quiltersmuse.com Blog

Press Release
July 1, 2007
Susan Plump

Woodstock, Vermont…Billings Farm & Museum, gateway to Vermont’s rural heritage, will host its 21st Annual Quilt Exhibition from August 4 – September 23. Extended through late September this year, the exhibit will feature more than 50 quilts made by today’s quilters of Windsor County, plus quilting activities and demonstrations for all ages.

A variety of challenge quilts will also be exhibited. Something You Like, using blue and green fabrics, is the theme of The Delectable Mountain Quilters challenge. A challenge requires certain design and construction rules agreed upon by the guild members to increase their quilting skills, while they enjoy comparing results. There will be two quilting bees held by Upper Valley quilting guilds during the Quilt Exhibition.

Quilts have been a part of American rural life for over 300 years. They are colorful testimony to the fact that farm life, while sometimes austere, held celebration. The women who settled in Vermont during the late 18th century brought with them the hand skills, thrift, imagination, and traditional designs which would develop into a peculiarly American art form: the patchwork quilt.

Today’s Vermont quilters carry on a continuing and evolving tradition. Much of the contemporary work of Windsor County quilters is composed of patterns handed down from earlier generations and executed by hand; some adapt the traditional craft to more modern expressions and materials. All require skill, patience, and imagination.

Admission to Billings farm & Museum’s 21st Annual Quilt Exhibition includes the working dairy farm, orientation and farm life exhibits, the restored and furnished 1890 Farm House, plus daily programs and activities.

The Billings Farm & Museum is owned and operated by The Woodstock Foundation Inc., a charitable non-profit institution founded by Mary French and Laurance Spelman Rockefeller. For further information: (802) 457-2355 or www.billingsfarm.org

Billings Farm is a working Jersey dairy farm that continues a century-long tradition of agricultural excellence and offers farm programs and historical exhibits that explore Vermont’s rural heritage and values. Since opening to the public in 1983, the Farm & Museum has served as a gateway to Vermont’s rural heritage for over a million visitors and 100,000 of the region’s school children. Open daily through October 31, 100:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m. and weekends. November – February. Admission: adults: $10.00; over 62: $9.00; students (13-17): $8.00; children (5-12): $6.00; (3-4): $3.00; under 3: free. The Farm & Museum is located one-half mile north of the Woodstock village green on Vermont Route 12.

The phenomena has always been with us. We have the artists, and we have the art critics. We have the quilters, and we have the art quilters (never the twain shall meet, according to some). Then, we have the quilt historians, who attempt to assess quilts and place them within a context. Many of those individuals are NOT quilters, or have made only a feeble stab at learning to quilt. In summary, there are those who do the actual work of creating something, (quilts), for others to either appreciate, or to denigrate, as suits them.

When is a quilt to be considered art? “Art is in the eye of the beholder,” or so it is said. However, “art” is also in the intention of the quilter.

Today, many people, especially baby-boomers who have wanted a change of direction in their lives, have left former occupations, for both medical and mental health reasons. They have sought creative outlets, and they have found that quilting is a good venue for self-expression. Quilting can garner a few sheckles, too, besides getting these folks noticed via various showings of their work in galleries, etc.

Today’s “so-called” art quilters approach quilting from varying viewpoints, and on a number of levels, but usually need a quick turn-around time for finishing a piece because they want to sell it. This sometimes results in poor workmanship. Mostly, it seems that people who tag themselves with the name of “art quilter” do not often take the time to solidly learn the basics of traditionally acceptable quilting practices. Their goal is mainly to express themselves.

One cannot generalize about a large group of people, with any certainty, but it does appear that they engage in quilting as a way to share their feelings about life’s challenges, disappointments, joys, discoveries, as well as their angst and anger at situations in which they have been victimized: incest, partner abuse, and more. No one shoe will fit all, and I am sure that no person, art quilter or not, would like to be summarily lumped into a category. Above all, they are individuals.

Each person has his/her own reason for making a quilt.

