Yvonne Porcella

Yvonne Porcella (May 12, 1936 – February 12, 2016), born Yvonne Bechis, was an American artist known for her quilts and wearable art.

Early life and education Yvonne Bechis was born in Oakdale, California and raised in Watsonville, the daughter of Louis Andrew Bechis and Mary Kalich Bechis. "I was raised in a modest house with modest income," she recalled in 2012. "If I wanted a new dress I had to make it." Her art included paintings, weaving, pieced clothing, and art quilts. Porcella founded Studio Art Quilt Associates, Inc. in 1989, and served as its president for eleven years. Porcella was inducted into the Quilters Hall of Fame in Marion, Indiana, in 1998 In 2012, she had a retrospective as Distinguished Artist, at the Carnegie Arts Center in Turlock. and published several books about quiltmaking.

Works Porcella's quilts were known for bold colors, and black and white checkerboards or stripes, and unusual titles such as It's About Beets & Perfume and Non Fat, Low Cholesterol, Chemically Enhanced Frozen Dairy Dessert.

Porcella's fabric art can be found in the Los Angeles County Museum of Art, Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco, the Renwick Gallery at the Smithsonian American Art Museum, the National Quilt Museum, and the Museum of Arts and Design.

Publications Yvonne Porcella: a colorful book, Porcella Studios, 1986, Colors changing hue, C&T Publishing, 1994, Six Color World: Color, Cloth, Quilts & Wearables, C&T Publishing, 1997, Art & Inspirations, C&T Publishing, 1998, Women of Taste: A Collaboration Celebrating Quilt Artists and Chefs, 2000, Oakland Museum, Oakland, California Artwear: Fashion and Anti-Fashion, 2005, Fine Arts Museums of San Francisco

Personal life Bechis married Robert S. Porcella, a general practice physician, in 1958.