Not one but two - WOW - Leah Higgins

Congratulations, Leah, on getting two quilts into such prestigious exhibitions. Keep dancing!

Quilt National '17

Ruins 7

(180cm wide x 249cm high)

Artists Statement:

Ruins 7 is part of a series that explores what happens to buildings when we stop using them, when we leave them behind. Glass panes crack, water pipes burst, wind pulls at the fixtures and fittings. Rust and moss stain the walls.

We stop using buildings for many reasons. This piece references buildings and cities destroyed by war.

London, Dresden, Hiroshama, Lebanon, New York. Hate and war destroys lives. It destroys buildings and tear apart cities. Do we re-build? Or is the thought of burying that hate under new buildings too painful? Should we allow nature to reclaim the buildings, to cover the ground, to soothe the pain?

Techniques and Materials: Artists own printed cotton fabrics: breakdown printing, and other surface design techniques. Pieced, layered and machine quilted.

SAQA Layered Voices

Happy today?

(60cm wide x 389cm high)

Artists Statement:

Happy today? was created following a dark, difficult period caring for a loved one with severe depression. Constantly checking; asking ‘Are you OK?’, ‘How do you feel?’. Driven by my need for reassurance, my fear of the unthinkable. Burying my own feelings from him. From others. From myself. Stressful, exhausting days and nights. Occasional bitter sweet moments of joy followed by guilt. Gallows humour breaking through on the darkest of days.

Happy today? can be suspended from the ceiling and viewed from both sides or hung on a wall revealing only the pieced side. The piece billows and pleats on the floor hiding parts, hiding layers of emotion.

Techniques and Materials: Artists own printed cotton fabrics: breakdown printing, screen printing and other surface design techniques. Double sided pieced and whole-cloth construction, layered and stitched. Integral hanging loop.