East Bay Heritage Quilters
    Voices in Cloth 2006
An Extraordinary Quilt Show

Thomas Contemporary Quilt Collection

Ruth McDowell

http://www.ruthbmcdowell.com

After graduating from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in 1967 with a B.S. in Art and Design, Ruth spent several years working as an illustrator, while simultaneously expanding her interests in fibers and nature. She began her quilting career in 1972.

Since that time, she has become a full-time professional quilt artist, with over 350 quilts to her credit. Her wall quilts have been exhibited nationally and internationally in many galleries and museums, as well as in juried, invitational and several solo shows. They are also represented in many public, private and corporate art collections worldwide.

Ruth’s very active career includes teaching design workshops and lecturing about her work throughout the United States, Europe, Japan, New Zealand and South Africa.

Ruth wrote her first book, Pattern on Pattern (Quilt Digest Press) in 1991. Symmetry: A Design System for Quiltmakers (1994) and Art and Inspirations: Ruth B. McDowell (1996) were both published by C&T Publishing of Concord, CA. The latter book, a retrospective of Ruth’s career, features full-color illustrations of 97 of her quilts, many color details and drawings, and a fascinating text. It has recently been reprinted and is available on Ruth's website at http://www.ruthbmcdowell.com

Piecing: Expanding the Basics (C&T, 1998) is an excellent and very extensive manual for those quilters interested in designing their own art quilts. Pieced Flowers (C&T, 2000) is a pattern book containing 55 flower blocks. Ruth's most recent book, Pieced Vegetables (C&T, 2002) is a visual feast of patterns and quilts. A Frabric Journey: An Inside Look at the Quilts of Ruth B. McDowell (C&T, 2005) discusses in detail the creation of 18 of her newest art quilts.

The art quilts of Ruth McDowell represent a sustained and extraordinary development over time, intertwining the themes of nature, geometry, the piecing medium and her abiding love of fabrics.