arts&life

fairs & festivals

Quilts, Apple Pie
And Fun

SUZANNE CHESSLER CONTRIBUTING WRITER

A maker of colorful

quilts displays her

work at Art & Apples

— plus our annual

roundup of

Labor Day fairs.

I

n her Farmington Hills
basement, Beth Rosenfeld
has been working at her
four sewing machines plus
a rented long-arm quilting
machine to get ready for
the Art & Apples Festival in
Rochester.
Rosenfeld, an artist who has
worked with many kinds of
textiles, specializes in one-of-
a-kind quilts for infants and

children and will have 400
ready to sell as the event runs
Sept. 8-10 in the Rochester
Municipal Park.
This will be the first fair for
the artist, who mostly sells to
people she knows and people
referred by others. The only
times she has joined with vari-
ous artists before now have
been for the Temple Israel
Sisterhood Spring Boutiques
and a fundraiser for Project
HOPE.
“‘Go big or go home’ is my
motto,” jokes Rosenfeld, who
also has a part-time career as
a dental hygienist with skills
learned at the University of

Detroit after she turned 30.
“I will be showing quilted
blankets, throws and wraps.
I actually have five different
kinds of projects — receiving
blankets, stroller blankets,
play mats, quilts and wall
hangings. I do freehand sewing
so that each one is different.”
Rosenfeld describes her
work as having traditional,
geometric block patterns
made from contemporary
materials, mostly cotton
and polyester. She uses lots
of color, and each item is
machine washable.
“I’ve been running my own
‘sweatshop’ for nine months

to get ready for Art & Apples,”
quips Rosenfeld, who ulti-
mately finds satisfaction in
being creative with each piece
and experiences the total
process as therapeutic. “I
decided to do quilts for infants
and children because I prefer
working on smaller items. I
describe my style as colorful
and playful.”
Rosenfeld’s projects will join
the work of 300 artists from
across the country. Artists new
to the fair and those return-
ing will showcase a variety of
media, including ceramics,
digital designs, glass, print-
making, jewelry, metal, mixed

LEFT: An offering from Ford Arts, Beats & Eats

details

60

August 31 • 2017

jn

The Art & Apples Festival runs Sept. 8-10 at the Rochester Municipal Park in downtown Rochester.
$5 donation requested. (248) 651-4110; pccart.org.

