Today I am headed up to Winnipeg in Manitoba Canada, and Friday I will be on a charter plane going back to Churchill for the 4th time, to photograph the polar bears who live on the edge of the Arctic. I go there to document what is happening to the bears, and the warming environment. I go to see my friend who is the head of the Arctic research center there…and she is a quilter! I go to have a little time with the indigenous peoples who have lived there for generations…and I can only imagine what it took to survive in this frozen wilderness before electricity.
On each trip I have seen a mama bear with one or two cubs. The cubs’ lives are perilous, to say the least. I find that I identify especially with the mother bears….perhaps this is why I find the polar bears so fascinating. Maybe my spirit animal is a Mama Bear?
We have built up a collection of Arctic and North Woods wildlife and scenic prints, because we know many of you have found peace in these landscapes. When I go there, the experience of profound silence is an inoculation against the blaring cacophony of the modern world. As with my quilting, this is a way to disengage with the world for awhile, to hear my own inner creative voice.
It is my pleasure to share my bear stories and photos with all of you. One of these past photos has been made into a quilt, which will be in the Endangered Species exhibit in Houston later this month. If I meet you in Houston, ask for my business card. It has my Polar Bear quilt on the back.
The photo above shows a Mama Bear hunkered down in the willows, with her curious cub popping up to check us out. The background is an icy subzero sunset from my trip last year. The wind was bitingly cold, so we had to take the photo fast before the cameras froze up. The colder it gets the more active the bears become. And therein lies the tale!
sharing your Passion for Fabric…
Luana and Paul
eQuilter Classroom:
Nov 11 – Charity Sewing Day – Veterans Day
March 6-8 – MJ Kinman – New Exclusive Pattern & Class for eQuilter
April 13-15 2020 – Susan Carlson
June 1-5 2020 – Paula
Nadelstern
Luana’s Travel Calendar:
Oct 16-22 – Winnipeg
& Churchill, Manitoba Canada
Oct 25-31 – Quilt Market & Festival – Houston
Nov 13-17 – Color Marketing Group – Tuscon AZ
Jan 24-29, 2020 – Tokyo Quilt Festival – 1 day with Lisa Walton’s Japan Tour
Feb 19-22 – QuiltCon in Austin TX
