Interesting Question from South African Quilt Judge AND Responses
Hi Pat,
I am a quilt judge in South Africa doing research on copyright, and I found your article re: the Dear Jane (quilt) very helpful.
Another aspect, besides selling a replica like that, is the matter of entry into a quilt competition. What would be your take on that? Should that be allowed? I get many questions here from quilters who gets annoyed if they buy a pattern and are not allowed to enter that quilt into a competition. And then, old patterns in public domain comes to mind …
Your response would be greatly appreciated.
Kind regards,
Trienie
Dear Trienie,
First of all, thanks for your note. The main question you seem to have is where it is ok to take a copyrighted pattern and enter a quilt made from it, into a quilt show. The Dear Jane quilt, if copyrighted to anyone, would have been solely and exclusively copyrighted to the person who originally made it, during the Civil War. The author of the book has merely copyrighted “her” instructions for replicating the quilt, an equally legitimate thing to do. In addition, she trademarked the name, “Dear Jane.”
To switch gears a little bit, for the life of me, I am not sure why some designers want to make patterns of their own devising, and sell those same patterns, putting restrictions on how that pattern can be used. Honestly, I have never seen a designer forbid anyone from entering competitions using their design, if credit is given. Perhaps, that is the crux of the matter, right there. EVERYONE, including me, and probably, including you, would like to get credit for what they know, what they do, and the knowledge they have gained via hard work.
The machine quilters who do quilting with a long arm machine have been demanding that their name be added to show entries, for a long time. Without their work, there would not be a finished quilt, and that seems reasonable that they get credit. But, where do we stop? Should we also credit every fabric manufacturer, for every fabric we have used. How about thread? How about batting? We could have a HUGE provenance label on the back of the quilt, giving credit to everyone, including the mother who birthed us!
As a judge, I would be very crestfallen, if I were to find a show where ten quilts of the same design, and the same coloration were hanging, each ready to be judged. This happens, mostly because a traveling teacher has just been to a guild within the previous year, and members think that their quilt will be the only finished one in the show. Is that wrong? If so, I believe that a statement to that effect should be included in the show’s rules.
I don’t mean to sound like a quilt snob, because I am not, but I value unique creativity. That is number one, with me. After that, comes fine and precise workmanship, whether the quilt was made by hand, or by machine. Does the finished piece hang evenly? Are the edges sturdy, and the edge finish appropriate to the piece? How is the scale? and the balance of elements? How well did the quilter do in piecing, or in appliqué, or hand quilting?
Does the quilt “sing” on its own, or does it have to be explained? A quilt show that represents beginning quilters is a far different venue than an international venue. Let me say this: in a sense, I “judged” an international show, insofar as I chose the quilts I liked the best, had my husband photograph them, and sent an article off in the mail, to be published in an international magazine. There are all sorts of judges, including your peers, and the people who pay to see a show.
That said, I believe that it is ok to copy teachers (designers) when someone is learning. It is equally ok to use traditional quilt patterns at any time. Try to make the design “your own.” In other words, if you see a traditional pattern in a book, and want to use the templates provided, try to think up an equally pleasing color palette as the one you provided in the publication. “Tradition with a twist” is a nice concept.
We all learn by emulating. We grow and expand our horizons by trying new techniques in quilting.
Take the time to look at the back of any pattern you purchase. If the wording seems unfriendly, leave it on the shelf. You wouldn’t want the quilt police coming after you, if you make six quilts from the same pattern and the designer says you can only make five. (By the way, who would want to make five or six quilts of the same design? Boring!) It seems to me that a few designers want the money they get from selling a pattern, but would prefer that you never used it to make anything! LOL
Copyright, or the “right to copy” has many people uptight, and in some cases, acting downright silly! If you, personally, make a quilt and you are afraid it might be copied, hide it in your closet or bury it. Women have copied from other women forever, maybe changing something about the quilt just a bit. Once a quilt is made, it is done. Move on! I should think it a compliment if someone thought a quilt I made to be so marvelous that they wanted to copy it.
