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WOMEN'S WORK SERIES Women’s Work is a series of paper doll quilts describing the lives of women that I feel have made a substantial contribution to reconfiguring the accepted definition of what is considered “Women’s Work”. These women are women of my grandmother’s and mother’s generations for the most part because they have been trailblazers. Women who took off their aprons and tested the boundaries of what society thought Because I had such a fondness for paper dolls while growing up, I decided to use that format to detail the lives of these inspiring women. Each garment on the quilts is a miniature quilt itself, attached to the main quilt with Velcro so on can actually move the dresses on to the doll and “play paper dolls”. I have lived with each of these women in turn while working on their tributes and I have come to think of them as members of my own family. They are all my grandmothers, teaching me, and others who view the exhibit of these quilts, about the true breadth and scope of “women’s work”. That is a term that is almost pejorative, referring to the menial work of keeping a house and child rearing or to most type's of needle- work. It is true that “woman’s work” applies to these most important areas of our lives, but for these women and for most women today, these narrow roles are not enough. Personally, it is not enough to have any needle art thought of in the context of “women’s work” and that is why this tribute is stitched. I love that the lowly needle and thread can surpass their traditional roles to produce art that vies with that of brush and canvas. |
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worn for special occasions. Each of Ella’s “outfits” are attached to a poster that describes a place where she performed at a pivotal time in her career. Also mentioned are the names of others in her field who either promoted her career or celebrated it. |
Jean Ritchie Jean is the second woman I have chosen to represent in my series about inspiring women. Because the paper doll was such a favorite toy for me as a girl, I delight in making quilts that work just like paper dolls. I also find it interesting to tell someone’s story through the garments they wore for special moments in their lives. I chose to portray Jean as a child because I feel her whole life was formed by what she learned as a child in the mountains of Eastern Kentucky. Some of the words of Jean’s favorite songs are written on the quilt with garments that suggest something that those songs hold dear memories of. For instance, when she sang the Ballad of Fair Ellender as a child, she always thought of herself as Fair Ellender with long blond hair and flowing white gowns. Other songs evoke memories of being scared by her older brothers and sisters with songs and stories in the night or working in the field along side her father. Jean provided photographs of herself at various points in her life and these have been added to the quilt by way of Xerox transfers. The mountains are done in an old mountain traditional quilt making technique called string quilting. The only thing Jean asked me to put on the quilt was a dulcimer so there is one in each corner. |
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Martha Graham |
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Louise Nevelson She is depicted in and among the sections of her sculpture, Dawn’s Wedding Chapel II, created from 1959-1963. I admire Louise’s spirit and commitment to a life lived making art. Some of my favorite quotes describing her life philosophy are included among the sections of her sculpture. This quilt relies heavily on the techniques of appliqué and reverse appliqué and is executed in a monochromatic palette just as Louise’s sculptures are. It was hand quilted by Carmen Prewitt of New Columbus, KY. |
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and I hope my membership never expires. |
Rachel Carson |
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or to the job that she had in her long and interesting career. |
Lucy Martin Lewis Lucy is honored in this series for her excellent craftsmanship as a potter from the Acoma Pueblo and her life lived within a unique tradition. Like Jean Ritchie, she built her life around the traditions of her family and people. Yet despite this devotion to tradition, Lucy managed to have a personal vision about her pottery providing her a personal means of expression, not simply copying the patterns of the past, but tweaking them and adding her own design sense to the work. Lucy studied the ancient shards she found from time to time around the pueblo and even ground them up to use for grog in her pots; a unique way of keeping the tradition within her work. She always fired her pots with dung in the same manner as her ancestors and taught her children to do the same despite other Pueblo potters who have taken to firing their works in electric kilns. Lucy led a far more “normal” life than many of the other women portrayed in this group of quilts, but she graced her life with art, expression and tradition. The pattern forming the body of this quilt is one that Lucy used often on her pots. The colors, black, white and tan, are the only colors Lucy used in her pottery. Images of her designs and those of her ancestral people, the Anastasi. are appliquéd around the border. Her costumes reflect the everyday tasks and celebrations of her life. She is shown carrying water, carrying a baby, selling pots to tourists and dressed in her dancing costume and “Sunday Best”. Lucy loved dressing up and donning her beautiful jewelry. |
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Maya Angelou I have always wanted to honor Maya with a paper doll quilt because of her courageous life path and her devotion to art in so many different disciplines. Maya is a truth-teller who seeks to understand the deepest yearnings of the human heart and celebrates the beauty she finds in herself and the world around her. Maya’s quilt is meant to evoke an African-American spontaneous quilt made from what the quiltmaker has on hand. It is bordered with Kente cloth from Africa both to symbolize her life in Africa and her heritage. Book jackets, a playbill and a video cover help spotlight various accomplishments in her life. The African masks, once again, symbolize her affinity for Africa and African art. The tag in the top left corner is meant to represent |
CONTACT REBEKKA BELOW FOR MORE INFORMATION ABOUT HER WORK AND AVAILABILITY |
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