Type:Oral History

Type:Oral History

Subject:Quilts
Quilting
Textiles
Decorative arts
Crafts & decorating
Textile artists
Creative ability
Folk art

Description:Karen Musgrave interviews Suzanne Staud, a quilt maker, for the Quilt Alliance's Quilters' S.O.S. Project. Staud discusses her personal contributions to the Quilt Alliance's raffle quilt for their 2003 conference in San Francisco, California. She talks about her inspiration for the quilt, Harriet Powers, and her love of folk art. She details individual parts of her quilt and the inspirations for each part. She then talks about her personal feelings about the raffle quilt as a whole and further details how she was influenced by folk artist Harriet Powers. [show more]

Subject:Quilts
Quilting
Women
Textiles
Crafts & decorating
Textile artists
Decorative arts
Artists
Visual arts
Storytelling
American women 1600-1900
Women’s voices

Description:Amy Henderson interviews Teddy Pruett, a quilt maker at the American Quilt Study group conference in Williamsburg, Virginia. Pruett discusses the quilt she brought for the interview, which showcases her humorous, unique style of quilt making. She talks about how she began to quilt and how her style developed through her unconventional methods. Pruett also talks about how quilting influences her every day life as a creator and a quilt appraiser. She discusses the artistic qualities of a great quilt and a quilter and gives her opinion on the importance of storytelling in quilt making. She gives advice to future quilters and quilt historians, emphasizing the importance of stories and personal expression in the art. [show more]

Subject:Women’s history
Women in history
Quilts
Quilting
Textiles
American women 1600-1900
Needlework
Crafts & decorating
Textile artists
Textile industry
September 11 Terrorist Attacks. 2001

Description:Quilt historian, textile dealer, quilt appraiser, and quilter Mary Perini is interviewed about quilts. She discusses the personal and emotional aspects of quilting, including the stories told by quilts which can be found in their stitching and fabrics. She talks about how she became a quilt historian and then a quilter. Perini also discusses the cultural aspects of quilting, particularly in regard to women's history and women's place in society prior to the feminist movements of the 1960s. Perini talks about how the quilts she is currently creating are influenced by her feelings about September 11, 2001, which occurred 32 days prior to this interview taking place. [show more]

Subject:Quilts.
Textiles.
Quilting.
Quilting arts workshop

Description:Linda Claussen is interviewed at a quilting seminar. She describes the quilt she brought with her and the impact that quilting has had on her life.

Subject:Quilting.
Quilts.
Quilts--United States--History--20th century.
Quilts--Design.

Description:Gasperik discusses her grandmother's quilt, as well as the life story of her grandmother who came to the United States as a Hungarian immigrant. Gasperik offers advice and suggestions to those who wish to pursue quilting or look for inspiration in designing. She also considers the importance of quilting to American history in general, and women's history in particular. [show more]

Subject:Quilts
Quilting
Decorative arts
Textiles
Textile artists
Community
Family
Family histories
Women

Description:Paulette Lancaster interviews Sally Ambrose, a quilter and quilt appraiser, for the Quilters' S.O.S. Oral History Project. Ambrose discusses the quilt she has brought in for the interview and its deep meaning to her family. She talks about her experiences in learning to quilt, her preferred techniques in quilting, and who and what she has created quilts for. She discusses her career as a quilt appraiser and the quilting community to which she belongs. Ambrose details the emotional aspects of quilting. Sally Ambrose started quilting in 1984 when she moved to Washington. Her grandmother was a quilter and she believes the story makes the quilt. In this interview she describes an unfinished quilt with a long history that she acquired and completed. [show more]

Subject:Quilts.
Craft and art
Crafts & decorating
Quilting arts workshop
Quilting.
Textiles.
Quilts--Design.
Quilts in art

Description:Gawlik shares her unique perspective on quilting, having started in America with her grandmother, she then moved to Japan and started working with natural materials. Her background in graphic design allows her to have an interesting relationship with the art form of quilting. [show more]

Subject:Arts and crafts.
Quilting.
Quilts.
Quilts--Design.
Artists
Decorative arts
Textile artists
Textiles
Families.

