One of the quilts was made by a woman who was in a mental institution in Nashville for over sixty years, since she was a teen. She made numerous quilts, he writes, mainly from bedsheets. She would unravel towels, wash cloths, rags and whatever she could get to find colored thread for her designs. The staff would sell them for a few dollars on her behalf. Here is the quilt that Dr. Nat Winston bought:
This is so poignant and it struck me so much I just had to share. I am reading the book A People and Their Quilts by John Rice Irwin and it is so interesting, particularly as it is mainly located in TN and the Smokies. The quilts are old style, of course, as many were made over a hundred years ago, but the stories of the people who made them are fascinating. John Rice Irwin went about for years, buying old quilts and just talking quilts with everyone he met. In this book he records their stories. One of the quilts was made by a woman who was in a mental institution in Nashville for over sixty years, since she was a teen. She made numerous quilts, he writes, mainly from bedsheets. She would unravel towels, wash cloths, rags and whatever she could get to find colored thread for her designs. The staff would sell them for a few dollars on her behalf. Here is the quilt that Dr. Nat Winston bought: Each of the nine squares is different, but each includes a flag, chickens and people. The doctor recalls that the people represent doctors and nurses who cared for her, and the institution included a farm, which may explain the chickens. The relative size of the people indicates the quilter's regard for them. Here's a closer view: My heart goes out to this unknown quilter and so I wanted to post this in tribute to her and also in tribute to John Rice Irwin and his wonderful book on our quilters of TN and the Appalachians.
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Beautiful white bird of paradise flowers are blooming in my garden now; so inspirational. They are much bigger than the well known orange variety and so is their plant. They are shooting up as high as ten feet in the air but so far all the blooms have been at eye level, hiding among the stalks. Has sort of an extraterrestrial look!!! Also love this geometrical look of the century plant. Going up, "bird" leaves reach for the sky!
Completed the Seminole Piecework Sampler today. This was for a crayon challenge: you draw two crayons from a bag and then use those colors to make your quilt. You can select one other color to go with them. My crayons were blue-green and black, so white was the logical choice especially when you consider the likelihood of finding those colors combined with any other one color. I had a completely insane wild hair and decided to do this all by hand.... I'm not the greatest hand sewer but I found myself actually enjoying it!
I was excited to see my quilt from the SAQA exhibit "Piecing Together A Changing Planet," featured on the Miami New Times blog on the Around Town feature. Click here to go to this blog: http://blogs.miaminewtimes.com/cultist/2015/01/florida_artists_create_quilts_highlighting_the_effects_of_ climate_change_on_national_parks.php I I think this is a ground-breaking show as it showcases art quilters addressing current issues just as fine artists have done throughout the centuries. Just another step in bringing art quilts into the "art" world.
January is here, time to keep resolutions and start new projects. I have been struggling with a project, a garden quilt, that is becoming a handful and developing a life of its own. Here is a sneak preview: What are you working on this first day of the new year?
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Sharon BuckI have always been an artist and with art quilts I have found a way to combine my two loves of painting and textiles. Archives
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