Martin Luther King Quilt Exchange

 I was a senior in college April 4, 1968 at SIU Carbondale when Mama called to tell me that Dr. King was dead. She said "this city is in a state of turmoil, we cannot go out of the house because there is a lot of trouble in the streets". Most people know Dr. King was killed in Memphis but many want to know why and what was he doing in Memphis the night he was killed. He was here for the 1,300 sanitation workers who wanted to organize a union.

I hosted a Black History quilt challenge honoring Dr. King during Black History Month in 2004. Yahoo African American quilt group members Debra Cole, Toya Charles, Regina Wade, Carrie Davis,  Laronia Oliver, Pataricia Gainor, and Rosalyn Jones  joined the exchange and made blocks for each member. Each block in the quilt reveals its own story about Dr. King's life. The most moving message the "King's Crown" block (upper left)  is printed on fabric and reads "to ignore evil is to become an accomplice to it". Another block (bottom right) called Courthouse House Steps" commemorates  Dr. Kings non violent work in Birmingham.  I designed the layout and pieced the top. The quilt top was quilted by Carol Williams of "Quilts and Sew On" website with the same name.

In observance of Dr. King's holiday "make it a day on, not a day off  by serving your community".

Peace, Love, and Art
Angela

Birthday Party and Quilt

This year  I celebrated a milestone birthday. All I can say is I am growing older and feeling younger. Everyone attending my party was asked to sign a quilt block for a quilt I made to remember this amazing and fun evening. The food was great and the customer service exceptional. Hey don't you like this , the restaurant was a New Orleans themed place called "Cayenne Moon". Boo hoo, the restaurant has since closed but I will always remember Polly the manager for the exceptional customer service she provided.

 It is worth mentioning that I had relatives to come all the way from Calif and Chicago, in addition to
classmaates, collegues, and other relatives. Those who could not attend were mailed a quilt block to sign and return. The center panel of the quilt will have a photo collage of a few party scenes. I received so many lovely gifts, took lots of pictures, went shopping the next day, and had lunch at Corky's barbecue.

                                                       
Peace, Love, and Art
Angela

Journal Quilt 2007

Follow this link to see my journal quilt that was on display at the International
Quilt Festival in Houston.   http://www.quiltart.com/2007journals/JQ07_07.html
Look for my quilt on page 6. Gosh I can see things that I could have done better. Don't
you just hate it when you finish a project and then find flaws. That's a part of growing
I guess!

Artist Statement

Angela F. Moore

Memphis, Tennessee

USA: Moonlight Over Mount Baobab

Creative techniques used: discharging (p266); shiva paintsticks (90); threadpaint (p71)

Seeing the California Mountains for the first time was breathtaking! For this quilt I wanted to capture the synergy of a beautiful mountain with the moon shinning. I began my journal quilt by selecting a piece of blue green African inspired fabric for the quilt background. Then I began playing around with different fabrics to support the focus fabric and I came up with using different shades of orange.

Using gold iridescent Shiva Paintsticks I added texture to the background using corrugated cardboard as a rubbing plate. I knew I wanted to experiment wihth discharging black fabric for creating the moon. My second attempt was better than the first. I think the beaded leaf vines using bugle and seed beads add dimension to the composition. To make the mountain I drew a simple shape and centered it over the moon and zigzagged it in place. Then I sewed gold sequins and seed beads on the mountain for added texture. The free motion quilting on the mountain with rayon thread and the wavy quilted lines on the blue green background with metallic thread complement each other.

In the early stages of making the quilt I came upon my horoscope that described me as a "Baobab tree blooming under moonlight when I do my best collaboration work". The Baobab tree is native to Africa and Australia, hence the name Moonlight Over Mount Baobab. After reading this I added the tree. The tree was sketched on two sheets of Sulky Solvy and threadpainted. Adding the tree was another way to set the tone for the quilt. The discovery I made was I like the ease of sewing, weight, and look of using unbleached muslin for the middle layer of the quilt. For sometime I have wanted to collaborate with this group. I am glad I did and learned a lot in the process.


Peace, Love, and Art
Angela