Randall Cook StudiosRandall Cook Studios

Bamboozled

Dimensions: 50" h x 98" w

Year Completed: 2013

Technique: Stitched Shibori and Dye Painting

Materials: 100% cotton fabric, wool batting, Procion MX dye

Price/Status: TBD

Purposefully deceiving.

Photograph by Jeffrey Lomicka

Can I Live Strong?

Dimensions: 31 1/2” w x 40” h

Year Completed: 2013

Technique: Dye techniques

Materials: 100% cotton fabric, Procion MX dye, wool poly batting

Price/Status: Please inquire

So ashamed, how can I face you? Can I recover? Can I stand tall again? Can I live strong?

Photograph by Jeffrey Lomicka

Runnymede

Dimensions: 104 1/2” x 37 3/4”

Year Completed: 2012

Technique: Dye techniques

Materials: 100% cotton fabric,2 layers batting, one wool and one cotton, Procion MX dye

Price/Status: Collection of Artist

Runnymede is a water-meadow along the River Thames in England and is notable for its association with the sealing of the Magna Carta. It is also the name of the street we live on in where I now have a light-filled studio.

Photograph by Jeffrey Lomicka

12/14/12

Dimensions: 27 1/4" x 23 3/4

Year Completed: 2012

Technique: Dye application

Materials: 100% cotton fabric, wool batting

Price/Status: Collection of artist

The piece I made the day after the Sandy Hook school shootings.

Trapped In The Game

Dimensions: 77" x 77"

Year Completed: 2012

Technique: Dye Painting, piecing, screen printing and couching

Materials: 100% cotton fabric, wool batting, Procion MX dye

Price/Status: TBD

Remaining calm in a sea of chaos. Trapped, but fighting to get out. Showing the world you have it all together.

Cosmic Drift

Dimensions: 93" x 100"

Year Completed: 2012

Technique: Dye Painting piecing, slashing, weaving

Materials: 100% cotton fabric, wool batting, Procion MX dye

Price/Status: TBD

I wanted to go big. Cosmos big. This quilt makes my mind wander, daydream and float in a sea of happiness.

Fractured Self

Dimensions: 50" h x 40 1/4" w

Year Completed: 2011

Technique: Dye Painting

Materials: 100% cotton fabric, wool batting, Procion MX dye

Price/Status: TBD

Disparate painting and quilting styles hint at the constant tug-of-war at play in my life. I love both art quilts and traditional quilting styles but have little time for either while working two jobs, living life with my partner, family and friends, and taking care of a home.

Fractured Self 2

Dimensions: 49.5" x 39"

Year Completed: 2011

Technique: Dye Painting

Materials: 100% cotton fabric, wool batting, Procion MX dye

Price/Status: TBD

Disparate painting and quilting styles hint at the constant tug-of-war at play in my life. I love both art quilts and traditional quilting styles but have little time for either while working two jobs, living life with my partner, family and friends, and taking care of a home.

Dance

Dimensions: 217”x84"

Each Piece: 41"x84"

Year Completed: 2011-2013

Technique: Dye Painting, Stitched Shibori

Materials: 100% cotton fabric, wool batting, Procion MX dye

Price/Status: TBD

Five panels that celebrate life, joy, and happiness. Inspired by Asian art, these panels depict the elements of our world. Hand stitched shibori thread lines are carefully gathered and painted. Waves, fields and mountains are the result of the quilting.

Photograph by Jeffrey Lomicka

Garden

I Remain

Dimensions: 55" x 81"

Year Completed: 2007

Technique: Painted image with thickened Procion MX dyes and heavy thread painting and quilting

Materials: 100% cotton fabric, wool/poly blend batting

Price/Status: Private Collection

I lost my full time job a few months before this piece was started. AS I had the time on my hands, I decided to take a class from Hollis Chatelain to learn the technique of painting using dyes. This piece is my first painted piece using thickened Procion dyes. The piece was painted on white cotton fabric with 6 values of red dye.

Despite the injustices and hardships involved with losing my full-time employment, I found my way through and "I Remain."

