After a trip to the dentist yesterday (no problems, thanks to my obsessive flossing!), I treated myself to a visit to London’s Victoria & Albert Museum. I wanted to see their new exhibition of British quilts from 1700 – 2010.
Now I doubt I will ever be a quilter. The sheer intricacy, planning and skill required would beat me, I think. But there’s something about quilts that is expressive of something deep and enduring.
The exhibition was divided into several parts, from the domestic skill of creating quilts for warmth to modern art quilts. There were several illustrating rites of passage, such as wedding celebrations.
Even in early days, quilts were used as political commentary. In the 18th century, women stitched household quilts bearing pictures representing particular causes. Modern art quilts are more overt in their politics. One in the exhibition looks at first glance like classic toile de jouy fabric; when you look closely, the figures are homeless people. Another, all feminine pastel colours, is made up of little advertisements for how women can improve their housekeeping.
The most moving to me was a quilt by Michele Walker called Memoriam. Made to commemorate her mother’s slow decline and death from Alzheimer’s disease, it takes the starting point of quilt as comfort and subverts it, using wire wool and plastic. There are twisted strands of wire wool all around the edge of the quilt, representing the way Walker’s mother used to twist her hair hopelessly and endlessly. There’s a long discussion of the quilt as keepsake of identity here.
But of course these named artists’ quilts are very new. Mostly, quilts were stitched by ordinary people whose names we’ll never know. One thing that struck me about this anonymity is its similarity with monastic history. We have no idea of the names of those individual monks who created illuminated manuscripts, just as we don’t know the names of the individual housewives who stitched these objects of comfort and beauty.
I rather like that. As we enter Holy Week, the work of all those anonymous people is like building blocks of history, reaching out to us.
Image: “At the end of the day” by Natasha Kerr
Elsewhere:
Well of course my link today can only be to the acrylic quilt at Mind Sieve’s Capture.
{ 7 comments… read them below or add one }
Tess, what a wonderful time to spend looking at quilts! I love them too. I used to quilt years ago and so have a great appreciation for the time and effort put into one.
As for anonymity, I always think of how the stone masons and builders of the great Cathedrals all worked without fanfare as well. They worked for the glory of God, and quilters work for the glory of their art. Monks too worked for the glory of God as they created those magnificent manuscripts. we might learn a little something if we were more concerned with the higher goal, rather than our own glory.
Great post. I’m trying to get back into blogging a bit, but am not having much success! It will come in time. Good to connect with you again!
I forgot to add that in all Amish quilts there is one mistake that is made on purpose as they believe only God’s works can be perfect. I found that an interesting tidbit….and the story about the stonemason who was crafting a beautiful bird way up high in the cathedral in a place no one would see it. When asked why he was doing that, why was he wasting time creating something so exquisite that no one would see, he replied, “God will see it”.
diantha, good to hear from you again. You’re absolutely right about the stone masons. And so many others, including ordinary mothers and fathers who did their best for their children, working without fanfare.
I love the story about Amish quilts, and the stonemason’s bird. There’s something really important, I think, in this creation of beauty that can’t be seen by our eyes.
As I read and re-read your post, Tess, what comes to my mind are those beautiful churches and cathedrals all over Europe who are only remembered by the name of the town where they happen to have been built. We would have to make an in-depth research to know the name of the bishop who started it. As to the architect, the masons, the stone-cutters… all these names have vanished through the ages.
The beauty of their works remain with us, forever nameless…
Drawing the similarity of quilting to those who build history ~ clever, and beautiful. The atomic structure of history is based in anonymity. It occurs to me that history does not complete itself simply with the record of the winners, the powerful, but also all those dropped threads which we can only imagine.
And, a lovely meditation you posted for Good Friday.
Claire, Roxanne, thank you. since writing this post I’ve been reading a book of meditations called They Speak by Silences, by a member of the Carthusian order. We don’t know his name, they were published anonymously and I think that’s part of their beauty
And Roxanne, “dropped threads” what a wonderful image.
Ah, friend, I’m so happy you had the opportunity to see these amazing quilts! Most quilt tops are the result of one person’s imagination and creative choices and that’s what excites me.
The long pull I had towards quilts lead me to learn to quilt almost 18 years ago. I promise you there are easy quilt patterns and no one is ever required to do the complex patterns. None of my quilts are complex but they’re each one of a kind.
Anonymity makes for wonderful mystery in the larger sense, but for some frustration in the personal, small sense. I have several family quilts that are nameless and I so wish I knew who made each one. Where did my love for quilts come from? My quilts have labels so if anyone wants to know, the information is there.
Hugs!