The Bright Art of Quilting

by Mary Jo

Quilting is a very ancient skill, probably dating back to ancient Egypt and introduced to Europe by returning Crusaders.  It's wonderfully practical for warmth, or protecting a knight from chafing armor.  

These days we usually associate quilts with lovely cozy bed coverings, but they've also evolved into a beautiful form of craftwork.  A friend of ours is a honcho in the Baltimore Heritage Quilters Guild and she always notifies us of the guild's biennial quilt shows.  It's a treat to visit the shows, which are held in sprawling school gymnasiums, and only held every two years because it takes time to create new work.  (I blogged about the last show two years ago--the quilts are too pretty not to share!)

As the Mayhem consultant said when we visited the show, there weren't many of the cuddle-under-in-winter type  quilts.  Most were beautiful art pieces of various sizes, like modern tapestries designed to be hung on the walls.  There were hundreds of quilts, and the show was so visually dazzling that it was impossible to take it all in.  

I attended the show to appreciate, not buy, but I succumbed to this guy.  Carol, the artist who made him, is part of a small group of quilters who like to do challenges together.  (It  made me think of the frontier quilting bees, where women gathered to socialize and make quilts.)

This group decided to do a mosaic challenge using a material that bonds to fabric on both sides with the heat of an iron.  First the pattern fabric is chosen and bonded, then mosaic squares are cut out, positioned on the backing fabric, and bonded with another ironing.  Then Carol did the quilting--sewing the patterned fabric to the final backing making sure that every square was sewed down.  A lot of work, but such a wonderful result!

We visited the show on the second day and I was really surprised that this piece, which is about two feet square, hadn't been snapped up by someone else.  But no, he was waiting for me!  The official title is "Scary Cat," but the immediate reaction of me and any other cat people was "Scaredy Cat."  

See that anxious expression in Quilt Cat's eyes?  He's asking, "Will you be my friend?"  In fact, he looks like our newest adoptee, The Spook, who has a similar anxious expression.  Poor Spook hung out at a feral colony for a long time after he lost his first home.  When you live rough,  you survive by being wary, and he's understandably concerned.  (He's getting over that. I found him on the dining room table a couple of days ago and he had that cross eyed anxious expression, but he didn't look the least bit guilty.  <G>)

 

 

 

 

 

There were so many wonderful different designs.  This one is a beckoning doorway to magical new places.  

My friend Natalie did a marvelous marvelous quilt made up of squares based on photographs from her backyard after an ice storm.  It's so evocative and cold looking!  Here's a detail.



I loved the one below of the female figures.  Haunting.  

There were several spirals like this in different gorgeous color combinations.  

I also really enjoyed this playful one called "Fish Gotta Swim." 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

There were many, many more beautiful pieces. Here's a church in the vale. 

 

Are you a quilter?  Or a lover of quilts?  Have you ever had a beloved quilt that offered you comfort and warmth when you needed it?  Would you like to own one of these?  If so, which one?

By luck, I found this BHQG which has pictures of all the pieces in the show.  Feast your eyes here! 

Mary Jo, adding one last brilliantly covered quiltwork

Comments

[Mary T]

I have absolutely no talent with a needle, but I can appreciate the artistry of these quilt makers. Thanks for the BHQG link. Too many beautiful works to pick just one, but I did get a chuckle out of the BLESSED ARE THE "PIECE" MAKERS quilt.

[Mary Jo Putney]

Mary T, I got a kick out of that one, too. *G* Bring on the clever wordplay!

[Jana]

I'm not much good with the needle either,however I can appreciate the time and effort involved in creating these masterpieces. I have an old quilt that my grandmother and her Ladies Auxilliary group made in the late 1930's, early 1940's. Each lady made a square and signed them. It's a bit of a treasure for me. Another favorite quilt is one my other grandmother made for my mom. I remember cuddling under the quilt and pointing out patches and my mom telling stories about what dress that patch came from. It had things like a patch from the dresses Nana made my mom and her sister for Queen Elizabeth's coronation. More recently my favorite quilts are the rag quilts my mom made for my babies. My son (now 7) still sleeps with his little "monkey blanket" that mom made for him as a baby. And my new daughter has a rag quilt too, that my dad helped my mom make when her arthritis acted up this winter. Apparently he really enjoyed the quilting process... Maybe he's found a new hobby for his retirement! I love how quilts are functional, beautiful, and connect us to our history. All of my special quilts have a story, or stories behind them.

