Challenge quilts on display at library

Quilts celebrating world festivals are on display in the community room of the Sisters Library, all because Ann Richardson, executive director of the Sisters Outdoor Quilt Show, is a curious person.

Richardson was visiting a quilt shop in Eugene and was drawn to the 20-by-20-inch quilts on display. She questioned the store owner, and found that Sue Cutsogeorge owned them. During the ensuing conversation Ann asked if Sisters Outdoor Quilt Show could use them for display in Sisters. Sue agreed, and for all of October they will be on display in the Sisters Library.

It seems that Cutsogeorge went to Japan with Quilters' Express in 1993. During the tour, she stayed overnight with Izumi Takamori, a distinguished quilting teacher, who owns a quilt and craft shop in Tokyo called Pin Cushion. During the stay, Sue and Izumi became fast friends, and Izumi asked Sue to participate in a three-country International Quilt Challenge with an alphabet theme.

Cutsogeorge's job was to find 25 other American quilters, each to complete a 20-by-20-inch quilt for one letter of the alphabet. With the help of her stepmother (and partner in quilting adventures) she found the required number of American quilters to step in, who put on the first International Challenge Quilt Display with 25 other quilters from Japan and France.

Since then, there have been two other challenge quilt shows put on by quilters from the same three nations. Each has a different theme. The second was currency of the U.S., Japan and New Zealand.

The current challenge quilt show on display at Sisters Library is based on the theme of world festivals.

Due to space constraints, the Sisters Library show features 45 of the 90 challenge quilts Richardson brought with her.