Special Exhibits - Fall 2025

This exhibit explores the creative potential of a 12 x 48 foot vertical format. Artists transform narrow space into bold statements, drawing inspiration from nature, abstraction, and personal stories. Each quilt stretches upward like a towering landscape or an unfolding scroll, using color, texture, and stitch to push boundaries. Through innovation and artistry, these pieces prove that even within constraints, fabric and thread can create limitless possibilities.

The beauty of the four corners region relies heavily on the amazing geology of the Colorado Plateau and surrounding mountains. The high deserts, scattered forests, striking rock formations, and blue skies so characteristic of the region often serve as inspiration for artists in the regions. In this call, 4CC artists were asked to reflect on this geography, creating artwork that both literally and figuratively “rocks!”

Advocacy quilts allow marginalized women and children to tell their story and reach new partners in the Global North. The Advocacy Project helps these communities use embroidery as a tool for therapy, human rights, and advocacy. With support from experts in the north, we turn their embroidered squares into quilts, tea towels and/or bags.

The colors black and white create a cinematic backdrop for a bright pop of color. In this fun, eclectic collection of quilts made by the Handi Quilter National Educators, the drama of beautiful quilting is highlighted by this classic combination of light and dark. All styles of contemporary quilting, from classic blocks to modern improv piecing are highlighted by the beautiful machine quilting from these expert quilters.

This exhibit features 15 Brazilian quilts to exemplify how continental and plural the country is. With various techniques and artists from different places, we are presenting a Brazil full of bossa, colors and unforgettable places, rich in diversity and with a very present artistic textile force. The concept of Brazilianness is based on aspects of national culture linked to nature and life in large centers.

Art is an excellent way to express emotions. For this exhibit, artists depict how they, a family member, or a friend celebrated a loved one’s wedding, birth, birthday, or memorial. Colors, patterns, traditional blocks, or abstract drawings are combined or used alone to convey a range of emotions from happy to sad.

The most unusual creatures on earth live in the abyss of the deep ocean. Just as they have adapted to limited light, quilters here were challenged to design with limited colors. They used insight and personal style to create an underwater experience. Quilts in this Challenge were selected based on originality, creativity, design, impact, workmanship, use of fabric, and overall variety of the exhibit.

The biggest group quilt in the history of Ukrainian patchwork made by 47 quilters in collaboration with the famous Ukrainian painter Orest Skop under the coordination of Natalia Lashko. The quilt consist of 65 segments which were sewn by Ukrainian quilter settled in different cities and countries as the refugees. Cossack Mamai is not just a historical or folkloric figure but a symbol of the resilience of the Ukrainian people.

The works exhibited this time were meticulously crafted by Taiwanese quilting teachers, many of which have been previously showcased around the world.

Exquisite Quilt was launched as a collaborative project inspired by the Surrealist game Exquisite Corpse, where multiple quilters contribute to a composition without seeing the full picture. Each quilter builds upon a hidden foundation, guided by a designated connector point, resulting in a quilt that is both unpredictable and interconnected.

This exhibit celebrates the vibrant colors and beauty of fall through the artistry of Ontario’s quiltmakers. Drawing inspiration from golden leaves, crisp air, and Thanksgiving feasts, this exhibit blends traditional techniques with contemporary innovation. Featuring appliqué, paper piecing, and pixel art, each quilt tells a unique story..

This exhibit will showcase Princess Feather and Feathered Star quilts. Quilters have long associated feathers with the 19th and 20th centuries. The earliest documented use of the Princess Feather design was found on a quilt dated 1818, and Feathered Star quilts began appearing in the 19th Century, as well, intricately pieced and time-consuming to construct. Modern sewing methods and machines make quick work of these two cherished designs. This exhibit features both antique and contemporary works.

This collection represents the best of noted quilter Frances Holliday Alford’s body of work.

This exhibition of works by Virginie Peyre represents some of the values that are dear to her: the beauty of nature, wonder, respect for the living, faith in a united humanity, the opening of the heart necessary to meet the other, friendship, joy, the great yes to life, freedom, love, spirituality, and gratitude.

Artists from around the world incorporate influences from their own cultures into the design and technique of their quilts. This prestigious, long-running international showcase includes recent quilts by some of these international artists.

Two great Houston Institutions have come together for International Quilt Festival to present the Blue-Ribbon Winning quilts from the 2025 Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo (HLSR). We’re sure you’ll enjoy the quilts of Texas, with winners her in both the Adult and Juvenile categories.