[Janga]

Both my grandmothers were quilters as are two of my closest friends. I have quilts I treasure from each of them. I am hopeless with arts and crafts myself, but I am excellent at appreciating the creations of others. I marvel at the Gee's Bend quilters' exhibition, and I count Anna Grossnickle Hines's books among my favorites. I especially love her Pieces: A Year in Poems and Quilts.

[Kareni]

What wonderful quilts! I'm another who is artistically challenged but I much enjoyed seeing these works.

[Patricia Addison]

I know the basics of quilting, and one of my goals this year is to make my own quilt. So far I have only made small practice squares. My Mother used to quilt. She had a large quilting frame that she would set up in the living room. I remember lying under the frame, watching tv with my siblings, while Mamma quilted on the frame. They were beautiful, as are all the pieces pictured above.

[StephanieL]

I adore the quilt with the door to magical places. I actually like to sew, but I've never been very good at it. I regret (deeply) that I didn't take my much beloved grandmother up on the offer to teach me things when I had the chance. I was much too busy trying to be cool. *sigh* I have recently started making myself a quilt out of all my racing tshirts. My hubbys best friend is an avid quilter, as is my aunt, and they've been giving me tips (from long distance). Maybe at some point I'll figure out what I'm doing and make myself a new hobby but right now, I'm just making my way. These are gorgeous quilts!!

[Patricia Franzino]

The closest I ever got to making something with a needle was needlepoint on canvases already painted with a scene.

These quilts are truly magnificent. My favorite is the otherworldly quilt with the magic door.

If a quilt show comes to NYC, I'll have to make sure I know about it to see if I can purchase one.

[Mary Jo Putney]

Jana, what a wonderful collection of heirloom quilts you're building? What is warmer than a quilt made with a mother's or grandmother's love? It will be fun if your dad turns into a quilter. *G*

[Mary Jo Putney]

Janga, like you I never pick up a needle if I can avoid it, but I'm a VERY good appreciator. *G* I need to look up the Gee's Bend quilters now.

[Mary Jo Putney]

Kareni--just looking at them makes me smile.

[Mary Jo Putney]

What a great quilt racing T-shirts will make as you sew in your own history. It is unfortunate that you didn't take advantage of your grandmother's skills, but maybe she'll look over your shoulder and keep you on track with the quilting.

[Mary Jo Putney]

Patricia, I googled and found a NY quilt show on the weekend of April 22nd! Spring must be the season. In fact there's a map showing regular shows in different parts of the state. I hope one is convenient to you.

[Sue McCormick]

I admire the quilts, and all such pieced works, whether practical or purely decorative.

I am going to make a distinction here (not because I'm picky, but because I need to
describe what I do. The items shown here are piece-work. They probably are also quilted, but the quilting doesn't show. Technically, the quilting is the stitching which holds the layers of cloth and batting together. Plain cloth held together with batting by quilting stitches, is usually called a counterpane. They can be beautiful also.

I was so technical because I do not do piece-work of any kind. I have tried it, but I don't have the necessary stitching skills. I DO quilt, however. I have made several tote bags which are quilted. They usually have a front featuring a cross-stitch project that
I have completed then the are combined with a backing and some batting to form a sturdy light weight bag. The stitches used in the quilting can be works of art; some quilting patterns are very elaborate indeed. Mine alas are not. But I have fun with my quilting, and I get some very practical results from it.

[LILinda]

That show is out on Long Island, about 1 1/2 hour east of NYC. It's a small show by a show standards, put on by Smithtown Stitchers.

There is a NYC guild, not sure of the name, maybe Gotham. Most guilds will do a show at some point.

Not a quilt show, but Quilters Take Manhattan is an awesome event held in September by the Quilt Alliance. It has spread to cover several days of behind the scenes tours, cocktail parties, lectures and more led by quilt-lebrities. A great group, great cause, fun events.