Personally, I am both an artist and a crafter. My early experiences were as an oil painter and needleworker. My formal art training is in art history, not studio art. My certification is as a “master craftsman in quilting.” That means that I learned how to do all types of quilting and embroidery and was able to prove my proficiency in quilting techniques by passing a series of tests. I am happy that I signed up for the national testing program, and I am happy that I now know how to do many needlework techniques, as a result of the motivation the program instilled in me, to learn on my own.

When I made a baby quilt recently, I considered myself a technician, a “crafter,” not because I used anyone else’s design but rather because of the simplicity of the design, (squares), and because I chose to quickly finish the quilt by machine quilting it.

On the other hand, when I design every facet of a quilt, from my own imagination, choosing the shapes, the colors, and the choice of materials, such as I did when I made a wall quilt titled, “On Windy Whispers,” then I consider myself to be quite “artistic,” and furthermore, I think of myself as an “artist.” At that point, it matters not what anyone else thinks of my completed work.

“On Windy Whispers” designed by Pat Cummings

I tend to think of ugly quilts as non-artistic. They show a lack of understanding of how color concepts work. When I see a quilt that is poorly pieced, or poorly quilted, I think – “What a shame that the quilter didn’t know better.” However, I have met quilters who have told me that they slap their quilts together and don’t give a care – the quilts are just made for warmth and that is that.

From what I have seen of antique quilts, I have to guess that an idea like that was more prevalent than we might realize because when we look at old quilts in books and magazines, we are viewing the pristine ones, still in fine condition. We are not seeing the ones with the mice holes, the stains, and the chewed up corners from when the dog was having a tizzy from being left alone.

This is a weighty subject, and also one that many people will continue to think about in light of the current Gee’s Bend quilt issues. Are those quilts truly art, or are they craft? I could go on and on because I am so heavily involved in quilting, as both a hobbyist and as a professional. However, your opinion is as good as mine. The important thing is that we all continue to think.
Pat

pat@quiltersmuse.com

The latest news coming out of Alabama is that yet another lawsuit has been filed, this one on behalf of Lucinda Pettway Franklin who is suing Matt Arnett, Gee’s Bend quilts promoter, saying that he took two valuable family quilts, made by slave ancestors, that are worth “as much as $100,000″ each.

If the quilt(s) did exist, or still currently exist, it seems that they should have a stronger sentimental value than a monetary one. At best, appraisal values are subjective and arbitrary, and values are based on the intrinsic quality of the quilt, its materials and condition, who made it, if it’s been published, and comparisons to “sold” price values within any given geographical area. As I have said before, the bottom line is this: A quilt is worth only as much as someone else will pay for it.

Stating that one “thinks” that a quilt is worth a million dollars will not make it so. To exclaim that one has/had an irreplaceable family heirloom is more likely a true statement, but of course that won’t get a huge money settlement in a court of law. Money, here, seems to be the name of the game.

According to the online Press-Register of June 23, 2007, in a story filed by Ben Raines, Staff Reporter, Arnett alternatively told Franklin that the quilts were burnt up in a fire, were on his desk ready to mail to her, were accidentally thrown away, or were lost in a flood.

Someone is being dishonest. Pardon me, but it seems as though someone is engaging in gradations of “untruths.”

The Brass Ring Has Tarnished

From the get-go, the general public cozied up to the idea of celebrating the quilts found in the remote and very impoverished area of Gee’s Bend, Alabama, a town with one main road, in and out, that was not even paved until 1967.

The quilts were given exhibit space at major museum venues in the U.S., including the prestigious Whitney Museum in New York City, thanks to the advocacy and marketing skills of Matt Arnett and his father, William Arnett. The quilters themselves were flown in to attend the gala openings at museums around the country, and by all accounts, they were happy to greet lines of people, sign the various books that have been written about Gee’s Bend Quilts, and talk about their work to “patrons of the arts.”

In recent weeks, the joy of discovery and promotion seems to have dissolved as one lawsuit against the Arnetts has followed another, generated by certain Gee’s Bend quilters. One of the allegations is that the Arnetts broke copyright law in licensing derivative products that contain images of the quilts. Some legal paperwork had been signed by the quilters, however, after the fact, they claimed that since they are illiterate, they did not know what they were signing.

The question remains as to who, if anyone, has been exploited. One figure cited is that the quilters were paid one million dollars for their quilts from money provided by Jane Fonda. I have no way of knowing if that is true, at the moment.

