I often wonder how designs come into being. Sometimes ideas come to me in dreams–recently I dreamed up an entire quilt, stitching and all, and when I woke I hurried to sketch it before the image faded. In my dream I held my quilt in my hand, and I could turn it, and touch it, and see it plain as day. I wonder how Annie Bendolph conceived of this “Thousand Pyramids” quilt? It is such a marvelous example of how pattern, rhythm, and repetition can make simple forms sing.
I love Bendolph’s “One Patch” quilt, a simple patchwork grid enlivened by her dynamic juxtaposition of colors and patterns. I would love to turn it over and see the backing. One of my first quilts was a “one patch” quilt. They are easy to sew, but it is not easy to work out a pleasing composition between such a diversity of elements. The exercise really trains the quilter to think carefully about how to construct relationships between colors and patterns, and how to add texture–through stitching–to an already-complicated construction.
Visit the Souls Grown Deep Foundation’s website to learn more about Annie Bendolph.
it might be art 