Description:Gabrielle Swain talks about her quilt, "Maple Breaks," including its appearance and the techniques she used to create it, and the special meaning of the quilt and her focus on nature. She talks about how she began quilting, using quilting to survive through difficult times, and how her own quilting skills and techniques have changed since she first began in 1983. She talks about what makes a great quilt and what makes a great quilter. Swain talks about the book she wrote in 1994, which led to her teaching classes around the country. She talks about how quilting has impacted her family, American life, and women's history. [show more]

Subject:Artists
Arts and crafts.
Decorative arts
Quilting.
Quilts--Design.
Quilts.
Textile artists
Textiles
Families.

Description:June Underwood talks about her quilt, "Crow's Line," which is part of her series involving crows and dragons. She talks about the techniques she used to create the quilt, the types of cloth and thread, and the technique of dyeing with bleach or other chemicals. She talks about some of the poetry that inspired the quilts and her desire to convey a narrative through her quilt series. She talks about how she began quilting, her lack of background in sewing, and her early memories of quilts, which were mostly negative. She talks about her favorite aspects of quilting, where she quilts, and what happens to her quilts when they are finished. Underwood discusses the regional influences on her quilting and art. She talks about how she has been influenced by both the quilting community and the art community in Portland. She talks about her influences from the traditional art world. She talks about how to preserve quilts and the art of quilt-making for the future. [show more]

Subject:Quilts
Quilting
Textiles
Textile crafts
Fabrics
Fabric arts
Quilts--United States--Exhibitions.
Art--Commissioning.
Crafts & decorating
Quilting today
Creativity
Families
Communities

Description:Megan Dwyre interviews Cindy Friedman, a quilter and fiber artist based in Pennsylvania. She discusses personal aspects of quilting, including how she began to quilt, her style and creative processes, and her feelings on what makes a great quilt and quilter. She talks about her accomplishments as a quilter, including her charity work, commissioned pieces, and how her quilts have been received in the quilting and art worlds. She talks with Dwyre about the art form of creating art quilts, including how these quilts have transformed the art world in recent years. She talks about the various mediums quilts interact with, particularly wearable arts and other forms of textile arts. Friedman also discusses her personal feelings about quilting as an art form, its impact on American and women's history, as well as its impact on her life. [show more]

Subject:Quilts--Design
Art festivals.
Quilts--United States--History--20th century--Exhibitions.
Quilts.
Quilting.
Quilts--Design.
Quilts--United States--History--20th century.
Quilting--United States--Patterns.
Quilts in art
Craft and art
Craft festivals.

Description:Burnstein discusses her career as a quilter. She talks about how she started quilting, and her thoughts on quilting and history. She also describes her work as an art therapist, as well as working with the art quilts at the Sedgwick Quilt Show.

Subject:Arts and crafts.
Quilting.
Quilts in art
Quilts.
Quilts--Design.
Families.

Description:Bette Uscott-Woolsey discusses her unique technique for creating art by combining both fabric and acrylic paint. She talks about some of the artists she admires and other art that inspires her own art. She discusses how she balances creating art and working her day job, her background and education in art, her family's interest in art and quilting, and her favorite and least favorite aspects of creating her unique art form. Uscott-Woolsey talks about people not appreciating her unique blend of fabric and paint in her art and how she is not truly accepted by either the fine art world or the quilt world. [show more]

Subject:Quiltmaking process
Quilts
Quiltmakers--United States
Quilting
Quiltmaking
Quiltmakers
Quilters

