Design Concept

In April of 1998, I visited a famous rhododendron garden on Whidby Island in Puget Sound. The gardens were in full bloom with rhododendrons of every color. The landscape was magnificent, but I discovered that there was a landscape of beauty and energy inside each individual blossom. This is my interpretation of one of the blossoms I photographed that day.

Process
The design process began with a photograph of a rhododendron blossom which I took with a macro lens. I made a black and white drawing of the flower with shading, to emphasize the contours of the ruffled petals. I translated this drawing to a simple line drawing, with separate shapes defining the shaded areas. I scanned this drawing into my computer and experimented with various arrangements of color and value.

When I felt I was ready to begin the quilt, I printed out the color study I liked the best, to use as a general guide. The line drawing was enlarged, using an overhead projector. The large paper drawing was cut up into individual pieces, which were used as templates for cutting the fabric. My intention was to capture the beauty and energy of the blossom without making a photorealistic reproduction.
The quilt is pieced and appliqued with a series of yellows, peaches and pinks, painted and dyed in a gradation of values. The background is pieced from a variety of fabrics painted in shades of green and brown. The quilting pattern is similar to the patterns found in the veins running through flower petals and leaves.

The center panel is surrounded by a 1" border of black, followed by a multicolored painted binding.
The back of the quilt is made from a single multicolored piece of painted cotton sheeting, surrounded by a 1" black border.

Exhibitions:

• Solo Exhibition, June 2003, Little White School Museum, Oswego, IL.
• Contemporary Art Quilts, Bloomingdale Park District Museum, Bloomingdale, IL 2002 (invitational
• Quilting by the Lake Faculty Show, Morrisville, NY, 2001
• Flora, 9th Annual Art Quilt Exhibit, April 2001, Aullwood Audubon Center, Dayton, OH 45414 (Best Interpretation of Theme)
• Caryl Bryer Fallert: A Sense of Wonder, solo exhibition at the Burlington Arts Center, Burlington, ON, Canada, Feb. 28- Mar.30. 2001
• OKeefe Theme Exhibit, June 23 - July 20. 2000, Thirteen Moons Gallery, 652 Canyon Road, Santa Fe, New Mexico 87501
• Indiana Heritage Quilt Show,  March 2,3,4 2000, Bloomington Convention Center, 302 South College Ave, Bloomington, IN
• Quilters Heritage Celebration: Quilt 2000 State of the Art,  April 6-9, 2000, Lancaster Host Resort and Conference Center, 2300 Lincoln Highway East, Lancaster, PA 17602 
• International Quilt Assoc. Show, Juried Exhibition, 1999, Quilt Festival, Houston TX
• Quilt in Bloom, Castle Gallery, Mainau Island, Germany. April-June 1999
  

Publications

• Quilters Newsletter Magazine, May 2000 pp. 50-51
• Down Under Quilts, 1998, December, p. 9
• Quilts in Bloom: Diana Leone & Ginie Curtze, 1999, pp. 32-33
• Dayton Daily News, Friday, May 4, 2001 section C page 1