FEATURED ARTIST JERI BEITEL

Welcome to the first Featured Artist article.  This is the place to get to know your fellow-artists in New Mexico. I send an artist a series of five questions which they answer and then send back to me along with pictures of their work and themselves.

Our Featured Artist is Jeri Beitel.

Jeri lives in Santa Fe and here is what she has to say about herself and her art.

What is your art background?

I have a degree in Art and Interior Design and a Master's in Interior Design from Cal. State U. Long Beach. I also have a Master's in Art History from Cal State U. Fullerton. I taught Interior Design and other related Design subjects at Fullerton Community College for 30 years.

What inspires you?

My inspiration comes from modern art, architecture and people. Shapes and forms are the first thing that comes to my mind when creating my art. I like the element of strong color and that is always a consideration. Much of my art has an underlying meaning. I think this developed over time and was formed by themes that were required when entering and showing in art and quilt exhibits.

What is your most significant art-related achievement?

As a Fiber Artist and Art Quilt creator I am most proud of the fact that I have been able to show my quilts in states such as Hawaii, California and New Mexico. In New Mexico I have found the opportunities to show to be diverse and many. My latest achievement was a one-man show at the Las Chivas Coffee Shop in El Dorado which drew many positive comments. In the past I have also been able to show in such venues as the Capitol Building in Santa Fe as well as the new Community Center there. All of this great exposure is an incentive to continue to create and improve the quality of my work.

What do you love most about your medium?

What I love most about Art Quilts is that it allows me to create in a medium that is related to design, all the  while using the art elements in a diverse and different way. The creation of Art Quilts opens up so many possibilities in the use of any medium that you might ever want to explore.

What’s on the horizon?

After the next few local exhibit opportunities I would like to focus on trying my hand at some of the national exhibits. In doing that, I will have to focus more on the sewing skills that are needed to be successful in that endeavor.

Here are pictures of Jeri's studio and her art for your enjoyment. Thanks Jeri for taking the time to share yourself with us. You may see more of Jeri's work at her website www.colorway-design.com.
Debbie McNeill, Feature Artist Editor

ENTRY FORMS for the ENCHANTED THREADS, FEATURING A WALK IN THE WILD EXHIBIT

To fill out entry forms for the Exhibit 'Enchanted Threads, featuring A Walk in the Wild' please go to this link http://www.saqa.com/membership.php?ID=637 and sign in using your SAQA User Name and Password.  

Under the heading: 

SAQA Exhibition Calls for Entry and Conferences 

scroll down to Regional Exhibitions and you will see the link to the entry forms.

Please note that the forms will be emailed to you (again) individually as well.

GREAT JULY MEETING!

I was so impressed with the turnout at yesterday's meeting.  I'm sorry if you were not able to make it.   Michelle ran a great meeting.  We had great show and tell, good information, good food, a new member and visitors we hope will become new members.

Thanks to Julie for opening her home to all of us and there were a lot of us... maybe Michelle has the official number.

My hope is to disseminate most if not all the information that was shared over the next few days on this blog.  I will even post some pictures if any turned out.  It would be nice if I could have corrections and comments to my notes added on to the posts from those of you in the know.  As many of you who were at the meeting know, I was a bit preoccupied with gawking and talking and operator difficulties with my camera.

Of course, two big topics at the meeting were the 2013 SAQA Conference and nearer still, the show at the Open Space Gallery.  Pat Gould is taking a lot on with the Conference and hopes for many of us to volunteer to work (work which will be fun) at the Conference.  The most pressing issue at hand is enticing businesses from Santa Fe, Albuquerque, Taos and all of New Mexico to become sponsors of the upcoming Conference.  If you know of any businesses that may be interested in sponsoring the Conference, please contact Pat.

The Open Space Gallery Show is coming up in November.  Remember... all entries must be in by September 15th.  Betty Busby is in charge of this and looking for many long entries for "AWalk in the Wild" of New Mexico.  The information for the requirements are on a PAGES tab above.

There is much more information and pictures (hopefully) to come.  Stay tuned!  ~Donna

A MESSAGE FROM MICHELLE ABOUT THE JULY MEETING IN SANTAFE

I hope you are having a wonderful summer! Isn’t it hot out there? Thankfully, for the most part, art quilting is an indoor “sport”! You know - the three second sprints we do from the sewing machine to the iron. Doesn’t that qualify as a sport? The next SAQA meeting will be a potluck at 11:00 am on Saturday July 14th in Santa Fe at the home of Julie Filatoff. If you are planning to attend the meeting, send me an email so that I can let Julie know how many to expect. Thank you Julie for hosting the meeting.  Bring your latest works for show and tell and be ready to tell us about your favorite website/blog, but not each other’s. Why do you like this site/blog so much? Is it your favorite site to buy all your supplies with the best prices or is it a blog or site you are trying to aspire to and why?  I will have the list of the current 66 New Mexico SAQA members and their contacts to hand out at the meeting. We will also discuss the upcoming show at the open space. The deadline for entry is September 15th, which will be very close to the time of our next meeting in Albuquerque. I hope you are considering entering something. It promises to be a wonderful and unique show with “A Walk On the Wild Side” and hands on learning for children.  You can always go to www.saqanm.blogspot.com to down load the show information and entry form. It’s A Quilt” SAQA’s touring trunk show has arrived in New Mexico. The pieces are beautiful and waiting for venues. We have the show thru November 8th. So far we have two venues scheduled and we are looking for more. Maybe I’ll bring some of the show for you see. Start thinking about possible venues near you. It would be nice to have these pieces seen instead of them being hidden in a box!  All of that and much more to talk about. I'm looking forward to seeing you all on the 14th. Happy Art Quilting, Michelle Jackson SAQA NM Representative