Confession: We adore art quilts! And if you favor modern quilts, know that it's a small hop from modern to art, especially because many techniques and design approaches are shared by both q-camps. (Improv piecing, white space and applied color theory, to name a few.) In fact, we've been patiently waiting for some of the better-known mod quilters to dip their stitches into fiber art. (It'll happen. Give it time.) In the interim, we enjoy the work of phenomenal established fiber artists, such as Valerie. A successful architect, Valerie has made a second career out of her award-winning art quilts that are mostly inspired by her love of structures, cities and maps. In this, her first book, she draws heavily on design principles honed from her life spent creatively exploring architecture. She passes this on through exercises, art quilt techniques and excellent photography. Her style here is collage - a blend of texture, material and manipulation - and her theme is the map. Each quilt in her collection reflects a broad range of approaches to the maps she was inspired by. (Bonus: Her students' gallery is total eye candy!) Delightful! --Generation Q Magazine; November/December 2013 Valerie Goodwin is an accomplished textile artist and architect, and each and every image in her fantastic book is testament to her talents. This book aims to teach you how to find visual inspiration in real and imaginary maps and places, and how to transform that inspiration into a beautiful quilt design. The techniques used to achieve this are not complicated: backgrounds are layered with fabric, sheers and stitching, and design elements are added by applique, stitch, painting, and drawing with thread and pencils. I love this book as maps and art quilts are one of my very favourite combinations, but I fear this is not a tutorial for the fainthearted. I don't think I have enough artistic ability to do any of Valerie's designs justice, but I shall keep returning to it. It's a delight to thumb through, and maybe one day I'll be brave and have a go myself!-Popular Patchwork
