Quilt Show at Pasedena Museum of History (1 of 2)

The Pasedena Museum of History is featuring a quilt show, Community Stitches: Quilt Designs & Stories, now through September. This is a relatively small collection of quilts displayed in two rooms. But the show contains several lovely examples of techniques and trends from an historic perspective. I thought I'd share some of my favorites. 

First there were several crazy quilts on display. This was a quilting trend that was very popular in the late 1800's, the height of the Victorian era. The crazy quilt phenomenon feels like the precursor to the very popular "improv" trend in modern quilting right now, with its random shapes and unstructured design.

Once again it is fascinating to see "variations on a theme" displayed in the same show. Though we may not always be able to identify the creators of these crazy quilts, their individualities can't help but emerge in their work.

The random shapes in each of the blocks of my first example are obviously placed on a traditional grid. This can be seen even in these detail photos because the blocks have been outlined in decorative stitching. Open spaces were expertly decorated with embroidery work in a floral theme. Just gorgeous! (Sorry I didn't get a full pic of this one.) 

For this second quilt the gridding is less obvious, perhaps because there are more pieces in each block and the center circle hovers over the gridding. 

Check out the amazing workmanship of this unidentified creator:  

This quilt from 1917 is attributed to Elsie Giddings Royce. Her work incorporated souvenir silk ribbons from the 1854 Grand Exhibition in England and it is hard to discern how the quilt was pieced together. The yellow interspersed within the composition brightens the surface and gives it a very modern sensibility. 

Carrie Ann Stocks, created this quilt, which features rich tones, a wide variety of fabric textures, and several different embellishment techniques.

This detail shows that painting images on fabric is not a "new" technique. (For example, note the drawing of a pipe on the cream diamond shape at the center.) 

And this charming three dimensional umbrella in the upper left corner hints at the whimsical nature of its creator as well as the proclivity to experiment and push the boundaries of her medium.

As with all artistic forms, quilters build on what came before them. These early quilts set the stage for more contemporary examples of innovation and skill in this show. . .