Enlightened Freedoms

Dimensions: 83” x 81”

Year Completed: 2010

Technique: Machine Piecing, Dye Painting, Hand and Machine Applique

Materials: 100% cotton fabric, wool batting, Procion MX dye

Price/Status: TBD

Just like my reinterpretation of the 3 Wise Monkeys found “hidden” in the upper left border, my hope is that all of us will listen and look for injustices and shout with loud voices when we find them. Whatever our bindings happen to be, there’s always a better future and those leading the fight.

Tangled Timbre

Dimensions: 40 1/2” x 114”

Year Completed: 2010

Technique: Dye Painting

Materials: 100% cotton fabric, wool batting, Procion MX dye

Price/Status: TBD

Growing up on a dairy farm I spent many hours romping through the woods and nature has a special place in my heart. The woods speak with sonorous voices, full and resonant. They are places of magical mystery, deep contemplation and serenity. I hope they always remain.

The Bee's Knees

Dimensions: 43" x 56 "

Year Completed: 2007

Technique: Painted image with thickened Procion MX dyes, and heavy thread painting/quilting

Materials: 100% cotton fabric, wool/poly blend batting, tarnish proof wire

Price/Status: Private Collection

The phrase, meaning “excellence”, was coined in the 1920s and has nothing to do with a bee’s pollen basket, yet it seemed a fitting name. We rely on the excellence of the honey bee in many ways. They pollinate crops (food), flowers (beauty) and supply us with honey (sweetness itself).

I was working in the yard near our apple tree and noticed the number of bees around. I then thought about the recent Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD) that some bee keepers have been experiencing the last couple of years and decided to create a spring themed piece paying homage to the honey bee, though this piece does take some artistic license with the actual anatomy and coloration of the honey bee.

Through the use of distortion in the lower left petals, I have been able to add a slight amount of additional texture and depth. This distortion was put in via the quilting and is held in place by thin, tarnish resistant wires slipped into small tubes that are sewn into the facing strips on the back of the quilt.

Shadows of Me

Dimensions: 69" x 40"

Year Completed: 2009

Technique: Painted image with thickened Procion MX dyes, and thread painting/quilting

Materials: 100% cotton fabric, cotton batting

Price/Status: TBD

Stark anguished figures emerging from shadows.

This piece was made between shoulders surgeries and after the medical establishment gave me a septic shoulder infection that could have killed me. I had gone from being a strong and vibrant person to almost dead in a very short period of time. This piece is about coming back.

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Red and Yellow Squares

Dimensions: 46” x 29”

Year Completed: 2010

Technique: Dye Painting

Materials: 100% cotton fabric, wool batting, Procion MX dye

Price/Status: TBD

Abstract color fields.

Medieval Censing Angel

Dimensions: 50” x 50”

Year Completed: 2005

Technique: Appliqué, couching, beading, free motion quilting

Materials: 100% Cotton Fabrics

Price/Status: Collection of artist

This quilt is inspired by a piece of medieval limoges champlevé enamel that is in the collection of the Metropolitan Museum of Art. The piece of limoges moved me and some time later I decided to make this quilt.

The fabrics used in the construction of the angel itself have been hand dyed by me.

Escape

Dimensions: 20" x 54"

Year Completed: 2007

Technique: Painted image with thickened Procion MX dyes, and heavy thread painting/quilting

Materials: 100% cotton fabric, wool/poly blend batting

Price/Status: $900

Escape…to me this word sounds nice, whether it’s an escape TO take a hot bath or an escape FROM a difficult situation. There are at least 9 different definitions for this word, surely one fits somewhere for each of us.

This piece represents an attempt on my part to push thread color. After my first few purple stitch lines I was very hesitant to continue using the thread. I decided to continue and I used it on various parts of the body for shadows. I am very glad I continued and love the effect that it gives.

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Crawling Nude

Dimensions: 28" x 57 "

Year Completed: 2008

Technique: Painted image with thickened Procion MX dyes, and heavy thread painting/quilting

Materials: 100% cotton fabric, wool/poly blend batting

Price/Status: TBD

Mystery and sensuality combine.

