Special Exhibits
The Mid-Atlantic Quilt Festival & Mancuso Show Management are Proud to Present:
Abyss Cherrywood Challenge - The Octopus Collection
All Y’all: A Quilting Collective - Hampton Roads Modern Quilt Guild
"All Y’all: A Quilting Collective” is an invitation to pull up a chair and join the Hampton Roads Modern Quilt Guild in their very first exhibition at the Mid-Atlantic Quilt Festival. HRMQG focuses on inclusivity and community visibility, fostering a guild with an array of ages, identities, and skill levels. Featuring an eclectic array of quilts created by members of the group, “All Y’All” extends a warm welcome to all members of the quilting community.
Pictured: Mamas Trying by Dana Staves Wells.
Americana, Celebration of the 250th Birthday of the United States – Peninsula Piecemakers Quilt Guild
This was a Mystery Quilt Challenge. Our members were given monthly instructions. The requirement was that it had to be red, white and two shades of blue. Our members were aware the quilt would fit requirements for the Quilts of Valor or for our own Honor Quilt charity. Some members will also likely give this quilt to someone in their family who served or keep it themselves as a remembrance.
Artist Inspired - SAQA Virginia & North Carolina
Artists inspire. Their creations move us and inspire our self-expression. Rather than copy what other artists have done, we can use elements of their style, lean into our response to their works, and reinterpret their subject matter in ways that hold meaning for us individually and collectively.
We asked our regional members to consider an artist (in any medium) whose work inspires them and to reflect on how that inspiration shows up in their work. We hope you enjoy their responses as presented in our Regional Showcase: Artist Inspired.
Art Quilts to Dye For - Curated by Mary Walter
Our colorful quilts for this exhibit were inspired by and created with hand dyed fabrics. The fabrics used could have been dyed by the quilter or purchased from another source.
Quilters were encouraged to combine hand-dyed, resist dyed, stamped or dye painted, fabric techniques along with a limited number of commercial fabrics to make their quilts. Next the quilts were stitched with hand or machine quilting to support the design decisions and finishing techniques chosen by each quilter.
We hope you are inspired as we were by the variety, color, and creativity that using hand dyed fabrics has added to our quilts for this exhibit.
Pictured: Phases of the Grass Moon by Mary Walter
The Art You See - Tidewater Quilters Guild
What makes a quilt “modern”? The answer is as unique as each viewer. This exhibit celebrates the boundless interpretations of modern art quilting—where bold colors, unexpected textures, and unconventional designs invite personal meaning. From abstract to minimalist, every piece reflects the artist’s vision while leaving space for your own. Modern Threads blurs the line between tradition and innovation, craft and fine art, proving that beauty is always in the eye of the beholder.
Celebrate! - Art Quilt Tribe
The Art Quit Tribe of Southeastern Virginia is delighted to offer its 2026 special exhibit entitled "Celebrate!' Our members each chose an event or theme in their life which they wanted to celebrate and translated that theme into fiber artwork. With beautiful fabrics and vibrant colors, we feel sure you will share in our joy! From music to dance to culture, come celebrate with us!
Celebration of Women: A Quilter's Perspective – A Special Exhibition Challenge Sponsored by Mancuso Show Management
Whether it’s dynamic heroines in history, inspiring quilters and mentors, or closer to home in your family tree, this challenge asked its entrants to create a quilt that honors the woman or women who have made a great impact on their life.
Color Theory in Quilted Art - Annapolis Quilt Guild
The challenge for Guild members in 2025 was “Color Theory in Quilted Art.” Two factors determined each member’s challenge. The first was the color wheel, which was broken into 12 colors. The second was a chart of typical color schemes from the basics of art theory, which includes 9 options: Complementary, Analogous, Split Complementary, Triadic, Side Complementary, Double Complementary, Square Tetradic, Monochromatic, and Neutrals with Pop of Color. Members rolled a multi-sided dice to discover their fated colors and color scheme. Members had approximately 9 months to finish the challenge. The results were varied and stunning!
Cowboys in Color - Quilts by Allyson Allen
In the American West, between 1860 and 1880, about 25% of the cowboy population was made up of Civil War soldiers or former slaves. 1 in 4 cowboys were people of color and were an integral part of this country's ranching industry. The term "cowboy" comes from the Spanish word "vaquero". Vaqueros were of Indigenous or Spanish descent. White cowboys were usually called cowhands, and the term cowboy was originally a derogatory racial slur, as black men were called boys. Still, cowboys of color mastered the rugged lifestyle that was later glamorized by Hollywood. There were Black, Mexican, Native American and Asian cowboys, and cowgirls, and today all of Cowboy Culture is celebrated with rodeos.
Divergence - Art Quilt Network (AQN)
Divergence explores contrast, difference, and the freedom to move in new directions. In these works, members of the Art Quilt Network (AQN) reflect on the many ways perspectives shift, ideas split, and individuality finds expression. Founded in 1986, AQN is one of the nation’s longest-standing groups dedicated to the art quilt, fostering community among fiber artists through retreats, exhibitions, and shared learning. This exhibition celebrates the innovation and creative spirit that defines both contemporary quiltmaking and the dynamic voices within AQN. Pictured: Softly in Motion by Palmer Frauke, Raging Rhino by Laurel Izard, & Wayfinder by Helen Greglio
Emotional Cloth - Quilts by Sandy Curran
A few years after I became obsessed with traditional floral applique, I branched out into portraying eyes and ultimately portraits.