However, here comes the rub. Designers would frown upon someone taking their design (their baby, as it were), and making prize money from it. After all, they have invested their time, and time is money. They have put a lot of their life into developing something really nice, and most would resent that situation.
What it comes down to is the type of show we are considering. Local shows tend to feature more work of beginners and possibly intermediate quilters, and in New England, at least, there tend to be many (grandmother/great grandmother) quilts, pulled from wherever they’ve been kept for years. I think that I prefer to attend quilt shows that are not judged! I suppose ribbons and prize money are important to some people, but apparently, not to me, as I never enter shows!
The whole issue of rights, these days, has become a contentious one. This has happened mainly because some people think that lawsuits are an easy way to make money, and/or to prove that their “rights” have been infringed. One would expect quilters to be “nice” people, but some are as ruthless and cut-throat as in any other “business,” particularly businesses that involve women.
Yes, I have lots of ideas on the subject because I am a thinking person who has little else to do, but to read, study, write, and when I am lucky, do needlework and quilt. Your questions will not be solved, or go away, soon. As a quilt judge, perhaps you can encourage the people in your area to be as spontaneously creative as they can be, and to learn the rudimentary elements of good quilting. Then, they can enter their quilts into a show, with pride, and for the right reasons: to inspire others, and to prove their own worth as quilters.
In the words of the song sung by folksinger, Bill Staines, “All God’s Critters Got A Place In The Choir.” Encourage beginners to enter shows. It is only through the judge’s comments that some will learn. While I would not be tempted to give top prize to a quilt that represents one of thousands of others, just the same, designed by the same designer, I would certainly enjoy seeing the (designer), quilt and as a judge, would provide some encouraging words. (We can always find something nice to say about any quilt!). You bring up some questions that are more complex than you realize. I hope that some of my ideas have helped. Good luck with all that you do, for, and with, the quilters of South Africa!
Patricia Cummings
Quilter’s Muse Publications
http://www.quiltersmuse.com/shelburne_farms.htm – a view of a show that I was asked to help judge and beautiful photos of Vermont!
Answer to Patricia’s response:
Pat,
I am thankful for your response and do appreciate that you took time to answer me. I enjoyed your blog very much!
I totally agree with your views, and I also realize that we cannot sort out all the “problems” that we encounter when judging or organizing a quilt show; it is an ongoing process.
We had our National Quilt Festival in September 2008. I was the Judging portfolio holder on the organizing committee. We had three of our best Judges working in a team at the show, and all three Jurors are also accredited Judges in our country.
Our South African Quilters Guild’s rules and regulations for National Festivals stipulate that replicas, quilts made from commercial patterns or kits, or quilts made in workshops under the watchful eye of a teacher are not to be entered.
We also have the “Dear Jane” frenzy here in South Africa, but according to our rules it cannot be entered in the judged competition. We had a separate section where we displayed about 15 of them, without judging them.
The quilt that won 1st prize in the Traditional Category was “inspired by…….” a quilt in Australian Patchwork magazine, the credit was given, but the judges have not seen the magazine. The quilt was actually awarded 2nd (prize), but the first quilt moved up to “Best of Show”, thus allowing this one to move up to 1st place.
Some quilters complained that the quilt was not original.
As part of my training for Judging, I did extensive research on copyright and how it affects quilters, therefore these questions get passed on to me!! I have tried to read as many as possible rules for competitions from other quilt shows (big and small) but find little to be said on this. Maybe our rules are too restrictive, and then I have to make a suggestion to SAQG regarding that, but I can only do it once I know where we stand in relation to other shows or quilt organizing bodies re: their rules and regulations.
One thing we will do in future is to ask for a picture of the “inspiration” of an entry if applicable (which immediately brings up things like quilters then having to photocopy a page from a magazine if the inspiration comes from a magazine!)
This all goes to show that the issue is complex, just like you say, and the problems will not go away. As someone who holds quilting dearly, and surely wants to encourage quilters, we also want to be fair to designers, and I have to keep looking for answers!
I am the guest speaker at the Outenique Quilters Guild next week, and have to address this issue. You have given me valuable input.
Thank you once again.
Trienie Krugel
