Artist Statement: My composition is like jazz in color. Bright notes and smoky blue notes with "flowery" highlights thrown in. All enveloped in dark undertones much like the definition of "rhapsody" : an instrumental composition of free, irregular form, suggesting improvisation.

Materials & Techniques: I printed 6 panels of a paper collage titled "Summer Heat" which I created earlier in 2009. I photographed it then color adjusted each panel and resized at least 2. I then printed these onto a silk or cotton panel. I layered fragments onto each panel and hand appliquéd everything together. There is no piecing done. It was then machine quilted. The flowers were made from strips of fabric with antique glass beads added to the center. Commercial fabrics were used for borders.

Dimensions: 25.25"W x 26.25"H x 1"D

Artist Bio: I have been working with fabric or fiber since I was in my teens. Designing wearable art clothes for myself and others and then designing costumes for theater for 25 years. I was always saving fabric scraps to someday make quilts. For years I bought books on quilting but it has been only recently that I actually started to make quilts. I am also a weaver, embroiderer, beader and knitter. I have taken numerous classes on color theory, weaving, fabric manipulation, dyeing, beading and embellishing. Now I can finally add art quilts to my list of endeavors.

Artist Website: www.margaretcwheeler.com