Faces that show emotion attract me. I don't want to make a pretty picture as much as I want to draw the viewer into a story .... a feeling. That is why some of my portraits are quilted with a poem I wrote or quotes about the story I hope to tell. Pictured: Age is Attitude by Sandy Curran
Minimalism - SAQA Global Exhibition
My Happy Place - It's Just Us
One's "Happy Place" is their sanctuary. A place where one finds peace, relaxation, or comfort. Typically, a place infused with positive vibes without stress. This can be a state of mind, a physical location, or just a memory. The trigger to creating a happy place is to evoke feelings of joy. One of the best aspects of a happy place is to develop one's best self.
In our quilting journey, each quilter has a comfort zone. A place where they feel most secure in their skill set. Reaching outside that zone is how quilters grow. We all gravitate back to the techniques we love and the skill set we feel most accomplished at.
This exhibit showcases the various techniques that the participating members of our group enjoy the most. These quilts bring us joy. The creativity is abundant.
Panel Palooza - Richmond Quilt Guild
This year's challenge dares you to take a panel and transform it with bold creativity! Quilt it, embellish it, frame it or cut it.
Quilt pictured was created by Polly Oliver.
Petals in Pattern - The Virginia Quilt Museum
Spanning quilts from different eras, this exhibition showcases the enduring popularity of floral designs in quiltmaking. From embroidered blossoms and the classic Rose of Sharon pattern to colorful feedsack fabrics printed with flowers in the early 20th century, these works reveal how quilters across generations turned to nature’s blooms for inspiration. Together, these quilts celebrate the timeless beauty and creativity of floral designs in quilting, drawing from the Virginia Quilt Museum’s education collection to showcase its lasting appeal across generations. Pictured: West Virginia Star and Chintz Medallion
The Race is On - Cabin Branch Quilt Guild
Rivah Life - Stingray Stitchers Quilt Guild
Living on a peninsula bound by the Rappahannock River on the north and the Piankatank River on the south with meandering Dragon Run and so many tributary creeks flowing towards the Chesapeake Bay it made sense to create a small, quilted wall hanging to reflect our many experiences. The challenge was to incorporate the color blue. Keeping it simple because sometimes it truly is slow and easy down by the Rivah and yes there are challenging times, too. These quilts are the artistic expressions of our everyday life with the waters, waterman, lighthouses, boats, crabs, fish, oysters and all the natural elements of living near the Rivah. Pictured: Stingray Stitchers by Eileen OBrien
Split Image Project / Threads of the Heart Project - Talk Ten Travels
Split Image Project: In April 2025, an independent volunteer selected a digital photograph by California photographer Lee Decker from the Escondido Arts Partnership Photo Arts Group website (with Mr. Decker’s consent). The photograph was digitally split into two halves: six members received the left half and six the right. Each artist was asked to create an 18" x 18" textile imagining the unseen portion of their half.
The artists sent an image of their respective art textile to the volunteer, who compiled the images into a PowerPoint presentation “reveal” for our September 2025 TalkTen Zoom meeting. In the presentation, the art textiles were showcased, both as individual works, as well as diptychs that the volunteer created using his best judgement in pairing the left and right interpretations that were most complimentary.
After later reviewing the recording of the Zoom meeting and the PowerPoint presentation, Mr. Decker writes, "The fabric pieces that the artists created were quite amazing and I was impressed with their creative interpretations of the
photograph. … I so enjoyed your presentation and the discussions that followed; they were endlessly fascinating. I want to thank the artists for their careful consideration of my work.”
Threads of the Heart Project: As companion project this year, members created 18” x18” art textiles inspired by the heart motif of the artist Jim Dine. Beyond the size requirement, there were no restrictions, resulting in a series of works that reflect strikingly different interpretations of this universal symbol.
While On Vacation - Quilts by Mary Anne Fontana
Pictured above: Windmills, Capuchin Monkey Standing on Leaf, The Boatmaker ll, The Alcazaba Quilt
While on Vacation blends my love of taking photographs while traveling with my love of making quilts when at home. Come explore my favorite snapshots transformed into quilts. All original images. Computer manipulated. Commercially printed on wholecloth cotton. Enhanced with thread, paint & markers.
Wall quilts were created from the larger, pictorial quilts. Each was free motion quilted with thousands of yards of thread. The smaller images of birds & animals were machine quilted then cut away from the background scenery, mounted & stitched on a second quilted background, then stretched on canvas creating a “frameable” piece of art.
Wild Things - TAVA (Textile Artists of Virginia)
Extravagant, impressive, and awe-inspiring, amazing colors and textures, breaking free of constraints! In general, it is something that is fun and causes excitement. Persons, places, animals, plants, things, behaviors, etc., can all be defined as "wild." In each of us lies a dormant force waiting to be awakened.
The Textile Artist of Virginia implemented texture, patterns, and a lot of imagination to show that bounds are only limited by the reach of our minds.
AND MORE!