Gloria Loughman lives in Kerang, a small Australian town famous for its duck shooting and ibis rookery. She is married and has three daughters. Gloria trained as a secondary school teacher and worked mainly in literacy and special education faculties. Her initiation into the world of patchwork occurred approximately sixteen years ago, when she was recovering from a rugged course of chemotherapy.
Over the years she has dabbled in many areas including strip piecing, bargello, colorwash, fabric dyeing and painting, and machine embroidery. After completing studies in design and color as part of a Diploma of Art in 1996, she began to make her large vivid landscape quilts depicting the Australian bush. These quilts have won many major awards in Australia, Europe, Japan, and the United States. Her quilt Kimberley Mystique was the winner of Australia's most prestigious national quilting award in 2003.
Gloria loves sharing her knowledge and skills with others. She likes to challenge her students to design their own landscape quilts but is also happy to provide patterns. Many students come back for a second or third class.
As well as being in demand as a teacher, Gloria has curated six exhibitions of Australian quilts to the United States and has had the privilege of judging at many major shows. Her work has been featured in many books and magazines.
What began as a therapy has developed into a passion and has given Gloria the opportunity to travel the world exhibiting her quilts, teaching classes, and meeting lots of wonderful people.