Seated Headless Nude

Dimensions: 16 1/2 ” x 17”

Year Completed: 2007

Technique: Dye painted image, and heavy quilting

Materials: 100% Cotton fabrics, cotton poly batting

Price/Status: Private Collection

This quilt is the 2nd quilt I have dye painted. I took a class from Hollis Chatelain in March 2007 on dye painting and this was one of my class samples. The center of the quilt was a solid piece of white fabric when I started and all color is either due to dye painting or thread painting.

Irenic Glance 1

Dimensions: 26" x 39 1/2"

Year Completed: 2010

Technique: Painted image with thickened Procion MX dyes, and thread painting/quilting

Materials: 100% cotton fabric, wool/poly blend batting

Price/Status: TBD

Irenic Glance 2

Dimensions: 33" x 40 1/2"

Year Completed: 2010

Technique: Painted image with thickened Procion MX dyes, and thread painting/quilting

Materials: 100% cotton fabric, wool/poly blend batting

Price/Status: TBD

Blue Bird On Fence

Dimensions: 20" x 24 1/2"

Year Completed: 2007

Technique: Dye Painted image and heavy quilting

Materials: 100% cotton fabrics, cotton poly batting

Price/Status: Private Collection

This quilt is the first quilt I have dye painted. I took a class from Hollis Chatelain in March 2007 on dye painting and this was my first class sample. The center of the quilt was a solid piece of white fabric when I started and all color is either due to dye painting or thread painting

Naive

Dimensions: 30 1/2 ” x 33 1/2 ”

Year Completed: 2007

Technique: Painted image with thickened Procion MX dyes, and heavy thread painting/quilting

Materials: 100% cotton fabric, wool/poly blend batting

Price/Status: $600

Naive - aren’t we all in some manner?

Reflection

Dimensions: 56" x 74 1/2"

Year Completed: 2008

Technique: Painted image with thickened Procion MX dyes, and heavy thread painting/quilting

Materials: 100% cotton fabric, wool/poly blend batting

Price/Status: Private Collection

Life is busy and often chaotic. Everything today seems to be fast and loud. Taking time to be with yourself and looking within can be a source of great strength. Reflective time when you are quiet is when you will hear the most.

Regarding

Dimensions: 25” x 34”

Year Completed: 2007

Technique: Painted image with thickened Procion MX dyes, and heavy thread painting/quilting

Materials: 100% cotton fabric, wool/poly blend batting

Price/Status: $450

A singular piercing eye asks many questions.

Chakra Series

Dimensions: 13 3/4” x 13 3/4” each

Year Completed: 2004

Technique: Applique, free motion quilting

Materials: 100% cotton fabric hand dyed by artist, cotton batting

Price/Status: Private Collection

This commissioned project began when a massage therapist from Berkeley, CA approached me to represent the 7 major Hindu Chakras as individual “prayer flags” for a massage studio.

The Sanskrit word "cakra" (written in English as Chakra) means "wheel" or "disk". It has been described as a “spinning wheel of light”. Chakras are energy centers, and although there are many chakras within the human body, seven of them have been identified as major chakras. These seven chakras have been depicted in this series of mini-quilts.

It is the Chakra definition of “spinning wheel” that gave rise to the use of 2 similar, but different background fabrics to create a spinning movement behind each of the chakras.

Chakras are very rich in history and symbolism. I have chosen to only use a few items in the creation of the Chakra quilts. The items I have chosen to represent are:

    -color
    -number of petals
    -bija, or seed symbol
    -occasionally other items, such as crescent moon, triangles, squares, star, etc.

The seed symbols on each quilt were digitized and machine embroidered by the artist.

