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The 2026 NACQJ Certified Judge Challenge
"Make it Modern"
June 11-13, 2026
Minnesota Quilt Show
Rivers' Edge Convention Center
St.Cloud, MN
https://mnquilt.org/2026/01/2026show/
Enjoy the video!
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CJ Challenge ~ Artist's Statements
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Colleen Carlson, Grand Forks, ND
Monstera A recent adoption of a split-leaf philodendron supplied full-size shapes for this design. The gridded quilting provides a contrast to the large organic shapes. Steps A summer in Sydney, Australia, inspired this concept and the infusion of yellow came from the hot, sunny days. A single courthouse steps block was drafted to create this foundation paper pieced project. |
Sue Cortese, Holland, MI
A Matter of Perspective In doing a Modern quilt challenge, Sue felt it necessary to simplify her typical composition. With simplifying, it put more emphasis on the shapes, not just the shapes used as figures, but also the shape of the negative space. She tried to engage the negative space with colorful and interesting quilting designs. Sue’s typical work features surface design and improv piecing. For more information, please look at her website: selcfabrics.com or on Instagram/Facebook: #suecortesequilt |
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Lorraine Covington, Clemmons, NC
Two Roads Diverged This piece represents a choice between two futures - the road chosen and the road we left behind. As our road of life wanders through peaks and valleys, we always wonder “what if”? What would my life have been if I had chosen the other route? |
Kate Eelkema, Big Sky, MT
Fibonacci Squared A minimalistic interpretation of the intriguing Fibonacci number sequence, in which each number is the sum of the two previous numbers. This sequence appears everywhere in nature, even in the proportions of the human face, and the golden ratio guides work in design, architecture, and websites. Six Shades of Grey After purchasing several different shades of solid grey fabrics to choose the samples the challenge committee sent to all certified judges for this challenge, I decided to use six of them to create this collection of small boxes emerging from a center black hole. |
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Cindy Erickson, Omaha, NE
4 Winds This is made in the minimalist style and represents how I feel getting pulled in all directions at times. Due North I made this with negative space in mind. Sometimes all of your ducks (geese) do not want to go in one direction. |
Kathi Eubank, Urbandale, IA
After Soft gray curves ebb and flow, reflecting the slow tide of grief. In sharp contrast, orange lines representing the chaotic memories of watching a loved one suffer interrupt the healing process. And yet, emerging behind the gray, a whisper of pale sun promises bright days ahead. |
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Beverly Fine, Haymarket, VA
Cathedral of Light The constant immutable form of the cathedral is a counterpoint to the ever-changing color of light. The gradated background emphasizes this fluid nature of light. Long Time Coming This diagonal design, created from basic half square triangles and a quiet collection of chromatic grey solid fabrics, tells a story of arrival to a new place. |
Priscilla Godfrey, Philomont, VA
Black, White, and Grey All Over These triangles represent the many mountain peaks I have experienced as an NACQJ Certified Judge. Eggs Stra Special These ovals, that look suspended in air, represent the nuggets of information you get when you judge a quilt show. |
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Doris Goins, Jasper, IN
Stronger Together “Stronger Together” is a design based on a pencil drawing by Jorn Larsen (1926-2004), a Danish painter and sculptor. Hand appliquéd and domestic machine quilted. |
Aleta Gustavson, Pella, IA
Momentum My work in quilting explores movement, momentum, and transformation - both within the fabric and in my own life. During career changes, I have embraced quilting as a coping mechanism and as a language for expressing growth and forward motion. Curved piecing plays a central role in this work, allowing lines to bend and flow in ways that evoke energy, rhythm, and continuous change. As a modern quilter, I am drawn to clean design and intentional detail. I incorporate matchstick quilting to create texture and reinforce a sense of direction, building the viewer’s eye across the surface. These closely spaced lines echo the persistence and drive that define this new chapter of my professional journey. Small pieces of lime green appear throughout my work as symbolic markers - each one representing a “green light”, a movement of permission to move forward, take risks, and embrace possibility. Together, these elements form a quilt that is not only a visual composition, but a reflection of transition, courage, and the momentum of beginning again. |
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Pat Harrison, Exeter, RI
Prismatic Refraction This quilt is part of an ongoing exploration of curved piecing, where I experiment with shifting widths, subtle angles, and the tension between precision and improvisation. The curves guide the composition, creating movement that feels both deliberate and intuitive. As I work, I am less interested in rigid repetition and more focused on how variation can bring energy and rhythm to the surface. |
Karen Kendo, Harleyville, SC
Breaking the Code For my first foray into modern quilting, I chose to use two key components: high contrast and graphic areas of color. I also embedded a message in my piece. Can you crack the code? Stepping Up Challenges are all around us. This piece represents a physical challenge I faced in the past year - being able to conquer going up steps “like a normal person”. Creating in the modern quilt aesthetic is also a challenge to a more traditional quilter like myself. My staircase is depicted without support because I can now go up those steps without any support. |
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Kathie Kerler, Portland, OR
Wind Tossed This Modern Traditional quilt uses a block called “Leaves Blowing in the Wind”, which was designed by Nancy Cabot in 1935, according to Barbara Brackman in her encyclopedia of quilt patterns. |
Lois Kindley, Missouri City, TX
Encourage Creativity This piece celebrates the growth of ideas through color, texture, and negative space. As an entry for the NACQJ challenge, this work celebrates the importance of community, where encouragement and thoughtful evaluation help artists grow. My hope is that it inspires and honors the power of encouragement within the quilting community, and invites viewers to reflect on their own creative paths to future creativity in themselves and others. |
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Stacy Koehler, Bellevue, PA
