Community Quilt

 

Community Quilt

Lockdown threw up unique challenges for everyone, for better or worse it was a completely new experience and one that will stay with us as a global community, a shared global experience. My Lockdown was dominated by my curiosity and exploration of my locality during our Hour of Daily Exercise and the translation of this into artworks created for my first year of University. The first year which was half on campus, half at home. 

Given that I have a lot of textiles and the tools to work in different textile methods, my work took a turn in this direction working from home. Thinking about documentation of time/experiences/ideas/collections I have been playing about with the presentation of this through collage and patchwork, and with a personal interest in sleep (suffering from chronic lifelong insomnia) this led me to consider quilts/blankets. I have never made any quilts since it is usually very meticulous and perfect - not something I enjoy doing when I am letting loose creatively - however, I am trying to investigate quilt making in a more free and expressive way. Starting with a quilt based on loose paintings of potsherds found in the local Brook during Lockdown, dying the fabric with clay from the river bed, I want to move to a community linked quilt.

I have made a Call for Fabric, any textiles attractive or ugly, old or new, large or small to create a quilt for the Lovely little community on Our Road. I have no idea whether I will receive enough donations to make a large or a small quilt, or many quilts! I am hoping to hear stories of why these textiles might have a special link to Lockdown, perhaps the stories might be more important than the quilt. 

I have one donation to begin with...here’s hoping for more! Exciting!

 

https://www.abc.net.au/news/2020-07-10/quarantine-quilt-records-coronavirus-lockdown-in-fabric/12437766

 https://www.sothebys.com/en/auctions/ecatalogue/2019/contemporary-art-evening-auction-l19020/lot.3.html

 http://www.ctacostume.org.uk/

Gees Bends Quilts

Created from an isolated community, this resonates with the experience of this year.

Textiles Book

Writing on textiles

I love the quilts of Inge Hueber, they really read as though she was trained as a painter (which she did). Visible stitching to add texture and remove us from the perfect ideals of quilting. She uses tonal arrangements of colour to full advantage. Should be considered as a high art quilter in my opinion.

Faith Ringgold. Blending the High art of Painting with the Craft of quilting. She also incorporates texts written in her own hand. Your notice the quilts follow a certain design making them wholly recognizable as her works. What is my Quilt Aesthetic, how will we recognise them to be by Beth Archard?

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Having made the backbone of the quilt I am taking a breather. Not only because it’s scary trying to make a quilt for the people who donated but in case Inexperience in quilting is meaning I am making a hideous quilt. I am using a free quilting method and building by what seems right. Now I am considering what to add to make it a community quilt, something to trigger memories. I want to avoid making it too cheesy.

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Lorina Bulwer

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My work...Playing with techniques and ideas, possiblities.

I realise that you don't need a lot of textiles to put together a large quilt. I will be able to make several quilts from the donated textiles. I will use different techniques  for each quilt, they might read with a different story to one another, but since the textiles are all from the same source there will be a tie between the different works. I can use this opportunity to work on visual language, an identifying feature to my works. 

I would like to see how paint may work with the quilts. So perhaps a traditional quilt, a miniature quilt, a free quilt, a muted palate or dirty quilt. I am looking to the textiles to inspire my decisions.