Description:Peggy Rigdon says she was born in Washington, D.C., obtained a scholarship to Barnard College, and then moved to New York with her husband where she later had three children. She talks about learning to sew with her maternal grandmother from New York early in her life, and also the influence of her paternal grandmother from New York who made 4-H quilts. Rigdon explains how she made her first quilt for her and her roommates at Barnard College. Rigdon tells the story of how the ladies who would eventually start the National Quilting Association got together. She explains how the first National Quilting Association (NQA) shows were put on and where. She also talks about the NQA newsletter and the scope of the National Quilting Association. Rigdon talks about the founding of other, smaller quilting groups like the Daughters of Dorcas and the Cardinal Quilters. She talks about teaching quilting in Fairfax County, Virginia. [show more]

Subject:Quilting
Quilts
Quiltmaking
Quiltmakers
Quilters
Families.
Quiltmaking process

Description:Ruth Wescott Duncan discusses her education and career as a librarian. Duncan says that her childhood quilt and the quilt she is showing today are similar. Her childhood quilt is in the Historical Society of the Town of Greenwich and has six generations' worth of quilts. She talks about her favorite and least favorite aspects of quilting, and how many hours per day she spends quilting. Duncan has been with the Cardinal Quilters since 1987 and met them when she was a librarian at the Duncan Branch Library. She mentions that in 1986 she was a member of Beth Ford's beginner's quilting class. She shares that she has retired at 45, but is still with the Cardinal Quilters. During her time as a Cardinal Quilter, she says she has held positions such as secretary and president. Duncan says that the group is much smaller than it used to be due to deaths and people moving away. Duncan mentions that there is a quilting group at her church that she is a part of. With her church group, she has made handmade quilts with machine appliqued hands that were traced from members of the congregation. [show more]

Subject:Quilting
Quilts
Quiltmakers
Quilt patterns
Families.
Quiltmaking process
Quilters
Quiltmaking

Description:Linda Lindstrom Freeman talks about her personal background. Freeman says that when her kids were young, her aunt tried to get her to quilt. Her aunt, Beth Ford, would bring her quilt patterns to inspire Freeman and make a Sunbonnet baby's quilt for her daughter. She recalls being discouraged when she found out how long the quilting process would take. Freeman started quilting in the early 1980s with Cardinal Quilters after taking a beginning quilter's class. Freeman says that the quilt she has brought to the interview is the piece that she made in the beginning quilting class from Cardinal Quilters. She defines it as her most special piece because it is her first. Freeman says that the quilt represents her family, and each family member has a muslin block that represents their interests. Freeman says that she has not held positions in Cardinal Quilters, but she was the president of Virginia Star Quilters in 1989. Virginia Star Quilters is a Fredericksburg quilting chapter that is in the National Quilting Association. Freeman says she taught for the Quilt Block, a quilt shop in Stafford, Virginia. Freeman speaks on her involvement with the Virginia Consortium of Quilters' documentation project. Documentation Days would allow people to bring in old quilts and fill out forms documenting where it was made, what pattern it had, and what fabric and batting it consisted of. [show more]

Subject:Quilts
Quilting
Quilting--Patterns
Quiltmakers
Quilts in interior decoration
Strip quilting
Log cabin quilts
Virginia Quilt Museum
Museums
Quiltmaker's club
Quilts--United States--History--20th century.

Description:Shirley Johnston Shelly begins by sharing her childhood, education, and career background. Shelly says the first time she saw quilting was when she was in high school. Her friend's mother had made a quilt for her twin beds that were in patchwork style with Nine Patch at the bottom. Shelly was inspired by the beauty of the quilts and eventually had worn them out. Once she retired, she got involved with the Cardinal Quilters. She mentions that quilting gave her a hobby, and she learned how to quilt from meetings and workshops from the guild. Shelly describes the quilt she has brought to the interview, a Log Cabin-designed wall hanging with autumn-like colors. The quilt is strip quilted and strip pieced. A few years later, Shelly became a bobbin lace maker and took classes at a church. Once she learned how to make lace, she added strips of plain Torchon lace to the quilt. Her quilt has been shown in quilt shows. Shelly talks about others' quilts she has bought from quilt shows and auctions. Shelly was vice president of Cardinal Quilters twice, and then president for two terms. She says that people that completed projects were given a moon or star as motivation for people to quilt. She taught Crumb Piecing and make a basket. She was a historian for the Virginia Quilt Documentation Research Project and had to document all quilts she could find in Virginia. She would train others on how to document quilts as well, which included photography, identification, and description. She found quilts from the Civil War and possibly the Revolutionary War period. [show more]

