ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Sunday, September 15, 1996 TAG: 9609180013
SECTION: HOMES PAGE: D-1 EDITION: METRO
If quilts could talk, what would they say? That's what two national magazines were looking for when they started a search recently among some of the best quilt makers in the country.
Three national winners have been chosen from 2,600 entries in the third annual All-American Quilt Contest, which was themed "If Quilts Could Talk." The contest was sponsored by Coming Home and Good Housekeeping magazines. Winners will be announced in the October issues of both publications on newsstands today.
The contest encouraged each participant to tell a story through his or her quilt and required entrants to include a brief explanation of the quilt's meaning or heritage. From quilts depicting childhood memories to beautiful landscapes and seasonal changes, each winning quilt story distills the ideas and emotions that capture the spirit of contemporary culture. This year, the Library of Congress' American Folklife Center will archive the winning quilt stories to preserve their social and historical significance.
The contest awarded more than $21,000 in prizes to winners in national, state, "Judge's Choice" and "Best Interpretation of a Theme" categories. In addition, nine special recognition awards were given to elementary school students and their teachers.
Quilter Candy Goff of Lolo, Mont., received national first-place honors and $10,000 for her quilt called "Sunset Over Rainbow Bridge," a work dedicated to her late pet cockapoo, Cookie, who faithfully sat by her side as she stitched the winning quilt. "Sunset Over Rainbow Bridge" celebrates a place where departed pets, once old and ill, now play happily with other animals, Goff said.
Second place and a $3,000 prize was awarded to Karen Kay Buckley of Carlisle, Pa., for her quilt "Another Day in Paradise." According to Buckley, the inspiration for her quilt design stemmed from visits to Mexico. "The quilt's soothing tropical colors and bold designs were a welcome escape for me on cold Pennsylvania winter days," Buckley said.
National third place and $2,000 was awarded to Carol K. Ott of Seaford, Del., for her entry, "My Baltimore Album Quilt." The quilt was inspired by the Baltimore Album quilting style popular in the 1840s and 1850s in the Baltimore area. Each quilting block displays realistic motifs and keen color sense. After seeing a collection of such quilts displayed at the Baltimore Museum of Art, Ott felt a strong desire to make one herself. Thirty blocks and 31/2 years later, the quilt was finished.
B.J. Elvgren of Chesapeake was chosen Virginia's state winner for her quilt entitled "The Chester Mysteries." According to Elvgren, her quilt was inspired by an all-day theatrical event in Chester, England, that she and her husband attended. The Mysteries are a cycle of medieval plays that encompass the biblical stories, from creation and Adam and Eve to Noah, the birth of Jesus, and the Second Coming.
"We saw these plays on the cathedral grounds; but in the Middle Ages, the theatrical guilds would create elaborate pageant wagons to tour the city," Elvgren said. "`The Chester Mysteries" quilt gives color and expression to both my Christian faith and an outstanding theatrical event."
She was awarded a $100 gift certificate to Coming Home catalog.
LENGTH: Medium: 64 lines ILLUSTRATION: PHOTO: 1. The winner: First place national - Candy Golf ofby CNBMontana. 2. Second place: Karen Kay Buckley, Pennsylvania. 3. Third
place: Carol K. Ott, Delaware. color.