Blue Lady with Cactus
45cm x 45 cm:18" x 18"
February 29 2008
Applique, machine quilting
This piece was done in response to a challenge to be inspired by Matisse's use of textiles in his paintings (see the book, Matisse: his art and his textiles - pub. Royal academy of Arts, 2005) I actually missed the deadline, but the leap day seemed to be an extra day in my calendar and I buried myself in my studio. I had a photo of Matisse standing on his balcony next to a large cactus and I happened to have some very dramatic cactus fabric. After several hours of playing around with fabric bits - standing back to view it ... I had to laugh...

On My Way
2007
50cmh x 55w (20" x 22")
Paint and fabric applique on old woollen blanket and calico backing and stitch
Done in a workshop with Kate Green
In this piece I sought to catch the pleasure I have found in my paintbox, sketchbook and bicycle, particularly doing my year-long FiveKRadius challenge.

Einstein's Tablecloth, Haiku (5,7,5)
2005
90cmh x 113w
Responding to a challenge to 'be inspired by Japanese fabric', I chanced upon a roll of 40's vintage Japanese silk, already stitched in a long strip and bizarrely cut full of holes. Seeking to manipulate the fabric as little as possible, I decided upon this 'visual haiku' format. As I patched the holes, hand pieced and quilted (the quilting lines are about 1/8 inch apart), it became a meditation on how we use and value time.

The Meeting
2005
28cm diameter
That's me in the red shoes, about 25 years ago, at a group training session. What an incongruous lot we were!

Three Bags Full
2003
55"h x 76"w
commercial cotton prints; wool/polyester batting
Construction by piecing appliqued, postcard-sized blocks reflects both my original linocut postcard (conceived while crossing the road outside the supermarket) and the many fragments of inspiration, beginning with childhood songs and stories, gathered during life's journey and stuck like postcards to the noticeboard of my soul. This quilt speaks of optimism - which underpins persistence, resilience, risk-taking and joy. Optimism can be delightfully replenished by simple things in life.
Exhibited in the Husqvarna Viking Gallery of Quilt Art, Spirit and Strength exhibition, 2003

Detail of shopping bags

Cajun Nights
2002
Approx 80 x 100 cm
Sleeping upside down to escape his snores. Frequent waking to a roasting. HRT? Pills or patches? or menopause tea? For me or for him? Well, the vine's still green and new seeds sprout.


I woke up in a hot sweat at 3.00am one night and thought, "there must be a quilt in this!" I did some research on menopause, looked at HRT products at a pharmacy, went to a women's information evening - and so the quilt happened.

Climb Every Mountain
A4 challenge exercise - response to a postcard of an icy mountain.

Pool Peace
A4 challenge exercise
A response to the word 'contemplation'. I can contemplate as I do laps (always on my back) at the pool. There is a new ceiling there and it has interesting shapes - just enough to keep my mind ticking over and yielding occasional glimmers of inspiration.

Ode to mothers who wake at 3.00am and worry 'til dawn
1999

A4 mini-quilt - a challenge exercise - a response to a postcard of a rocky coastline.

As my 14 year old daughter prepares to go to sea for the first time (on a tall ship), I cannot help but think of the drowned sailors, their mothers at home, and all mothers who must let their young ones go. Just have to have a cup of tea and watch the next dawn. The triangular/square background is part of the traditional 'storm at sea' block.

Loving Hermione #3 When despair came yet again to claim me, I played a wild and joyful tune
2001
95cmh x 100w
A response to the Theme Women's Work. With the birth of my profoundly handicapped daughter, I became a carer, joining thousands of other women daily doing the impossible despite constant exhaustion and an inner waterfall of tears. Playing my accordion provided moments of oblivious fun during those years.
95cmh x 100w

Loving Hermione #2 Release
17.5"h x 14"w
Response to the theme Horizon.
This piece captures the moment of death of my beautiful, profoundly handicapped, 3 year old daughter, Hermione Rose. The dagger of The Future fell out of my heart, creating a new horizon for me. Hermione's soul flying free on its journey, lighting up her tree of life, our souls left behind (mine diminished through exhaustion), the rocking chair now empty - and the back - brightly coloured, the quilting lines coming through to provide a memory of the past.

Song of the Unsung
2000
120cmh x 80w
Chux dishcloths,cotton homespun, organza, old lace tablecloth, buttons
Pieced, stamped and machine quilted' in the ditch'
Created for the Celebration of the Centenary of Federation Quilt Exhibition, this quilt captures the 'get on with the job, do it economically, add a little something special' attitude to life held by my grandmother, Nora Lightburne (1898 - 1996). It is my salute to all those whose efforts quietly underpinned so many achievements of the last 100 years.

Metamorphosis - self portrait on the 23rd day
125cmh x 125w
1999
Inspired by a 'rhythm of life' theme. The kitchen dog represents my monthly 'dog of a day'. She cannot escape as she has been lassooed by the vacuum cleaner. Juxtaposed is the absurd idealisation of domesticity emblazoned on the yellow dishcloths (difficult to see in these photos, they are dancing ballerinas, as on the corner blocks - click to enlarge). A daily diary, embroidered on the contraceptive pills, gives a real picture of my life. A mood graph goes off the scale on the 23rd day, and the 23rd ballerina is peeled back like a chrysalis skin.

There is a thread on the QuiltArt site about quilts for the deceased. When our profoundly handicapped 3 year old daughter, Hermione Rose, mercifully died, we built her coffin in the shape of a boat, with a tiller that really worked - and her quilt became the sail. The children and their friends painted the boat and made all sorts of things to go inside, including a necklace over 1 metre long made with beads of polymer clay that many people contributed to.
We had an amazing time putting Hermione into her ship, just exactly how the children thought she would be most comfortable, then seventeen people each hammered in a nail to attach the deck. We hoisted the sail with flags on the rigging, attached 3 roses to the bowsprit and sat quietly/danced around with pleasure to admire and ponder. Later we took down the sail, furled it around the mast and laid it on the ship. We drove to the crematorium and launched the ship, lit with birthday cake candles, directly into the flames. Hermione was our viking princess that day.