The 7 quilts in the series are:

    -Muladhara root (base) chakra
    -Svadhisthana sacral chakra
    -Manipura solar chakra
    -Anahata heart chakra
    -Vishuddha throat chakra
    -Ajna third eye
    -Sahasrara crown chakra

Son

Dimensions: 56" x 70"

Year Completed: 2007

Technique: Procion MX dye painting for base image and then Needle Punch felting of wool fibers, quilting

Materials: 100% cotton fabric, cotton batting, wool fibers

Price/Status: $1500 (for 3 pieces)

Here we have a strong male silhouette standing against a dark background. He is a son, but whose son is he? Will he be like his parents, or different? What choices will he make in life? What will he stand for and what will he fight against? Will he be cosmic hero or dark knight?

Here are some comments about the construction process. The work consists of a solid piece of cotton fabric that has been painted with Procion MX dyes. The top and batting were then layered together and the needle punch felting process began. Various colored wool fibers were used in the body. He is outlined with a thick layer of bright wool fibers and texture was given to the body by using various colored wool fibers. The piece was then placed with the backing fabric and quilted.

Contained Chaos

Dimensions: 57 1/2" x 57 1/2"

Year Completed: 2004

Technique: Paper piecing and free motion quilting

Materials: 100 cotton fabric and 100% wool batting

Price/Status: Collection of artist

Using Karen Stone’s New York Beauty paper pieced patterns, I set the blocks (with a few duplicates) into an original setting using all batik fabrics. Each fabric is used in only one block. This quilt never fails to get attention when on display.

This quilt won First Place in the Art Quilt category at the New York State Quilt Consortium show in 2004.

Complement 1

Dimensions: 20" x 24 1/2"

Year Completed: 2007

Technique: Dye Painted image and heavy quilting

Materials: 100% cotton fabrics, cotton poly batting

Price/Status: Private Collection

This quilt is the first quilt I have dye painted. I took a class from Hollis Chatelain in March 2007 on dye painting and this was my first class sample. The center of the quilt was a solid piece of white fabric when I started and all color is either due to dye painting or thread painting

Incomplete 1

Dimensions: 16" x 20"

Year Completed: 2007

Technique: Discharge, machine quilting

Materials: 100% cotton fabric, wool batting

Price/Status: Private Collection

This is my first experience with discharge techniques. I discharged areas of black fabric and added color back with dye and thread. I am interested in the process and hope to experiment with it more in the future.

Latte

Dimensions: 91 ½” x 91 ½”

Year Completed: 2003

Technique: Machine Embroidery, free motion quilting

Materials: 100% Cotton fabrics, cotton batting

Price/Status: Collection of artist

I have a group of friends that are avid machine embroiderers. One of these friends was given the Bernina Latte quilt book for a birthday present. I was quite enamored with the Latte quilt, although I don’t know why as my decorating style is definitely not Victorian. Being a novice machine embroiderer, I concocted the idea that we should form a small group and each make the Latte quilt, giving me the chance to improve my embroidery and my embroidery software skills. So we bought a few more copies of the book and came up with a meeting schedule.

I think we only met 4 times however before we disbanded. One of my friends said that it “wasn’t fun anymore.” It appears that I was project managing the completion of the Latte quilt by giving us a schedule and due dates. Oh well! I continued on and completed my quilt and learned a lot in the process. To this day, this quilt has never been on a bed. I have no idea what to do with the darn thing, but it took so much work to make that I can’t give it away. I frequently have been heard saying that I want the quilt top back, as I could machine quilt it much better now.

Along With Friends

Dimensions: 82" x 102"

Year Completed: 2002

Technique: Machine piecing and quilting

Materials: 100% cotton fabrics, 100% wool fabrics

Price/Status: Collection of Artist

This is one of my early quilts and the camaraderie that it involved, make it a very special quilt for me. Let me explain.

I talked a group of work friends into embarking on a “Build a Quilt” event with me that was offered at a local quilting store. None of us could attend the class portion of the event due our being at work. Instead, I would pick up the weekly block pattern on Friday’s when it was released, make the block over the weekend, and teach my coworkers on Monday morning, giving them advice on any trouble spots. Most of them have even finished their quilts, though it took a couple of years for some of them.

