|
:: May 28, 2004 Gee's Bend and Me
My urge to take up quilting had its origins in general textile lust. I went to the University of Texas fine arts library to hunt for this book (more on Lucienne Day later) and thought I'd browse the shelves for quilting books to see if I found anything inspiring. I have to agree with Brandy Agerbeck's assessment of the current quilting tradition: it's way too anal for me. I would add that it's hard to get inspired when so much of fabric you see is hokey as all get-out. I don't mean to denigrate any quilting, because I know how much skill and patience goes into it, I just mean that most of the mainstream fabrics and quilt designs are not my thing. Then again, I suspect that I just may not have developed the taste that is actually well worth developing, and that I lack the skills to see individual fabrics as part of a bigger design. Back at the library, the big hardcover book Gee's Bend: The Women and Their Quilts was sticking out. I picked it up and flipped through it. My thoughts were, OK, yes!, this is what quilting is all about. Gee's Bend quilts have gotten a lot of attention in the art world and most crafters know and love the tradition. But if you haven't heard of them, here are some links: Quilts of Gee's Bend official site Some Gee's Bend quilts look simple, and though their creators used improvisation under the constraints of whatever fabrics happened to be available at the time, there's a mountain of knowledge and experience that went into them, not to mention the un-reproduceable aspects of the women's lives and circumstances. I figured this out as I attempted my first quilt project, which was going to be an improvised Chinese coins quilt with unevenly cut strips. But improvising on my first attempt was probably not the best idea. The patchwork for that style shouldn't be a big deal, but you know, I just don't have the expertise to step outside of right angles yet. Not only that, I didn't understand how to combine different colors and prints, and it showed. They didn't work in the traditional OR rule-flouting way. I never even got to the actual quilting part! This is all to say that I wish there was a quilting version of Knitty or Stitch 'n Bitch, to give people who are interested in quilting but are put off by the aforementioned anality and hokiness an enticing entryway into the tradition. In my mind, it would involve articles about Gee's-Bendian design principles, Denyse Schmidt worship, and quilt patterns that won't make my bed look like Frank Bielec threw up on it. Maybe I'll start it. Right ... with my proven history of keeping websites current. That's why I'm putting the idea out there. For free! Take it and run! Teach me the ways of the quilter! posted by in Inspiration , Quilting , Textile Arts Sorry, comments are closed for this entry. You can always email me through the address on the right sidebar. |
