(Anonymous, Grave Rubbing Art Quilt Series. 49" x 47". Crayon grave rubbing on 1930s child's slip collaged with scraps of vintage household linens on old drawn-work tablecloth. Hand and free-motion machine embroidery. Click on image to enlarge.)
(Above: Anonymous, detail. Click on image to enlarge.)
This piece developed slowly. My stash of vintage household linens had grown too large but I couldn't part with any of the pieces ... even the stained or damaged ones. Someone had stitched these tea towels, pillowcases, table runners, and napkins. I cherished them. While visiting Elmwood Cemetery (which is only three blocks from my house), I noticed the tombstone erected in memory of unknown family members. There seemed to be a connection between the anonymous stitches and the almost forgotten burial site. The 1930s era child's slip sealed the mental design ... my vision for this work. I bought the slip in a "table lot" at Bill Mishoes' auction. The grave rubbing was made last Easter morning. The quilt was designed earlier this summer.
(Above: Anonymous, detail. Click on image to enlarge.)
In a July blog entry, I posted the photo above. This is the atrium area at Gallery 80808/Vista Studios. (My studio is directly behind the wall in the back). At that time I wrote:
I had my last studio assistant snip a pile of linens apart ... filling the box with just the sections containing stitches. The background is a damaged, vintage tablecloth. The "batting" is a piece of recycled acrylic felt ... from a outdoors shop ... once packaging material for a kayak on its way from the manufacturer to the local distributor. I clipped and arranged all these pretty embellishments around the garment. Then I pinned it. Now I'll have to baste it because I can't stand that many pins while I'm working. Plus ... this is the piece I planned on taking to Hot Springs National Park for my one month residency in August. It seems like a perfect way to show the legacy of remembrance in stitches, my grave rubbing art quilt series, and also talk about the women who would have come in the heyday of the springs ... bringing their crazy quilts and embroidery with them for the healing experience of the hot waters.
(Above: Anonymous, detail. Click on image to enlarge.)
It took an entire day to baste this piece, and the work really was perfect for stitching in public while at Hot Springs National Park. People loved touching it and remembering the fabrics from their childhood. Between the central section and the edge, I plied dense running stitches ... consciously aware that this form of quilting is directly related to early West Bengal and Bangladesh kantha. Women layered their worn saris and stitched light blankets and other household textiles via the running stitch. It was a perfect thing to do while riding back from Arkansas and in the evenings in front of the television!
(Above: Anonymous, detail. Click on image to enlarge.)
After countless hours, the front was finished. The reverse was made of other vintage household linens. The edge is blanket stitched. I'm very, very happy with this piece. For me, it bridges history and it perfectly blends "traditional" with "contemporary" ... a modern art quilt made of 100% recycled fabric that sings of yesteryear without losing a present day viewpoint.
(Above: Anonymous, reverse. Click on image to enlarge.)
