November 4, 2026 | By Lisa Scagliotti‘Gone Fishing’ is Linda Diak’s quilted brown bear with a salmon.
A new exhibition of bold, quilted animal images is now on view in the Steele Community Room at the Waterbury Municipal Complex.
Titled “Impacted,” the quilts by Chester, Vermont, artist Linda Diak will be on exhibit into early January.
Diak’s work aims to draw attention to endangered species. “My love for animals and a desire for justice are the inspiration for much of my work,” Diak writes. “The quilts on display in this space represent a fraction of the creatures we are in danger of losing due to climate change, pollution, overdevelopment, and human actions and activities.”
Describing her quilts as narratives that tell stories, Diak draws a comparison to painting.
“Fabric and thread serve as my 'paint.' The needle is the 'brush' with which I add strokes, highlights, texture, and chapters to the story told in the quilt,” she explained.
Adding untraditional techniques to typical quilting formats allows her to incorporate elements of surprise into her patterns, Diak said.
“Feathers formerly resigned to blocks may delineate a nose, accentuate a wrist. Precise patterns may find themselves freed from borders and surrounding a snout, accentuating folds, or becoming stars in an evening sky,” she explains.
The quilted pieces are on display in the Steele Community Room at the Waterbury Municipal Complex. Photo by Lisa Scagliotti
Diak said she hopes visitors to see her work will be inspired to learn more.
“By presenting these wonderful creatures in a way that celebrates them, I hope visitors to these walls will take a moment to ponder our impact on our planet.”
The exhibit is partially funded by a Creation Grant from the Vermont Arts Council. It may be viewed during office hours when the Steele Room is not in use. Exhibits in the Steele Room are rotated every few months. Exhibit guideline details are online here.
More information about artist Linda Diak is online at: lindadiakquilts.com.