beautiful art, inspirational for thinking about patterns. An excellent reference and inspiration think book. ( )

Another 39 quiltmakers have been included in this volume of [b:Masters:Art Quilts Vol.2], which makes me happy for a number of reasons. First, I think the first volume was successful. Second, there may be more volumes to come. Third, Lark may be setting a trend of inspiration and essay type quilt books. Fourth, more eye candy for me. ;-)

I wrote a review of the
I noticed a lot of neutrals throughout the book. I expect that in an art quilt book because of a lot of the fabrics are hand-dyed and a lot of artists use nature imagery.

Nelda Warkentin's work looks like fractured ice crystals. Her piece, Tropical Dream (pg.140) is spare compared to other works and it contrasts with other dense complicated work. It gives the reader the opportunity to meditate on the wide variety of art quilt imagery.

Reiko Naganuma's quilts are bright and cheerful. They are a contrast to many of the other quilts, but they still fit in. Her quilts also appear to have visible texture (pg.169, 171).

I was very pleased to see Rise Nagin show up in this book. Her quilt, Target: On the Beach (pg.221), has been on my mind lately. I remember seeing it in the early 1990s and, lately, I was wondering if she had moved on to a different medium. Her older work has an ethereal quality while her new work has more color and layers. Seeing Nagin's work again makes me wish for more biographical information in this book.

In looking through this book, with its wide variety of quilts, I found that many art quilts are messy. It occurred to me that messy quilts may be a turn off for some people and made me wonder if art quilts could be made neatly. Warkentin's piece, Tropical Dream (pg.140) is fairly neat, which further led me to wonder what role the neatness/messiness of the quilt plays in the quilt's story?

My favorite piece is probably Letters lost by Margery Goodall (pg.293). I am surprised at the name, but that makes me like it all the more. This quilt has rectangles laid down in vertical rows. The rectangles are sewn with one straight line through each column of rectangles. The colors are very light as well. Not one color, but very pale with hints of brighter colors. I like the texture of the fabric that is not completely sewn down.

I also like the paper doll feeling of Rachel Brumer's quilt Triplets (pg. 320).

There is a lot of piecing in this book and many of the artists used commercial fabric. there are a lot of faces depicted in this book. The editors have not highlighted one technique or image. There is a wide variety of work and artists, so that all quiltmakers could enjoy this book. This book should definitely be on your 'to purchase' list. ( )

This is a beautiful collection of photographs illustrating the amazing talent by 40 creators across the globe. As I sat and viewed each picture I had to really remind myself that this was not simply a painting that had been photographed for the purpose of the publication. Each one was a quilt that had been made to produce the overall effect. This is truly a collection of works by some very talented individuals.

Each chapter starts with some details of the artist involved. The pages that follow are filled with wonderful examples of that individuals work. Beneath each illustration is the sizes of the original, along with the materials used to create what can only be described as a work of art.

The collections within the book are truly inspirational.

Small print - I received a copy from the publisher. I was not paid for the review and the review is my genuine opinion of the book. ( )

Major works from 40 contemporary international quilters