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Quick and Quilty
Listed under: Interviews
Published: Tuesday, October 02, 2007
Will modern quilt designers ever patch it up with fans of the traditional? The future of the industry depends on it says designer Barbara Paul.
Modern twists in quiltmaking are forcing the industry into a divide as crafters form their opinions on the innovative and unusual designs by a new crafting generation. Yet quilt designer Barbara Paul believes that the introduction of the unconventional doesn't have to mean the death of the traditional.
“There's a big debate at the moment on the subject of art quilts, which use traditional patchwork quilt ideas but without necessarily using neat geometric shapes,” explains Barbara. “They also use the most bright, vibrant, strident and energising colours and usually work to a theme. They are very different from traditional quilts and have raised the old question 'what is art?' Some in the industry argue that we need to hang on to quilting traditions while others believe the craft needs to develop in order to survive. Personally, I sit in the middle and think there is room for both.
“Another change I've noticed is that people are doing machine quilting a lot more, there's quite a debate about that too. I like hand-quilting better though; only because I'm more skilled at it. Friends show me what they have accomplished on the machine and I think there's no way I could do that!” she laughs.
Barbara, who sells her quilts online as well as passing on her skills in workshops for those undergoing mental therapies, says a new generation with fresh ideas is essential for the continuation of the industry. “If you go to a quilting meeting, you find a lot of quilters in the older generation but there is definitely a younger group coming through,” notices Barbara. “Younger quilters tend to be a lot more freer with the craft and they tend to do projects which are relatively quick to do. I think their use of colour is amazing. I think this is great because without a new generation to take over, the craft is very much in danger of dying out,” she adds.
“There's a big debate at the moment on the subject of art quilts, which use traditional patchwork quilt ideas but without necessarily using neat geometric shapes,” explains Barbara. “They also use the most bright, vibrant, strident and energising colours and usually work to a theme. They are very different from traditional quilts and have raised the old question 'what is art?' Some in the industry argue that we need to hang on to quilting traditions while others believe the craft needs to develop in order to survive. Personally, I sit in the middle and think there is room for both.
“Another change I've noticed is that people are doing machine quilting a lot more, there's quite a debate about that too. I like hand-quilting better though; only because I'm more skilled at it. Friends show me what they have accomplished on the machine and I think there's no way I could do that!” she laughs.
Barbara, who sells her quilts online as well as passing on her skills in workshops for those undergoing mental therapies, says a new generation with fresh ideas is essential for the continuation of the industry. “If you go to a quilting meeting, you find a lot of quilters in the older generation but there is definitely a younger group coming through,” notices Barbara. “Younger quilters tend to be a lot more freer with the craft and they tend to do projects which are relatively quick to do. I think their use of colour is amazing. I think this is great because without a new generation to take over, the craft is very much in danger of dying out,” she adds.