Buds Inspired by one of the many trips across Pennsylvania. Although there were few leaves in evidence, I could see hazy areas of colors in the trees, after a tough winter. Buds up close and focused down to the basics. |
Darlene Landrum, Mountain Home, AR
Go With the Flow Each block was improvisationally pieced with curves to depict directional flow. This quilt incorporates the modern quilt characteristics including solid fabrics, bold colors, high contrast, and improvisational piecing. |
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Brandy Maslowski, Summerland BC, Canada
Stand There’s a moment on a forest hike when you stop tracking the path and start seeing the trees — not as background, but as the whole point. Vertical. Persistent. Indifferent to my body moving through them. This quilt began with that moment. The dark verticals aren’t decorative. They’re structural in the composition and in my mind. The horizontal bands of rust and olive cross through them the way seasons, distraction, and life do. The trees don’t respond. They just remain. Stand is about what doesn’t move when everything else does. |
Terri Miller, Winslow, AZ
#AdyStrong #AdyStrong is a heartfelt, community-driven movement created in memory of Ady Leonard, an 18-year-old whose life was tragically cut short just weeks before her high school graduation in 2025. As her friends, family, and community held onto hope for a miracle recovery, the hashtag #adystrong quickly became a powerful symbol of hope and unity. During this difficult time, the entire community rallied together, showing their support by embracing Ady’s favorite color: pink. The color washed over the town, serving as a visible reminder of Ady’s spirit and the collective hope that surrounded her. The Ady Strong Foundation was established with a simple but powerful motto: “Be Good. Do Good.” The foundation’s mission is to keep Ady’s legacy alive by inspiring others to choose goodness and compassion in their daily lives. I chose a pink hashtag to continue spreading the message of goodness and kindness. The illusion of upward motion reflects the growing power of these virtues. The use of variegated threads within the hashtag imagery symbolizes action and movement, reminding everyone that even small gestures can create ripples of positive change. |
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Diane Pitchford, Mesa, AZ
A Touch of Cheddar I both love and hate challenges. They push me outside my normal box, which is good. However, having rules imposed is difficult for me. I have a tendency to make changes as I go, and my final quilts typically look nothing like my original plan. |
Margaret Powers, Columbus, IN
Geode My quilts tend to be constructed using geometric shapes and patterns like Irish Chains, Rail Fences, and varying types of stars. In other mediums, I am drawn to abstract works. While on vacation in 2025, friends introduced me to the Crushed Glass Art Studio PCB. My friends worked on very structured glass art pieces, but I was drawn to the abstract geode pieces on display, ultimately purchasing one for my home. This quilt is my attempt to create a geode in fabric, using curved lines and metallic threads to mimic the sparkling veins of crystal that run through geodes found in nature. |
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Linda Rasmussen, Monrovia, CA
Crossroads This piece was improvisationally pieced and assembled. Viewing it, I thought that “Crossroads” was an appropriate name. In life we all have crossroads. Choosing a direction can be challenging, but a choice must be made. |
Jackie Ruffing, Tyler, TX
Vertical Triad As a longtime traditional quilter, I was excited by the NACQJ challenge of creating my vision of a modern quilt. The color, clean lines, and the visual balance created in the placement of the three groupings resonates with my appreciation for geometric forms and simplicity of modern quilting. This minimalistic design in called Vertical Triad. |
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Irene Scheffler, Newburgh, IN
Modern Triad I used three of my favorite traditional blocks (churn dash, quarter-square triangle on point, and windmill) as the start of a traditional quilt, developing into modern, achieving this through the use of bold and achromatic grey colors and modern quilting. The quilting lines enhance this theme by showing change from the traditional blocks to a modern style quilt via the small equilateral triangles that form an arrowhead. |
Lisa Schreck, Sidney, OH
Ohio Sunset A burst of color breaks through the clouds at the end of a cold and bitter Ohio winter day. I feel the chill but delight in knowing longer spring days are coming. This design is posted on Lisa Marie quilts, with permission granted to make this adaptation. Pattern designer: Elizabeth Chappell, Alderwood Studios. |
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Cindy Seitz-Krug, Luna, NM
Double Ruby Rings The double wedding ring design has always been one of my favorites. When I saw this pattern with a modern twist to the traditional design, I wanted to try it, especially since this pattern called for EPP to assemble all of the pieces. For the quilting, I used a grid-based design in the center, and parallel lines in the other sections. |
Connie Silber, Bryan, TX
Modern Light The design for this quilt is the same as for Modern Dark which is also on display in this exhibit. They are the same and they are different. They do not look like the same design and yet they are exactly the same. The old adage is true, Color gets the credit and Value does the work. Modern Dark The design for this quilt is the same as for Modern Light which is also on display in this exhibit. They are the same and they are different. They do not look like the same design and yet they are exactly the same. The old adage is true, Color gets the credit and Value does the work. |
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Hollis Turnbow, Sturbridge, MA
Spring - Escaping from the Grays of Winter My mind focused on the term “modern traditional” when considering the design for this piece. The square seem to be a basic start, and what could be done with the square? Cut it apart then add to the cut pieces with bright colors, yet maintain the basic shape. As the bright fabric was added, the meaning began to appear out of the gray. |
Mary Wolter, Caledonia, WI
The Jetsons I took an Improv class with Emily Lang at QuiltCon 2026. With this project in mind, I began to experiment with these bright solids on the light gray background. I worked on it intensely at a quilt retreat, and friends were watching my process with great interest. As it neared completion, one friend commented that it reminded her of the Jetsons’ home in the old 1962 cartoon show. Hence the name! |
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Kathryn Zimmerman, Mars Hill, NC
Rainbow Eclipse Varying size circles are applied to the black background with a reverse machine appliqué technique. Small sewn strips are from a Cherrywood hand dyed “Spring” twelve-step fabric bundle. |