I was born in Lusaka, Zambia in 1951 and came to Britain in 1975. Although I originally trained as an accountant I did not pursue a career in this field after starting a family in 1978. I live on the South East coast of Britain at Hastings in East Sussex.
I have no formal art training but have been fortunate to learn from numerous
teachers and facilitators in the quilting world. I started making patchwork quilts in the traditional way in December 1991. My first quilt was finished in January 1992. Since then I have exhibited widely, mainly in Britain, but also in Europe and the USA.
Awards since 1993 include -
Best Theme - Fans at Quilts UK 1993 with Fans for Africa
Best Sampler Quilt at Quilts UK 1996 with Tie Fliers
Convolutions 10 - Raining in my Heart Quilt 2005 for the Festival of Quilts - Highly Commended
Special Exhibits
17 quilts travelled with the Patchwork Association's Spring Quilt Fairs which were held at venues in England, Scotland and Belgium between February and May 1998.
Shipley Art Gallery's 1998 exhibition, Stitches in Time. Solar Complex
1998 commissioned by Region 2 of the Quilters' Guild of the British Isles to make a piece for the 90's collection . Face of Africa
1998 playing card, the Queen of Spades,
selected as part of the touring display - The Grand Slam - staged by the Patchwork Association.
1999"Paned Expressions" Quilt 99 at the Knitting and Stitches show.
4 pieces as a member of Hanging Together January 2000. 11 quiltmakers participated in the exhibition at the Chequer Mead Centre, East Grinstead called "Hanging by a Thread".
7th European Patchwork Meeting - 13th - 16th Sept. 2001. 12 pieces of work - a mixture of old and new.
February 2002 Hanging Together at the Chequer Mead Art Centre and Gallery, East Grinstead. "Stretching a Point by Hanging Together" 5 pieces exhibited.
Baroquen Dream exhibited in Wickrath Castle, Monchengladbach, Germany - Aug. 17th - Sept. 8th 2002
Class Act - 2 pieces at Chequer Mead Art Centre and Gallery, East Grinstead October 2002. - work by students attending classes run by June and Leslie Morgan in 2001/2002
Layers 2003 exhibition at Worthing Museum - 9th AUG TO 5th OCT 2 pieces
Committed to Cloth 2003 at Chequer Mead Art Centre and Gallery, East Grinstead in October 2003.
February 2004 the fourth exhibition by Hanging Together at Chequer Mead Art Centre and Gallery, East Grinstead.
2004 – Stitched Textiles – The Stables
Theatre Art Gallery, Hastings – 26 exhibits
2004 – Solo Exhibition “Lift Off” at The
Festival of Quilts in August
2004 – December Spread Your Wings
at “Japanese Imagery in Contemporary Quilts”by Kokusai Art and Nihon Vogue of Tokyo - an invitational exhibition that included one quilt by each of 75 Japanese and 25 western quilt artists.
July/August 2005 - Class Act - an exhibition of work by June and participants in her courses in 2004-2005 at Chequer Mead Community and Art Centre, East Grinstead
2005 - Nov 12th - December 24th - "Bedazzled" exhibition at the grace barrend design centre, Nutfield, Surrey.
In February 2006 Hanging Together - 5th exhibition at Chequer Mead Community Art Centre in East Grinstead
2006 - 28th July - 2nd August - Class Act 2006 - an exhibition of work by June and participants in her courses in 2005-2006 at Chequer Mead Community and Art Centre, East Grinstead and Little Common, near Bexhill, East Sussex
Quilts, some with working instructions, featured in
Annette Claxton- "Quick Quilts"
Janet B Elwin - "Ties, Ties, Ties"
Jenni Dobson - "The Reader's Digest Patchwork, Quilting and Appliqué".
Gul Laporte - "Quilts from Europe"
Maggi McCormick Gordon - "The Quilter's Guide to Pictorial Quilts"
Anne Hulbert - "The Complete CRAZY PATCHWORK"
Sandra Meech – “Contemporary Quilts, Design,
Surface and Stitch”
Dorothy Osler - North Country Quilts: Legend and Living Tradition
Celia Eddy - The Quilted Planet
Self Published
March 1998 - Machine Quilting - Notes and answers to frequently asked questions - a 16-page booklet.
1999 a series of Tip cards and another 16 page booklet - Hidden Depths - the low down on Battings performances with specialist consultant Sandie Lush.
New Publication 2008
Due August 2008 - Stitching to Dye in Quilt Art: Texture, Dimension and Distortion - published by Batsford
I will be launching my book at the Festival of Quilts, NEC Birmingham from August 14 to 17th. I will also be at The Knitting and Stitching Show, NEC Birmingham, from 11th - 14th September.