The one from downunder

As the Australian person in this challenge, I thought I would post something very Australian.  But first a bit  about me.
Like a few of the others, I am not a lifelong quilter.  I drew from an early age, as did all of my family.  It was expected, just like writing and reading, however the belief in my family also was that art is not a reponsible profession, and I suppose back in the 60s and 70s, it really wasn't.
So, I became a biochemist instead and until my forties, I did little real art or craft although I was always drawn to making things.  When I met my partner and moved out into the bush, we were kindred spirits and both loved creating.  He is a master craftsman and does woodwork and turning.  I joined the art group.  Through the art group I saw quilts at our shared shows, but I didn't really decide it was for me until I met QUILTING FABRICS.  Yummmy.
I did do traditional quilts for a short while, but there always something different waiting to be done.  I loved all the different techniques and textures and wanted to try them all.  Machine quilting was something I really loved and it led to thread painting, which led to the quilt I am going to show you.
When our town was destroyed by fire in feb 2009, both tony and I decided that our lives and our crafts were more important than any other thing and this changed our lives - in a good way, I think.
Since then I have been working on broadening my technique base and intend to do city and guilds machine embroidery in a few years when I feel I have enough mastery of technique.

So this is my quilt.  It is quite large being about 50x40 inches and it hangs on the wall in my studio.  It is all raw egdge applique with a lot of thread painting.  It took me a year to complete, with many breaks.

Albert Namatjira was the first Aboriginal artist of note in Australia and even though he died a few years before I was born, his work was important to me in that it was about the true essence of Australia.  This is my rendition of  "Ghost gum - Mount Sonder" which hangs in the national gallery.  I feel a bit afraid putting this up, because, sometimes I can't believe that I made it and now I will have to at least match it in the challenge!
I am in awe of the range of work we have all been putting up and can't wait for the experimenting to start.