The mecca for every quilt lover is attending Quilt Festival in Houston. I'm there the week before for the market. but we are allowed into the show. I must have a good eye because every year I photograph some quilts that blow my mind, and come to find out they were winners. Picture an area several football fields long and wide, filled with quilts.

[Anne Gracie]

I, too, love looking at beautiful quilts -- the colors, the patterns and the clever designs, and there are some truly stunning ones around. I have a couple of quilts my mother made -- all hand sewn -- and one from a friend of mine's mother, which I treasure, too.

But my favorite thing is old quilts, made of scraps from clothes and other pieces -- like Jana's quilt with the bits from the dress made for QE2's coronation and others. So as well as being beautiful and very personal, it's also a quilt made of stories. I have an unfinished one my mother started with small hexagonal pieces in which I can recognize this dress of my sister's or mine, or that dress of mum's. I might have to finish it one day.

[Patricia Franzino]

Thanks so much Mary Jo. I see it's in Troy, NY, which is near Syracuse. I'll see if I can find another who enjoys quilts and is able to drive us there.

[Mary Jo Putney]

What a fun memory to watch TV from under the quilting frame! I hope you have some of her quiltwork.

[Mary Jo Putney]

I had cousins who lived in Smithtown long, long ago. The Quilters Take Manhattan festivities sound wonderful!

[Mary Jo Putney]

Patricia, this from LiLLinda, above:

++Not a quilt show, but Quilters Take Manhattan is an awesome event held in September by the Quilt Alliance. It has spread to cover several days of behind the scenes tours, cocktail parties, lectures and more led by quilt-lebrities. A great group, great cause, fun events.++

The link I posted further up showed quilt shows all over the state, so lots of possibilities. Troy would be fun. (I went to college in Syracuse.)

[Mary Jo Putney]

Sue McCormick, I knew that the actual quilting is the sewing of the layers, and in some of the images above the quilting can be seen if you double click the picture to blow it up. I didn't know that a counter pane was a quilted bed covering in a solid color. Fun to learn new things! As you say, quilted tote bags are very strong, I have several bags like that.

[Mary Jo Putney]

Anne, you must definitely finish that quilt--in your copious spare time. *G* Lovely that you can recognize the origins of different fabric pieces.

[Janga]

I think memory quilts/story quilts are a special category. One of the friends I mentioned in my original post just completed a quilt for her son-in-law made of vintage tee shirts from rock concerts he attended. I covet that quilt! Also, one of the younger grands had a special relationship with my brother, and he was heartbroken when his uncle buddy died. His mother quilted a pillow cover from one of my brother's favorite shirts. It was a great comfort to young Luke.

[Annette Naish]

I am a fan of quilts and quilters. Unfortunately, God gave me the gene to admire the work of others, but I have no talent for anything creative. Of all the pictures of quilts, I think my favorite is the Church in the Vale or maybe the final colorful one or maybe the Magic Doorway...actually they are all lovely.

[Mary Jo Putney]

There all beautiful in their different ways, and the link to the show's full catalog is *stunning!*

[Teresa Broderick]

I LOVE the beckoning doorway to a new place. Would love to own that one.

[Mary Jo Putney]

Teresa Broderick, it's really evocative, isn't it? The door into the magical kingdom....

[Mary Drake Turner]

Hi Mary Jo. My mum's best friend is a quilter. Her late husband was in Vietnam and they used to go to big company reunions regularly. He had collected all the photos of the company and digitised them and shared them with all his fellow veterans. She copied them onto fabric and made a huge quilt which they took to a special reunion. It was a big deal and a huge hit and very important to the vets that she had marked their anniversary in that way. It was so special that it is now in the Australian War Museum. Quilting can be more than just a hobby. It is part of the social history of our time.

[Mary Drake Turner]

i forgot to say that I really loved the piece and thank you for sharing it. I went to the website and have shared that with my friends who I know will enjoy it too. The creativity is amazing. I enjoyed learning about counterpanes too. I think those quilts that have old blankets and worn out clothes from the Depression are particularly amazing and something that we should think about now in terms of recycling. I guess that they would be a bit of asthma risk though.

[Cindy A]

I do quilt (beginner) mainly for the grand babies. I love quilting shows! Such inspiration, color, creativity. I usually buy something!!!