Just as quilters create beautiful art with fabric, florists and gardeners cultivate works of beauty from the soil. This exhibit showcases floral-inspired quilts from across the spectrum in lush color and splendor.

Contemporary quiltmakers often look to the art form’s rich tradition and history for inspiration in their own work. This exhibit features recently made quilts incorporating traditional blocks, styles, and/or techniques.

From valleys and volcanoes to mountains and monuments, landscapes often inspire artists, including many in the quilt world. This exhibit showcases many stunning geographical wonders.

Modern quilts often take traditional blocks and reinterpret them by using solid-colored fabrics or give them a new twist by using negative space, minimal repeats, improvisational piecing, and gridding for quilting.

This large quilt is comprised of four overlapping panels (6' x 17'6") that depict a colorful Nativity scene. Included in the tree branches at the left and extended across the sky like stars are the 16 Jesse Tree symbols (suggesting stories from the Bible that point to God's faithfulness as people waited for the Messiah to come).

The Princeton Sankofa Stitchers Modern Quilt Guild (PSSMQG) honors African American quilting traditions, celebrating Harriett Powers (1837–1910), a Black quilter born enslaved in Georgia. Powers’ quilts, like the Bible Quilt and Pictorial Quilt, are iconic in American art. PSSMQG has recreated her Pictorial Quilt with vibrant, modern fabrics, preserving her legacy.

This exhibit is the work of about 20 friends who have been working together for over 25 years. Their creations are freely inspired by traditional quilts of the 19th and early 20th century England, Holland, France, and North America. They reinterpret them with traditional techniques, creating a real empathy with the work, and are ompletely executed by hand.

Abstract art invites the viewer to engage with their own imagination, to find personal meaning in the work. ”The function of abstraction is to get rid of a lot of reality. You start with as much richness as you want and subtract”—Robert Motherwell.

For over 10 years, the Barbara Bush Literacy Foundation has made a difference in the lives of children and adults by giving them the tools they need to become proficient readers. These quilts illustrate a favorite book, tells a story of its own, or encourages someone to read.

This exhibit features 19 new works that celebrate a return to pre-Covid life. Rebounding from restrictions that limited personal contact and renewing activities which were not possible during the pandemic. Each quilt is defined by a title beginning with “re.” Meditations on personal memories or emotions inspired some artists, while others used solitude to contemplate color, texture, or process.

In celebration of the 80th anniversary of the end of World War II, this selection provides a rare opportunity to view quilts that were sent by the Red Cross from North America to Britain to ease wartime suffering. Each quilt has a unique design–quiltmakers were free to follow their own creative impulse. These quilts embody the purpose of the American Museum & Gardens, to celebrate the transatlantic relationship.

Each quilt in this collection carries a story of resilience, spirituality, and hope, offering patients, visitors, and caregivers a moment of solace and connection. Sacred Threads is a non-profit with a biennial exhibition of quilts exploring themes of joy, inspiration, spirituality, healing, grief and peace/brotherhood. Sacred Threads was established to provide a safe venue for quilters who see their work as a connection to the sacred and/or as an expression of their spiritual journey.

Members of the Studio Art Quilt Associates (SAQA) submitted their best work here. This dynamic exhibition will be appreciated by a diverse audience, including art enthusiasts, collectors, and industry professionals.

This exhibit features works by visionary art quilters who intertwine the narratives of human existence with a meaningful blend of myths, legends, archetypes, stories, spiritual influences and science. This exhibit invites the world to experience the kaleidoscope of stories that shape and uplift our universal human journey.

Buildings have a long history of inspiring the creative designs of quiltmakers. In the 19th century, American quilters developed classic architectural blocks and patterns such as Log Cabin, Schoolhouse, and Brick Wall. This annual juried exhibit challenges quiltmakers to create works based on architectural themes and inspirations in any style.

These works blend Taiwan's traditional cultural background with modern quilting elements, showcasing the diversity and innovation of Taiwanese quilting art. The fusion of traditional patterns and contemporary designs, along with rich color combinations, not only highlights quilting as an art form but also tells a deeper story of Taiwan’s history, folklore, and aesthetic life.

Renowned for her innovative approach to textile and mixed-media art, Katie Pasquini presents a compelling exploration of her artistic evolution. This exhibition brings together both early works and selections from her latest series, "Black and White with One Color," offering a striking contrast between past and present in her creative journey. From her foundational quilted compositions to her bold contemporary experiments, Pasquini’s work reflects a deep engagement with color, texture, and form.