Most of the workshop participants who studied everything from lace knitting to rustic furniture construction at last week's seventh annual Gibsons Landing Fibre Arts Festival agreed on one thing -it was the calibre of instructors that made the courses so successful. Take, for example, Kathy Tidswell of New Brunswick, awarded Teacher of the Year for 2005 from the Canadian Quilting Association. At the festival, she taught a course in thread painting, an art that few were familiar with, involving free motion embroidery to create appliqués entirely from thread. Her display of tiny, detailed renditions of a sunset, a forest scene and a Vermeer reproduction, all done in thread painting, drew a new, excited audience.
Instructors came from across the country in response to this year's heritage theme. Nova Scotia teacher Linda MacDonald had packed a number of heritage mats from the Atlantic provinces to show in her history of rug hooking class. Unfortunately, the airline lost her luggage with her class materials aboard. Then, the car rental gave away her vehicle to another customer and the hotel lost her booking, but she was undeterred. She delivered a two-day class on traditional techniques of the homespun craft.
Instructors and other exhibitors dazzled the public and earned awards at a juried exhibit that ran for four days of the festival in the Elphinstone Secondary School library. Best in show first prize was reserved for a huge, hand appliquéd and hand made, old world style quilt called Country Bride by Dot McPherson.
Reg Robinson took first prize in needlework and embroidery for his impeccable embroidered tablecloths, while Carol Seeley earned a first in quilting for her Echoes. Her quilt depicts orcas on the move in the rugged West Coast; the artist writes that it was designed to convey a feeling of peacefulness and gentleness, but in fact, it teems with an exciting energy rarely seen in fabric. It was later selected as the People's Choice favourite exhibit.
The first prize for knitting and crochet by Helen Nissle was a colourful circular lace capelet, hand-knit in boucle yarn and hand-dyed a gorgeous beige, gold and fuschia fading to rose pink. In woodworking, Edmund Butler took a first for one of his sculptural lamps that uses a crop circle design.
In wearable art, award winner Darianne Burnett displayed her cedar woven hat trimmed with fur, and Doneal Fox took first prize in the category of Other for her hooked rug that depicted happy dogs and puddles.
In mixed media, first prize went to Ursula Fritsch of Gambier Island while Ann Gregory of Sechelt also took a first place in the spinning and weaving category.
Over the six days, an estimated 4,500 people took in festival eventsat the two locations: Elphi and Gibsons' Landing. Next year's festival is already planned for Aug. 15 to 19.
