Kerry Bevers, President, called the meeting to order at 06:31 PM with 28 members and 1 guest in attendance.
Program: Kelly Spell, abstract quilt artist, presented on Showing Your Work. She covered why you should show your work, a few constraints, where to exhibit, how to find shows, and best practices for submitting. In 2025, Kelly achieved a 44% acceptance rate from invitations to participate based on her submissions. She spent funds on submission and shipping fees, and received income from sales and prizes.
Show your work to connect with viewers and other artists, to build confidence, and to demonstrate quilts as an artform to a wide audience.
Constraints include time; show dates; the size and age of your body of work; submission and shipping costs; the show’s narrow scope or definition of quilts; photography; and wear and tear on quilts. Consider your priorities in shows, such as those that publish catalogs, have award money, have sales, a show that is a specific type of venue, a show you admire, or those that minimize wear and tear on your quilt. Shipping insurance would cost extra and may require an appraisal as proof.
Work can be shown at local venues, such as art centers, community centers, medical centers, libraries, and coffee shops. Regional venues may include guild shows, state fairs, and airports. Local and regional venues may be free or more reasonably priced to show. There are national and international venues, such as AQS QuiltWeek and other AQS shows, which also may have appraisers there. Kelly finds value in appraisals and recommends them. Other shows include Mancuso QuiltFest, International Quilt Festival in Houston, SAQA Global Exhibitions, Quilts=Art=Quilts (New York), Art Quilt Elements (Wayne, PA), Quilt National (Ohio), and QuiltCon. Find calls for quilts in email newsletters from local and regional arts organizations, callforentry.org(CaFÉ), saqa.com (Studio Art Quilt Associates), and announcements by quilters you admire.
Best practices for photos include a neutral background with no distractions, light from different angles, ensuring the camera is level and square to the quilt. The artist statement hangs with the quilt and should set the mood for the viewer, avoiding jargon, and carefully edited before submitting. Submission guidelines must be read carefully. Avoid double booking. When shipping, roll or fold quilt with the right side facing out to prevent creases, wrapping with paper and then plastic to protect from liquid.
Business / Announcements:
● The next monthly meeting is June 23 and the program is “Color Theory with Ester.”
● The next Sew Day is June 20 with continuation of postcards or other projects.
● Rick encouraged quilt submissions to QuiltCon; please contact him for more info.
Committee Updates:
● Swaps/Challenges: this month’s theme for the Midnight Garden 2026 quilt challenge is furry and feathered friends with Phoebe displaying 2 blocks of adorable animals. For June, focus on “what is lighting up your sky” including the moon and stars.
● The fabric postcard swap in celebration of America’s 250th birthday is due by the end of June for delivery by July.
● Charity quilts, Molly has fabric, backing, and batting, and kits that include all of the necessary components. Molly shared that the Goose Creek recreation desk has an art exhibit for quilt submissions, if interested. The airport authority is expanding Terminal C and Molly will get more info to see if they might display our quilts.
● Directory: Kim requested new members be available for photos.
Members shared their quilts at Show and Tell.
The meeting adjourned at 7:47 PM.
Events & Dates to remember - Check the “2026 Calendar” in the right hand column.
Next meeting - June 23
Sew Day at Five Eighth Seams - June 20
QuiltCon 2027 Atlanta registration - August 19
Camp Quilt Along - August 27-30, 2026
