Quilt show at St. Paul's Lutheran church in Greenfield Ma

St. Paul's Lutheran Church Quilt Show

Greenfield, Massachusetts

April 25, 2003

by Patricia Lynne Cummings
photos by James Cummings

As we headed over the roads for almost three hours on this sunny spring day, we were filled with great expectations. The pre-show advertisements promised one hundred forty quilts waiting for us to see. To add to our eager anticipation was the thought that we would be meeting some good friends from Massachusetts and Vermont. When we arrived our four friends were already there. What a happy reunion!

Every nook and cranny of the church, both upstairs and down was filled with quilts of many different designs, both old and new. The most striking modern quilt that we saw was an 81” x 99” Baltimore Album quilt by Debbie Averill. The quiltmaker spent five years re-creating some published patterns and adding some of her own design. One striking block has a blue vase whose shape is actually that of her own silhouette. The colors were tastefully chosen, the workmanship excellent, and the red Sawtooth border, exquisite.

quilt show in the church

At the front of the church was a “flag” quilt called the “Mending America Quilt.” Designed by Nancy Gray, owner of the Sewing Attic School, Mission Viejo, CA, the quilt was put together by a group of 107 people, including children. It commemorates the deaths of all of the victims of the Twin Towers tragedy. The main fabric used came from the Marcus Brothers’ “With Respect” collection that was a reproduction of a patriotic feedsack cloth from WWII and it was dyed red. The white stars were made of ultra suede and sewn on by machine onto a blue background. The back has all of the names of those lost, embroidered on by machine. The quilt is presently touring the country, along with photos of those who made it and information about its making.

orange and yellow butterfly quilt

This show had something for everyone. Jim’s favorite was a bed size quilt with large yellow and orange butterflies by an anonymous quilter. It had the flavor of a ‘60s quilt, possibly a pattern derived from a magazine or a kit.** My personal favorite was an appliqué pictorial quilt inspired by the old houses on the street where Historic Deerfield, Inc., is located in Deerfield, Massachusetts. That quilt was three years in the making and was designed by Elice Davis-Pieropan, owner of 11 South Gallery-Workshop, on Rt. 5 & 10, Bernardston, MA. After the show, we went to the Gallery to see the current exhibit of wonderful paintings, dolls, and quilts. Particularly stunning is a quilt composed of many 4” blocks, reminiscent of the Jane Stickle quilt, all meticulously executed by hand and made by Elice’s sister from Maine.

**Since publication of this article, we were contacted by one of our readers, Melissa Velik. She shared the information that she noticed this particular butterfly quilt in a Better Homes and Gardens Patchwork and Quilting book published in 1977. In it, the quilt was called "Colorful, Contemporary Butterfly Quilt." Many thanks to Melissa for writing.

The Panamanian Mola exhibit at the Greenfield show was very interesting in that “Snoopy the Dog” was the main design of one, and the image of “Smokey the Bear” appears on another. The special display was shared by Melinda Garcia Watson.

molas

"Molitas" (little molas) above

We had a terrific time and felt that the show was well worth attending. The quilts ranged from reflective to whimsical, from demure and traditional to outrageously modern, from skillful to simplistic. The show captured the essential elements of quilt making. The quilters picked their colors and made their designs with resources deep within, from the place “where love resides.”

Quilters utilize materials at hand to create lovely items that often outlive them. The old quilts that we see today are still with us because someone cared enough about their maker and/or about the item itself, to conserve it, not just use it up and throw it away. The quilts kept through time form a continuous thread that holds the generations together. God bless the quilters!

See our file: "A History of Molas" from the Kuna Indians who live off the coast of Panama.