A dear friend of mine, and one of the members of our work quilting group, fell behind in making her blocks. Along the way, her son was diagnosed with brain cancer. She choose to make the blocks that she had completed into a smaller quilt for her son and named it “A Mother’s Love.” Our little group helped her baste the quilt and she quilted it herself. Her quilt was with her son in the hospital the day he died.

To me, this quilt and the process it took to make, symbolize friendship, closeness, sharing and sadness. Enjoy every day and the loved ones that you have.

Men Of Summer

Dimensions: 61” x 83”

Year Completed: 2006

Technique: Traditional Piecing and machine quilting

Materials: 100% Cotton fabric, 100% wool batting

Price/Status: Gift, Private Collection

This quilt employs the very traditional Triple Irish Chain pattern, but uses very fun fabrics. This quilt was made as a gift and is also known as my “misery quilt”.

I never pre-wash fabrics for my traditional quilts as I want the fabrics to shrink around the quilting. I used to bleed test all my fabrics, but after never having any fabrics bleed, I abandoned this practice. The red fabric used in this quilt bled, but only on the yellow border fabric. The yellow backing fabric and the yellow portion of the main print did not receive any bleeding. My heart sank when taking it out of the washer and I promptly begin trying everything I could to remedy the situation. This quilt ended up being washed about a dozen times before ever being used. Lesson learned (I think).

At The Beginning Again...A Challenge To Myself

Dimensions: 98 ½” x 107 ½”

Year Completed: 2004

Technique: Traditional patchwork and free motion quilting

Materials: 100% Cotton and 100% wool batting

Price/Status: Collection of artist

This quilt represented a departure from my traditional quick quilting techniques into those of more elaborate and denser quilting techniques. I felt as if I were “At the Beginning Again” even though I had created more than a dozen quick pieced and quick quilted quilts. I have long been an admirer of the machine quilting work of Diane Guadynski (and as of this writing have not met her) and I wanted to incorporate some of her quilting “style” into this quilt.

This quilt won 2nd Place in the Large Traditional category at the New York State Quilt Consortium show in 2004. It also won the Excellence in Machine Workmanship award, which came with a sewing machine prize.

Blended Ways

Dimensions: 69 ½” x 81 ½”

Year Completed: 2006

Technique: Machine Piecing and free motion quilting

Materials: 100% cotton fabric, wool batting

Price/Status: Collection of artist

I became I interested in the “blended” quilt concept (Blended Quilts by Marsha McCloskey and Sharon Evans Yenter) when on a shopping excursion and I came across the border fabric. As is commonly the case, my friends claimed that the fabric I choose was “ugly”, but I am rather pleased with the outcome.

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Ivy Cottage Roses

Dimensions: 94” x 94”

Year Completed: 2003

Technique: Traditional Piecing, machine quilting

Materials: 100% cotton fabrics, cotton batting

Price/Status: Collection of artist

Quilt pattern is from the 2002 Quilt for a Cure (fight against breast cancer) pattern.

Pineapple Log Cabin

Year Completed: 2001

Technique: Machine piecing and quilting

Materials: 100% cotton homespun, cotton batting

Price/Status: Collection of artist

This is a very early quilt of mine. My goal was to make a quilt that had the look and feel of an old “comfy” quilt. Many people use paper piecing to make these blocks, which yield perfect blocks. My blocks were not done using paper piecing and are far from perfect. It definitely has the “comfy” look.

Ugly Pheasant

Dimensions: 79” x 94”

Year Completed: 2002

Technique: Traditional piecing and machine quilting

Materials: 100% cotton fabric, cotton batting

Price/Status: Collection of artist

When I purchased the remainder of a bolt of fabric that featured pheasants and declared that I was going to make an orange and turquoise quilt, my friends thought me insane. This is the result.

Toucan

Dimensions: 35" h x 57.5 w

Year Completed: 2008

Technique: Dye Painting

Materials: 100% cotton fabric, wool batting, Procion MX dye

Price/Status: TBD

Dreaming of tropical climes to escape the long and cold northern winters.