Subject:Quilting
Quiltmakers
Quilts
Quilt community
Virginia
Quilted goods
Quilt design
Childhood

Description:Nancy Woods Lyons talks about her personal background. She says she was always surrounded by quilts growing up because her grandmother quilted. One of the quilts, the Snowball quilt, was featured in John Rice Irwin's "A People and Their Quilts" where it was labeled as unidentified. The pattern for the quilt came out in Charleston Daily Mail and was called Snowball. Lyons started her first quilt, The Roman Stripe, at 10 years old. Lyons says she heard about Cardinal Quilters through the "Quilter's Newsletter Magazine." She met the Cardinal Quilters in the 1970's and joined other groups like Hayfield and Springfield Quilters Unlimited and the Virginia Consortium of Quilters (VCQ). [show more]

Subject:Quilts
Quilting
Decorative arts
Textile artists
Needlework
Families
Crafts & decorating
Textiles
Voluntarism
Hobbies
Government contractors
Washington (D.C.)
Women

Description:Evelyn Salinger interviews Pansy Hector Lovelace, a quilter living in Washington, D.C. Lovelace discusses her background and how she got into quilting. She then discusses her favorite quilts she has made and the quilt she features in the interview. She talks about aspects of quilting, including scrap quilting, machine sewing, and why she donates her quilts instead of showing or selling them. Lovelace discusses her quilting classes and advice for new quilters. She talks about her involvement in volunteer work and other projects, as well as quilting groups. [show more]

Subject:Quilts
Quilting
Women
Textiles
Crafts & decorating
Textile artists
Decorative arts
Gifts
Family
Embroidery
Needlework
American women, 1600-1900
Musicians
Artists
Nigeria
United States

Description:Evelyn Salinger interviews Christine Bradford, a quilter a seamstress, for the Quilters' S.O.S. Oral History Project. Bradford first talks about the quilt she brought in for the interview, which is inspired by her enjoyment of Starbucks' caramel macchiato drink. She then talks about her first experiences with quilting, including quilters in her family and how she learned to sew as a young girl. She talks about different aspects of quilting, including sewing groups, designing quilt patterns, and her preference of contemporary designs over traditional designs. She tells Salinger about quilts she has created as commissioned pieces. Bradford talks about the impact of quilting on her family life and why she does not enter her quilts into shows, since most of her quilts are personal creations for family members. She discusses quilting's impact on American women, gives advice to new quilters, and discusses other aspects of quilting which impact her life. [show more]

Subject:Quilting shops
Quilts.
Quilting.
Sewing machines.

Description:Whitaker discusses her involvement in quilting. In particular, she discusses why she became involved with long arm quilting as a style. She notes how she develops patterns and ideas with her clients, as well as where her quilts have gone following their completion. [show more]

Subject:Quilts
Quilting
Quiltmakers
Quiltmakers--United States
Textile fabrics
Art quilts
Arts and crafts

Description:DeSoto talks about the quilt she brought to the interview, its inspiration, and the materials and techniques she used. She talks about the quilting groups she belongs to as well as how quilting first interested her. DeSoto talks about the quilting classes she took, some of the quilters whose work she particularly is drawn to, and how her family reacts to her quilting. She talks about her creative process, what inspires her, and comments on quilting as an art or a craft. DeSoto talks about her involvement in the Healing Quilts In Medicine project, artist statements, and the great connection quilters have with one another. DeSoto talks about how quilting can reflect her community and why quilting is so important to her. DeSoto wraps up the interview by discussing how positive women coming together to make quilts is, and the positive impact it has had on women throughout history. [show more]

Subject:Quilts
Quilting
Quiltmakers
Quilts--United States
Quilting--United States
Quiltmakers--United States
Applique--Patterns
Decorative arts
Quilting shops
Quilts--Design
Appliqué.
Textile crafts.

