38th Annual Quilt Exhibition Winners

Each quilt submitted for the exhibition was juried by quilting experts in the region, including Gerald E. Roy, Marry Derry, and Marti DelNevo. Each juror selected one quilt to receive a Juror’s Choice Award. The awards were presented at the opening reception on June 28.

From the exhibition’s opening through August 19, an impressive 15,687 visitors attended with 2,445 ballots cast for the People’s Choice Awards. Additionally, a Staff Choice Award was voted on by the team Billings Farm & Museum.

Quilt Show 2024 Amy’s Citrus Basket by Carol Devins

Juror Award: Head Judge Gerald E. Roy

Amy’s Citrus Basket by Carol Devins, White River Junction, VT

Inspired by the cherished memory of a family gathering, and Amy, a dear friend of the quilter’s daughter, this quilt radiates warmth and cheerfulness. The bright colors reflect the vibrant personality of Amy. The quilt features an asymmetrical and modern take on the traditional Drunkard’s Path pattern, with zigzagging and staggered paths made from curved pieces of fabric. A further modern aspect is the enlarged negative space on select blocks. Head Judge Gerald E. Roy commented that “Carol managed to arrange the pieces in a totally different pattern than I had ever seen before. The quilt is pieced using quarter round pieces of circles of various colors creating a center field of Citrus Fruit and leaves. “

Beyond the vibrant, contrasting colors, intricate craftsmanship and appliqué work in circular, organic motion enhances the design, including beautiful stitching of flowers, citrus cross sections, and leaf veins. Devins comments, “Our family has truly enjoyed having Amy around for many important memories.”

Juror Award: Judge Mary Derry

Reunion by Nancy Foote, Hartland, VT

This quilt is a powerful evocation of historical and contemporary themes of war and remembrance. Originally inspired by the still and somber cemetery commemorating 8,500 lost lives on a Civil War battlefield, Foote comments, “As painful news reports and images from Ukraine and the Middle East have filled out newspapers and screens, I thought again of that cemetery and of the burial grounds all over the world filled with those whose lives have been destroyed by war.” The simplicity of the quilt, with repeating triangles in red, white, blue and grey, symbolizes the countless and uniform gravestones. The design evokes powerful imagery, and taking the form of a quilt, it offers a soothing response to the harsh realities of war and loss.

Judge Mary Derry was drawn to the symmetry and commented that “row after row of identical shapes and the artistically placed red, white and blue fabric brought memories of American Military Cemeteries in the United Sates and in other sacred spots around the world. The piecing and quilting techniques were also exemplary, making this entry special in both its message and execution.”

2024 Quilt Show Reunion by Nancy Foote 600px

Judge Marti DelNevo of Williston, VT with Rae Heller of Brattleboro, VT with her winning quilt- A Repeated Prayer 600px

Juror Award: Judge Marti DelNevo

A Repeated Prayer by Rae Heller, Brattleboro, VT

Part of a series of quilts on grief, “A Repeated Prayer” was created after the complex and unresolved death of a friend. The precise and deliberate work of quilting naturally lent itself as a conduit to process grief. The quilt represents the stages of grief, using soothing and healing colors. The painstaking process included piecing approximately 1,700 squares for the border, each square a small step in the healing journey. The hand of the artist is evident in the hand-stitched pathways, each stitch a testament to the slow, deliberate work of coming to terms with loss. Heller describes the quilt as “a meditation on devotion, aliveness, and the process that is grief. In art and life, things take as long as they take.”

Judge Marti DelNevo selected this quilt because it “drew me in with the colors and movement of the design. The big stitch quilting added a contemplative dimension. After reading the quilter’s description, it resonated and moved me. After losing my husband, the somewhat monotonous work of piecing and rhythmic stitching was balm for my soul and allowed me to sit with my thoughts.”

People’s Choice Award: 1st Place

Road Trip by Linda Diak, Chester, VT

Commemorating the 2023 Vermont floods, this quilt portrays animals that escaped during the disaster, symbolizing the impact of climate change on the region. Diak notes, “Tiki, the emu, spent a month on the lam. The pig and bull were rounded up within a day. Kevin, the peacock, has never been found. It is hoped he is living a good peacock life.”

People’s Choice Award: 2nd Place

The Judges by Hope Johnson, Shelburne, VT

Created for her husband Grant, a 5th-generation Northeast Kingdom Vermonter, this quilt was inspired by a 1985 Vermont Life Magazine cover he had saved with the intention of painting someday. It features dairy farmers at the Enosburg Dairy Festival, where, as Hope commented, “We know who the REAL judges are!”

People’s Choice Award: 3rd Place

Color My World by Neomi Lauritsen from Weathersfield, VT

This quilt incorporates 50 years of collected fabric scraps, reflecting the highs, lows, and fullness of life. It connects her to the resourcefulness of pioneer women, who saved everything to create something beautiful or useful.

Quilt Show 2024 Award Winner Staff Choice

Staff Choice Award

Shades of Ivory by Julie Patrick from

Bellows Falls, VT

With a longtime goal of entering a quilt show, Julie completed the design six years ago, though the actual quilting didn’t begin until last year. Even after finishing, “it still needed something more.” She added free-standing lace and over 4,000 hand-sewn beads, creating an exquisite texture and intricate detail, all in shades of ivory.