birmingham, United Kingdom: August 1 - December 31, 2024

More info will be available in the coming months on the SAQA website.

Sanctuary

I am excited to announce that my piece, Sanctuary, was juried into the SAQA Oregon Habitat Exhibition. Habitat, is currently scheduled to show in six galleries throughout Oregon. It will then travel to be shown in a gallery in New Mexico.

*Sanctuary - Detail 1*

27 w x 41 h
Hand-dyed fabrics, commercial fabrics, various threads

Hand-dyeing, silk-screening, hand-stitching, machine-stitching

*Sanctuary - Detail 2*

Early in the morning when the neighborhood is just waking up, the smell of blooming star jasmine greets me. A bird hops along over the soft carpet of moss searching for breakfast while a breeze rustles the tree leaves. I am always welcomed and comforted by the embrace of my yard. Here I can finally breathe, sit, and be myself without judgment. Even when neglected, it never judges and waits patiently for my return. With time, love, and attention we heal each other. *Sanctuary* - A culmination of the shapes, colors, and shadows of the yards I have created and loved.

Sanctuary - Detail 3

Metamorphosis - SAQA Global Show

I am extremely happy to announce that my piece, Unveiled Existence, has been selected as one of the 25 art quilts to tour as the Metamorphosis - SAQA Global Show from 2018 - 2021. The show opens at the International Quilt Festival - Houston, Texas in November 2018. The Metamorphosis show then continues on to other venues including the International Quilt Festival - Chicago, Illinois in April 2019.

Unveiled Existence38.5" x 33"Silk Organza, Loosely Woven Fabric, Cotton Thread, Metallic Thread, Polyester ThreadPhoto By: Sam Garnett — Unveiled Existence
38.5" x 33"
Silk Organza, Loosely Woven Fabric, Cotton Thread, Metallic Thread, Polyester Thread
Photo By: Sam Garnett

Detail of Unveiled ExistencePhoto By: Sam Garnett — Detail of Unveiled Existence
Photo By: Sam Garnett

Studio Art Quilt Associates (SAQA) is an international organization that promotes art quilts.

An art quilt is defined by SAQA as “a creative visual work that is layered and stitched or that references this form of stitched layered structure”.

The word "references" allows for a broader understanding of the art quilt that welcomes growth and development of individual style. This may include:

more 3D work and work in media other than fiber/textile/fabric/cloth
techniques and materials not found in traditional quilting
framed, unframed, bound, and unbound work

- Definition from SAQA website

Unveiled Existence consists of numerous layers of hand dyed silk organza. A loosely woven fabric is used as the middle layer to add another level of texture. I also used both silk screen and discharge processes to alter the hand dyed silk organza. The top layer is embellished with hand stitching using a variety of threads.

Amanda Snavely

Blog

SAQA Global Exhibition StitchPunk

Sanctuary

Sanctuary - Detail 3

Metamorphosis - SAQA Global Show