Description:Carole Nicholas talks about her "Under Sea Gardens Quilt," why she quilted it, the techniques she used, and where it is now. She talks about her unique quilting origins and her membership in quilting groups. Nicholas talks about her home studio and what her family thinks about her quilting. She discusses the difference between artists and quiltmakers, as well as some advice for quilters starting out. Nicholas talks about her favorite quiltmakers and her favorite quilting techniques. She talks about why quiltmaking is important to her and what makes quilts artistically powerful. She talks about what she wants her legacy to be, as well as how her travels around the world have influenced her quilting. Nicholas wraps up her interview by talking about her lectures and the theme quilts she is making with her quilting group, Fiber Artists @ Loose Ends [show more]

Subject:Quiltmakers
Patchwork quilts
Sewing
Quilting
Quilting shops
Sewing machines
Quilting--Patterns
Quilting--Periodicals

Description:Judy Murrah was the director of education for the International Quilt Festival. She talks about how she learned to sew as a child, and how she taught herself how to quilt as a young adult. She became known for her books on wearables (quilted fashion pieces). Murrah talks about how her family supports her work, but she does not like when deadlines take her away from her family. She describes her relationship with Karey Bresenhan who got her into teaching and the quilting culture. [show more]

Subject:Quilts.
Quilting.
Quilts--United States--History--20th century--Exhibitions.
Quilts--Design.
Quilting arts workshop
Quilts--United States--History--20th century.
Quilting--United States--Patterns.
Appliqué--Patterns.

Description:Ferguson discusses her interest in quilting through her mother-in-law, as well as balancing quilting as a mother of three children. She describes the two quilts that she brought to the Quilt Festival Houston. She talks about how quilting has helped her become an American and become acquainted with American culture. [show more]

Subject:Fabrics
Fabric arts
Families
Quilts
Quilting
Textiles
Textile artists
Decorative arts
Crafts & decorating
Women
Women's history
Women’s voices
Sewing
Arts & crafts
Communities
Physicians
Great Britain

Description:Jana Hawley interviews Margaret Docherty, a quilter from Durham, England. She talks about the quilt which she has brought for the interview, the prize-winning "Little Brown Birds" applique quilt. She talks about her personal life and quilting, including how she began quilting, how quilting impacts her family life, and how she uses quilting to relax from the stress of her job as a physician. She also discusses cultural aspects of quilting, such as quilting's impact on women's history, the quilting tradition of the United Kingdom, and the future of needle arts and quilting. Docherty talks about technical aspects of quilting, including her favorite quilting techniques, how she creates her quilting designs, and the style of quilts she creates. [show more]

Subject:Quilts.
Arts and crafts.
Quilting.
Quilts in art
Quilts--Design.
Sewing machines.
Textiles.

Description:England is a quilter whose pictorial quilt was named in the 20th Century's Best American Quilts. She then began to teach and create patterns, which blossomed into her own business.

Subject:Quilts
Quilters
Quilts--Design.
Fabrics
Fabric arts
Textiles
Textile artists
Decorative arts
Crafts & decorating
Women
Artists
Sewing
Sewing machines
Families
Arts & crafts

Description:Phyllis J. Harris interviews Irma Gail Hatcher, an award-winning quilter at the Quilt Festival in Houston, Texas. Hatcher's quilt, "Conway Album", was included in the 100 Best American Quilts of the 20th Century collection. In the interview, Hatcher discusses several of her quilts, including 2 quilts she created for her twin granddaughters. She discusses technical aspects of quilting, including how she creates her designs, the techniques she uses to create her quilts, and her design inspirations. She talks about the personal side of quilting, such as the qualities of a great quilter and quilt, and her career as a quilt teacher. She discusses her family and how her quilting impacts their lives. [show more]

Subject:Arts and crafts
Quilting.
Quiltmakers--United States.
Appliqué--Patterns.
Artists
Arts and crafts.
Quilts--United States--Exhibitions.

