I wanted to share a few photos from my visit to the Museum of Fine Arts, Boston (MFA) to see the exhibit, “One Hundred Stitches, One Hundred Villages: The Beauty of Patchwork from Rural China.” It was a small but lovely exhibit.
Patchwork vs. Quilt
For the most part, the pieces in the exhibit were not quilts – strictly speaking. A quilt, by definition, is three layers: a top, batting, and backing. Many of these are only the top. In fact, they displayed a few of the patchwork pieces in clear cases in the middle of the room so that you could see the back and the front, as you can see below:
About Chinese Patchwork
Here’s a bit more information from the MFA’s website:
“In rural Chinese villages today, women are creating dynamic patchwork textiles, as their mothers and grandmothers did before them. This art form, which evolved from ancient Buddhist and Daoist customs of monks dressing in patched rags to project a sense of humility, is rooted in practicality, with the fabrics serving as bed and window covers, door curtains, and children’s clothing. The vibrant abstract compositions demonstrate creativity and fine artistic sensibilities that flourish far beyond the borders of established Chinese art canons.
This exhibition presents nearly 20 kaleidoscopic Chinese patchwork textiles, which are rarely seen outside the villages where they are made. The textiles, coming from the Hebei, Shanxi, Shandong, Gansu, and Shaanxi provinces, reveal a wide variety of compositions, patterns, and techniques, which reflect local styles and individual aesthetics alike. Visitors can explore the historical impacts on materials and designs, and discover the personal histories and artistic intuitions behind the works. Improvising with available cloth, riffing on patterns, and injecting their own creativity, the makers have produced stunning and inspiring imagery. Though viewers familiar with American quilt patterns may be surprised to notice many similar designs, these Chinese works represent a tradition all their own.”
This is a photo they had on the wall of a patchwork piece hanging in a doorway:
And here is an example of what it might look like with light streaming through when you’re inside:
A Peek at the Exhibit
Here’s a look at some of the patchwork pieces that I liked the most from the exhibit:
Final Thoughts
You might enjoy reading THIS article from the MFA’s website where the question of purposeful design is discussed a bit. The women who make these quilts are working improvisationally with intention.
Personally, I felt like the exhibit gave me permission. For many years, I’ve love piecing quilt tops but hated doing the actual quilting. In fact, I have several patchwork tops (like this one and this one) that I’ve wondered if I can simply stretch over some stretcher bars and call done. And I feel like after seeing this exhibit, that the answer is YES!
What do you think? Can patchwork be an art form all by itself without the quilting?
