Ooops, I did it again

Photography at Shows   (4 of 7)

Maybe a good gauge of what appeals to you is your cell phone (or camera). My photo stream contains quite a lot of favorites from the first show. But I will add that I made sure to completely charge my cell before the second show and it went dead just before we got ready to leave, so…

I would love to be able to post some quilts, but I didn’t think ahead to get contact information in order to ask permission (see footnote). I'll just give you my impressions. My take away from the first show was an emphasis on process and skills. There is some amazing work being done in piecing fabrics (creating the top with the cut fabric in traditional patterns, original designs, or a combination of both) and quilting (the stitching which tacks the top to the batting, or middle, and the backing). This is stuff that inspires one to push the limits of the medium.

By contrast, the focus was on modern or abstract style in the second show. Along with quilts that were purely graphic in design, there were quilts that reflected perspectives on topics such as feminism, political viewpoints, and reactions to current issues and events. Some were extremely simple, perhaps just a word or a phrase. Others were more pictorial, conveying strong sentiments in more of a folk art style. Several examples of these quilts were found in the Youth division, many of which were produced through participation in the Social Justice Sewing Academy out of UC Berkley. This kind of work will make you think beyond the fact that you're standing in front of a collection of fabric pieces. 

(You can get a feel for the work of artists in this program from their Facebook which features some photos of the quilts at Quilt Con- https://www.facebook.com/socialjusticesewingacademy/ or in this collection of Instagram pics- https://www.instagram.com/sjsacademy/?hl=en)

When you stand back to consider the overall impact of these two shows, you get an energized sense of the possibilities of this medium. It makes you want to harness all that inspiration and funnel it into a new project.

Footnote: A photo policy is usually included in a show's program, or, if in doubt, you can flag down a volunteer. In a nut shell, photography for personal use is fine, but the Golden Rule always applies: "Do to others what you want them to do to you." In other words: respect peoples’ work and give credit where credit is due.  (And giving credit where credit is due, the Golden Rule can be found in the Bible- Matthew 7:12 and/or Luke 6:31.)