Description:Helen Kelley talks about her "Grandma Kelley Quilts" and being included in the "100 Best Quilters of the Century." She discusses the joy she gets from quilting and where she gets her inspiration from.

Subject:Quilts.
Quilting.
African American folk art.
Quilts--Design.
African American quilts.
Quilting arts workshop
Quilts--United States--History--20th century.
Quilting--United States--Patterns.

Description:Clark discusses her career in crafting quilted clothing. She notes her early experiences with quilting, as well as her transition from producing bed quilts to working with quilted clothing. She talks about how she uses her quilted clothing to comment on contemporary social or political questions, as well as discuss some of the quilters and works she admires most. [show more]

Subject:Quilts.
Quilting arts workshop
Quiltmakers.
Quilting.
Quilt Expo
Quilts in art
Quilts--Design.
Quilting--United States--Patterns.
Textiles.
Arts and crafts.

Description:Roberts is an art quilter. She creates quilts that play with depth perception, which is something she lacks. Her quilts are very contemporary and unique. She uses quilting as a way to deal with depression. She teaches design at a junior college where she lives, and she occasionally teaches quilting. [show more]

Subject:Quilts
Quilting
Textiles
Textile artists
Artists
Arts & crafts
Art--Commissioning
Quilts--Design
Fabrics
Fabric arts
Creativity
Male quiltmakers
Quilting today
Craft and art
Decorative arts
Crafts & decorating

Description:Rebecca Salinger interviews Judy Mathieson, an award-winning quilter and teacher, about her life and career in quilting. Mathieson discusses her signature traditional quilt design, the "mariner's compass" design. She talks about how she creates her quilts and what inspires her, particularly the textiles she works with and the other traditional designs she uses in her quilts. Mathieson also discusses the quilting industry, including her feelings on male quiltmakers, how quilting impacts the lives of women, and the expressive qualities of quilt making. As a licensed quilt judge, Mathieson talks about what she looks for when judging a quilt, as well as the qualities of a great quilter and quilt. Mathieson discusses her future in quilting with the interviewer, her plans for future quilts, and any advice she has for quilters. [show more]

Subject:Quilts
Quilting
Textiles
Textile artists
Decorative arts
Crafts & decorating
Women
Women’s voices
Artists
Families
American women, 1600-1900
Teachers
Gifts
Creativity

Description:Terrie Newman, a quilting teacher and quilter, is interviewed for the Quilters' S.O.S. Oral History Project. Newman talks about the quilt she brought in for the interview, entitled "Sentimental Me." She discusses the technical aspects of quilting, including hand quilting techniques, the use of photo transfers, and creating her own quilt designs. Newman also talks about the personal aspects of quilting, including how she got started in quilting, her career as a quilting teacher, and the inspirations behind the quilts she creates. Newman touches on the cultural aspects of quilting, such as the impact of quilting on American history, the various quilting guilds she participates in, and her quilt collection. [show more]

Subject:Quiltmakers
Quilting
Portraits on quilts
Machine quilting
Quilting shops
African American quilts
Art commissions
Art--Commissioning
Appliqué

Description:Pauline Salzman describes the quilted wall-hanging that she brought to the show and how she wants to redo aspects of it. She reflects on gender issues in quilting. For her, a good quilt must tell a story and be technically sound.

