A Sunburnt Country

This is a triptych fabric collage quilt, using primarily authentic Aboriginal-designed fabrics.

My triptych quilt, A Sunburnt Country, was initially inspired by a visit to Uluru in 2004. It wasn't until I attended a workshop with Susan Carlson in 2016 that I knew how my quilt was going to be constructed. In early 2017, my daughter required an art piece as a backdrop for her final recital to complete her flute masters in Antwerp, Belgium, and it was then that my quilt became a reality. The recital, entitled A Sunburnt Country Project, explored Australian music and culture, and my quilt fit perfectly. As Indigenous culture was central to the project, I decided to maximise the use of fabrics that were designed by Australian Aboriginals, with over 90% of the fabrics used meeting this criteria. The quilt was constructed using Susan Carlson's applique method. There are several thousand pieces appliqued, most pieces no larger than 5cm x 5cm, but many smaller than a fingernail. I completed the quilting myself on a Handiquilter Avanté, incorporating Aboriginal symbols in the quilting, to further enhance the cultural story of the quilt. The quilt took approximately 700 hours to complete and successfully travelled across the world with me to be exhibited at the recital in May 2017.

My quilt won Best of Show, Best Art Quilt and Viewer's Choice prizes at some local quilt shows in Australia in 2017 and 2018, and after being rejected as a competitor in Houston in 2018, it won Second Prize in the Innovative category in the World Quilt Competition in 2019.

Maker: Terri Ahrens

Quilter: Terri Ahrens

Year Made: 2017

Owned By: Terri Ahrens

Size: NA

Shows & Museums: Royal Queensland Show - Quilts Across Queensland, Brisbane Quilt Show, Gympie Rotary Quilt Show, World Quilt Show New England, Pennsylvania National Quilt Extravaganza, Pacific International Quilt Festival,

Awards: 2017: Best of Show, Viewer's Choice, First - Open Art Quilt - Royal Queensland Show Quilts Across Queensland; 2018: First in Applique/Mixed Techniques Professional and Award of Excellence: 2019: Second in Innovative Category, World Quilt Competition