Quilts and Creativity

In my last installment of the “Learning from the Masters” series, I’m profiling Faith Ringgold. One of the first decorating steps I did in my studio when we moved to our current home was to put prints of Faith’s work on the wall above my sewing machine. Faith’s color-infused work speaks to me in a way few others do. Her painted and pieced quilts are well-known and in galleries across the globe.

I attended a lecture Faith held at the High Museum of Art years ago, and I was intrigued and surprised by what she had to say. The two most memorable ideas were:

• aging is good for an artist because it allows you to persist in your work
• after seeing the works of the Gee’s Bend quilters, she wished she had ignored her mother’s advice of “matching seams are a must”

Faith also talked of her struggle to be recognized in her community, saying no local museum had bought her work, so she donated a piece. It seems that biblical adage, “a prophet is not recognized in her own hometown” applies to many walks of life.

Things I’ve learned from Faith Ringgold:

• originality is recognized over technical precision. Faith was painting and writing on quilts before anyone else, and she was recognized for it early on
• all artists struggle with being recognized and accepted
• working in a series gives importance and context to your work. Faith’s series range from her personal struggles with weight, to race relations, and works of the great masters in the Louvre, just to name a few
• work big. Large pieces of art demand your attention

I hope you’ve enjoyed this series and learned some great tips from the masters of the quilting world, as I have. I’d appreciate hearing from you if you’ve found these posts useful and interesting. Again, here’s the schedule in case you missed any:

Monday: Sunday at the High

Tuesday: Gwen Marston

Wednesday: Ruth McDowell

Thursday: Deidre Scherer

Friday: Faith Ringgold