Divisiveness is occurring between the Gee’s Bend quilters. They are reportedly squabbling among themselves over these lawsuits. I would have to wonder if, in the end, the money they gained from their experience did them any good whatsoever, and I also have to wonder if fighting for more money from the Arnetts will help any of the quilters, or their community. It seems that the naivete that made their work so appealing in the first place, has been lost to the Money God.

While the debate is ongoing in certain circles in the quilt world, as to whether or not these quilters really produced “art,” or if we should better call what they did and do a “craft,” this whole situation leaves a bad taste in one’s mouth. For some reason, there is something that just doesn’t seem right about what is going on. I know none of the parties involved, nor am I affiliated with them, and I wish everyone well, knowing full well that in any lawsuit, somebody loses. In this case, in my humble opinion, everyone loses, and that loss will not just be money, but intangibles such as respect, pride, and a sense of well-being.

The attention given these quilts was supposed to have helped to increase the affluence of this little Black community that is dirt poor. Instead, and in spite of some people’s denial of this, there appears to be a certain kind of racism going on, but it is not what you think.

It is a reverse racism in which personal responsibility in signing legal documents is supposed to be overlooked under the guise of, “Oh, well, they are poor and stupid and easily taken advantage of by some slick business person.” As much as we’d like to deny it, racism is alive and well in the South, only this time, “Massa” is the man in the flannel shirt, with the deep pockets.

We do not have all the facts yet. We shall eagerly await the judgment of the courts, on these matters.

Your comments are welcome.

One of our non-pushy plants, a Flowering Quince.
photo by James Cummings/ photo edit by Pat

All I can safely tell you is that our garden areas used to be more organized, or so it seemed. Sometimes, we have made some mistakes, albeit lovely mistakes. One year, we planted Coreopsis, a beautiful, Daisy-like, all-yellow flower. They took over our entire front side yard.

We wanted a different look, so Jim created a garden with bricked pathways, loaded with bark mulch for walking paths. That was a good idea…while it lasted. You see, he was given the gift of Strawberry plants that were to be planted in a high tech plastic bag, to hang. The result was that the plants at the bottom got soaked to death and the ones at the top were barely surviving, so Jim transplanted them. They simply LOVED the area and have now spread as an endless ground cover, spewing over and into the walking paths.

The Tiger Lilies are another affair. There were some of these growing by the fence under a Mulberry tree. The tree was getting dangerous, with heavy branches falling off into our yard and the neighbor’s yard, with each passing storm. So it was cut down, no longer shading the Lilies. We discovered that Lilies LOVE sun. They proliferated and grew taller than ever, and yes, Jim had moved a few of them into the new garden area where they now grow as tall as Sunflowers. Ok, I do exaggerate…but only a little!

Another pushy plant is Blue Salvia. These are a tall variety and spread like wildfire. They are showy when they bloom, but they just “take over!” They overgrew an area where previously there had been Echinacea.

Right now, Purslane weeds are crowding out the carrot seedlings, in the vegetable patch. We will have to replant some seeds, soon. Perennial Sweet Pea plants, are spreading across the yard, and in one case, fighting with the Rugosa Rose neighbors for space. I could go on and on with my descriptions of the territorial warfare going on, right under my nose, in my own yard. Raspberry bushes have invaded the Siberian Iris patch. With all the rain, we simply have not done as much weeding as we normally do. Unwanted grass has turned into strands of hay before our very eyes. Things have gotten ahead of us, but the plants are happy, waging their own little games of warfare.

And, so it goes. These perennial plants will grow here long after I’m six feet under. That is unless this house is turned into an office building for lawyers who then will pave the yard for a parking lot. Suffer the thought! I can’t think about that for too long a time! Guess I’ll go take a walk in the garden and “smell the roses,” while I ponder the similarities between all growing species.
Pat

Charlotte Croft has sent us a very pretty photo of Caspian Lake which is located in the Northeast Kingdom of Vermont. This would be great image for an oil painter to try to recreate. See the reflection of the clouds in the water? Lovely! Wish we were there, too!

photo by Charlotte Croft