Subject:Fabrics
Fabric arts
Quilts--Design.
Quilts
Quilting
Textiles
Textile artists
Decorative arts
Crafts & decorating
Women
Artists
Sewing
Arts & crafts
Families
Women's history
American women, 1600-1900
Textile museums

Description:Toni Baumgard, a quilter, is interviewed by Renee Jackson for the Quilters’ S.O.S. Oral History Project. Baumgard talks about the quilt she brought in for the interview, an antique redwork quilt created by a German-American woman in 1913 in Pennsylvania. She discusses the pattern of the quilt and what the symbols mean on the quilt. Baumgard then talks about her own interest in historic quilts, particularly redwork quilts, as she does lectures about redwork. She also talks about her work as a textile preservationist, an interest she had from childhood. She also became interested in quilting during her childhood, as her grandmother was a frequent quilter. Baumgard talks about her personal opinions about quilting, including what makes a great quilt, why quilts are important to women’s and American histories, and how quilts are important to her personal life. She discusses the importance of preserving quilts and teaching future generations how to quilt. Baumgard talks about how she uses her quilt collection and how she gives away the quilts she makes, believing quilts have a wide variety of uses beyond only decoration or utilitarian purposes. [show more]

Subject:Quilts--United States--Exhibitions.
Quilts in art
Quilts--Design.

Description:Joyce Starr Johnson talks about how her quilting is inspired by and affects her family. She discusses the value of an unfinished quilt, and for her, the use of a quilt is more important than preserving it.

Subject:Quiltmakers
Sewing
Quilting--Patterns
Quilting
Appliqué--Patterns
Quilting shops
Machine quilting
Quilting--Periodicals
Quilting--United States--Patterns
Quilting--Vocational guidance

Description:Pepper Cory is a professional quilter. She relates how she started quilting, and how she makes her living within the quilting world. She describes her work space in her studio, as well as her process for selecting fabrics and creating the quilts. She talks about the importance of the International Quilt Festival and other cultural and business moments for that world. [show more]

Subject:Quilting--Patterns
Quilts--Design.
Textile designers
Quilters
Quilting.
Quiltmakers
Quiltmaking
Quiltmaking process
Quiltmaking purpose
Quilts
Art quilts

Description:Kaffe Fassett designs fabrics used for quilting. He describes a quilt he chose to bring for the interview because, unlike the vast majority of his quilts, he sewed it himself. He is known for designing quilt patterns and fabric; his quilts are usually sewn by Liza Prior Lucy, for demonstration or publication purposes. In 1995, Liza Lucy encouraged Fassett to start designing quilts and fabrics based on his noted knitting designs. The first textile artist to have an exhibition at the Victoria and Albert Museum, Fassett feels personally rewarded by how the art quilt world has embraced his fabrics and quilt designs. Fassett does multiple crafts, although knitting is still a major part of his life. He designed his first striped fabric by first knitting a sample, which was then handwoven in India. The production of these fabrics by handweavers has had a beneficial economic impact for their villages. He paints his designs on fabric, which is then produced into yardage that can be cut up and re-assembled in patchwork. He generally designs one or two fabric collections a year. [show more]

Subject:Quilts
Quilting
Quilting purpose
African American quilts
African American quiltmakers
African Americans--Social conditions
Male quiltmakers
African American quilts--West African influences

Description:Roy Mitchell, Jr. says that he is a collector of Black memorabilia. As he studied Black culture, he began to wonder why Black people were always negatively correlated with watermelon. In response, Mitchell created the quilt "Watermelun Babies" to portray a more positive linkage between watermelon and Black people. Mitchell says that the "Watermelun Babies" quilt has been used in the National Quilters Association show. He says that the "Watermelun Babies" quilt is traveling to multiple shows, whereas the smaller quilt has been used in school systems to teach kids about negative stigmas and how to make them positive. Mitchell says that a friend of his introduced him to quilting when he needed to find an outlet for stress relief. His method of stitching is couching, a hand piecing practice. Mitchell gives insight into how he ended up joining the King of Quilts. He describes his quilting studio. Mitchell says he travels to Africa every year and stays for a month. During his first-ever visit, he was fascinated by the African tie-dyeing method called "batik" and was inspired to create his own designs. Learning the technique is the biggest challenge to quilt makers, Mitchell claims. Mitchell says he wants to be remembered for not being afraid of a challenge and being a male quilter in a female-dominated area. [show more]